Man City vs Viktoria Plzen - Team News, Match Preview & Likely Line-Ups

Date: Wednesday, November 27 Venue: Etihad Stadium Kick-Off: 19:45 Manchester City are guaranteed to at least finish runners up in Group D and have qualified for the knockout stages of the Champions League ahead of their clash with Viktoria Plzen.

Team News

Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini has put Joe Hart back in the side, with the England No.1 having not played since November 2 after being dropped. Captain Vincent Kompany is back in training following a thigh injury but this match will come too soon for the centre-back. Plzen manager Pavel Vrba has a fully-fit side to select from for the visit to the Etihad. (bbc)

Key Stats

City have only ever lost one European home game (excluding qualifiers) to a non-English side but that defeat came this season at the Etihad against Bayern Munich. Viktoria Plzen have conceded eight of their twelve goals-against in the second-half of matches, the joint-most of all Champions League teams along with Galatasaray. The Citizens have won their last two Champions League games €“ they have never managed three consecutive wins in this tournament. Alongside CSKA, Viktoria Plzen have conceded the joint-most goals in the Champions League this season (12). (eurosport)

Likely Line-Ups

Man City Hart, Richards, Lescott, Nastastic, Clichy, Milner, Garcia, Toure, Nasri, Dzeko, Aguero Plzen Kozacik, Hubnik, Prochazka, Cisovsky, Rajtoral, Horava, Horvath, Duris, Kolar, Petrzela, Tecl

Match Preview

Manchester City host Viktoria Plzen with morale higher than it perhaps ever has been at Etihad Stadium. The Citizens have qualified for the knockout stages of the Champions League for the first time in history and come into this clash off the back of a 6-0 thumping of Tottenham Hotspur. The mood is so good that manager Manuel Pellegrini has even handed outcast goalkeeper Joe Hart something of a repreive by sticking him back between the sticks against the Czechs tonight. Not that the England No.1 should have much to do. Plzen have only registered two goals during the group stages of the Champions League this season, and are the proverbial whipping boys of the competition with zero points. Only CSKA Moscow have a poorer defensive record than Plzen - both have conceded the joint-most goals in the Champions League this season (12) and neither will be in the knockout stages of the Champions League. Group D is pretty much wrapped up with the only two things left to be decided being who tops the table and who qualifies for the Europa League. Bayern Munich sit top on 12 points and City have an outside chance of overtaking them, while Plzen and CSKA will likely scrap it out for the consolatory prize of Europa League football on the final matchday. Preview 4-0
Contributor
Contributor

Joseph is an accredited football journalist and has interviewed nearly all of the current 20 Barclay's Premier League managers. He is also a correspondent for Bleacher Report and has written for Caught Offside and Give Me Football.