Manchester City and Sporting CP meet in the UEFA Champions League round of 16 second leg on Wednesday.
In a nutshell, City turned on the style and Sporting could not live with them. Josep Guardiola’s side burst out the blocks and were 4-0 up by half-time thanks to two goals from Bernardo Silva and one apiece for Riyad Mahrez and Phil Foden. Raheem Sterling added a fifth after the break, leaving Sporting to ponder where they go from here.
Predicted line-ups
Manchester City: Ederson; Stones, Fernandinho, Laporte, Zinchenko; Bernardo Silva, Rodri, Gündoğan; Sterling, Jesus, Grealish
Sporting: Adán; Inácio, Coates, Feddal; Pedro Porro, Ugarte, Essugo, Matheus Reis; Sarabia, Slimani, Nuno Santos
What the coaches say
Pep Guardiola, Manchester City manager: “I said after the first leg, that 5-0 was not the reality or the difference between our teams. But we found the goals quick; four shots on target, four goals. Sometimes that happens. When the result is good, it looks easy. I have a lot of respect for the job Sporting are doing.”
Rúben Amorim, Sporting coach: “We have to be aware of who we are playing against. We need time; we’ve taken a big step compared to last year. We still have one more game to grow. This isn’t over.”
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