Struggling Borussia M’gladbach will be hoping to make amends for the heavy loss to Sevilla when they take on Premier League giants Manchester City. The Citizens, on the other hand, have lost three of last four matches on all fronts, and they are desperate to return to winning ways at Borussia Park.

Six-match losing run comes to an end

Borussia M’gladbach had several unsuccessful attempts to reach the Champions League group stages before finally succeeding in their quest this term, with third-place finish in German Bundesliga securing them a place in this year’s competition. But, it is now clear that the timing of Christoph Kramer and Max Kruse’s departure was not right, even if the club gave it their best to sign proper replacements. Nevertheless, the team just could not find a way to compensate for the absence of two key players from last season and they had a shocking start to the new campaign. Namely, Borussia went on to lose six straight matches, conceding 15 goals in the process, before finally showing some improvement. However, comfortable triumphs over Bundesliga relegation strugglers Augsburg and Stuttgart will not exactly prepare die Fohlen for what awaits them in the clash against star-studded Manchester City side, and we don’t see how the hosts are going to avoid another disappointing defeat.

There have been no fresh injuries reported in the Borussia camp, although centre-back Alvaro Dominguez could return to the starting line-up.

Three defeats in last four

The bright start to the season hinted that Manchester City could go on to achieve great things, especially given some high-profile arrivals in the summer transfer window. Chances are that the likes of Sterling, Delph, De Bruyne and Otamendi will all develop into important players for the Citizens, but not everything has gone according to plan following the opening five wins. Injuries to a number of first team regulars clearly took the wind out of team’s sails and Manchester City in turn only managed to win one of next four games, while suffering three disappointing defeats. The reality is that Manuel Pellegrini’s side probably deserved more from each of those games, and that is one of the reasons why we are backing them to turn things around. City’s Champions League experience should prove a major asset when facing a side like Borussia and the expected return of David Silva, Joe Hart and Vincent Kompany should provide another major boost.

The trip is expected to be available for the clash at Borussia Park, but now Yaya Toure misses out through injury.

Verdict

The 3-0 defeat to Sevilla proved that Borussia are still not ready to play at this level and we expect the match against Manchester City to back up the claim. The Citizens, on the other hand, will be buoyed by the return of their key men and we are backing them to win this match.

Top pick: Away win   1.91 (10/11) @William Hill

Alternative pick 1: Man City/Man City   3.00 (2/1) @888sport

Alternative pick 2: Man City -1.5 AH   3.30 (23/10) @Unibet