Man City vs Copenhagen: Manchester City is on the verge of reaching their seventh consecutive UEFA Champions League quarter-final as they prepare to host Copenhagen.
The English club must maintain their lead after securing a 3-1 victory away at Copenhagen. In their first encounter on February 13, Manchester City marked their season with a perfect start, thanks to Kevin De Bruyne’s goal within ten minutes.
Although Magnus Mattsson leveled for Copenhagen on his debut, goals from Bernardo Silva just before halftime and Phil Foden’s late strike sealed the win for City.
The defending champions are showcasing their dominance again, having won all their group-stage matches this season, notably defeating Copenhagen 5-0 at home in the previous campaign.
Manchester City topped Group G with a perfect record, outpacing teams like Leipzig, Young Boys, and Crvena Zvezda.
On the other hand, Copenhagen has progressed beyond the group stage for the second time in its history, securing the second spot in Group A behind Bayern Munich and ahead of Galatasaray and Manchester United.
Manchester City continued their consistent performance in the knockout stages, reaching this phase for the 11th consecutive time and winning their last six round of 16 matches.
Conversely, Copenhagen’s only experience in the round of 16 was a defeat to an English team in the 2010/11 season.
MATCH FACTS
Manchester City holds an undefeated record against FC Copenhagen in European contests, tallying three wins and two draws, with their recent home match resulting in a dominant 5-0 victory over the Danish team in October 2022.
FC Copenhagen has struggled against English opposition in European matches, managing only two draws and five defeats, without scoring in their last four UEFA Champions League encounters in England.
Pep Guardiola, the head coach of Manchester City, maintains an impeccable streak, having never been eliminated from a UEFA Champions League knockout round after winning the first leg away, achieving this feat nine times (six with Manchester City, twice with Barcelona, and once with Bayern Munich).
This meeting signifies the fourth time FC Copenhagen has advanced to the knockout rounds of the UEFA Champions League, where they are yet to secure a win (one draw, two losses).
Their last away win in the competition dates back to December 2016 against Club Brugge, with only two goals scored in the six away matches that followed (two draws, four losses).
Manchester City is on the brink of setting a new record with their ongoing nine-game winning streak in the UEFA Champions League, inching closer to the historical milestones set by Real Madrid (10) and Bayern Munich (15).
They have also netted at least three goals in each of their last eight UEFA Champions League home fixtures, a feat matched previously by only Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, and Benfica.
In this season’s UEFA Champions League, Manchester City leads with the highest pass completion rate when under pressure at 90.6%, while FC Copenhagen holds the round of 16’s lowest rate at 76.2%.
Manchester City’s standout scorers in the UEFA Champions League knockout stages, Kevin De Bruyne and Bernardo Silva, have netted 12 and 11 goals, contributing to the scoreboard in their latest match against FC Copenhagen.
De Bruyne also provided an assist, bringing his total to 20 goal involvements in his last 22 knockout stage appearances.
FC Copenhagen’s Mohamed Elyounoussi, Viktor Claesson, and Elias Achouri have been the top performers in applying pressure in this season’s UEFA Champions League, with 683, 651, and 628 instances, respectively.
Phil Foden of Manchester City has been notably active this UEFA Champions League season, being involved in seven goals (four and three assists), his highest in any campaign so far.
He also leads the competition in delivering passes that disrupt the opponent’s defensive line, totaling 17.