FC Basel–Manchester City
UEFA Champions League Last-16 First Leg
13.2.2018
Having extended their lead at the top of the Premier League table, Manchester City now turn their attention towards Europe, heading to Switzerland for the first leg of the Champions League Last-16 clash against FC Basel. A 5-1 thrashing of Leicester City last weekend combined with Manchester United’s shock loss at Newcastle moved Pep Guardiola’s men 16 points clear of their domestic rivals, but their next opponents will be no pushovers.
Indeed, Basel boast a win over United already this term but trail rivals Young Boys by five points in the Swiss Super League title race. They won eight consecutive games before the winter break but returned with a loss against Lugano before bouncing back this past weekend to defeat FC Thun by 2-0.
Manager Raphaël Wicky has alternated between a 3-4-3 formation and a 4-4-2 system this term, and he is widely expected to opt for the latter for this clash. The team plays largely to create chances for joint-top scorer Ricky van Wolfswinkel who has recovered well after a prolonged spell on the sidelines due to injury.
For City, it will certainly be a continuation of what they have done so well this term, lining up in the 4-3-3 framework so synonymous with Guardiola’s possession-based approach. That allows them to retain the ball remarkably well while overloading opponents in various areas of the pitch, but they are equally capable of striking at speed on the counter attack thanks to the pace for their forward line.
While the English side have lost just two of their 40 competitive games this term – and one of those was a dead rubber against Shakhtar Donetsk – Basel might well be buoyed to note that they have won just two of their last five away games. However, City will expect to improve that record here despite a number of injury concerns as kick off approaches, most notably as long term absentees Gabriel Jesus and Benjamin Mendy remain on the sidelines. The loss of the latter amplified as Fabian Delph continues to miss out with with a knee problem, meaning either Danilo or Oleksandr Zinchenko will start at left-back.
The latter was one of the changes City made to their Champions League squad list before the knockout stages, alongside the addition of club record signing Aymeric Laporte. The Frenchman, along with John Stones, Nicolas Otamendi and captain Vincent Kompany will now battle for two places in central defence, but it remains to be seen whether David Silva or Leroy Sané will return in time for the visit to St. Jakob-Park.
Basel largely moved away from their three-man defence after lynchpin Manuel Akanji joined Borussia Dortmund in January, while Renato Steffen also moved to Germany during the winter break. Valentin Stocker returned to the club and should play on the right instead, but goalkeeper Germano Vailati is certain to miss out and doubts remain over the fitness of key midfielder Luca Zuffi.
FC Basel (4-4-2): Vaclik; Lang, Suchy, Balanta, Petretta; Stocker, Frei, Xhaka, Elyounoussi; Van Wolfwinkel, Oberlin
Manchester City (4-3-3): Ederson; Walker, Otamendi, Laporte, Danilo; Gundogan, Fernandinho, De Bruyne; Bernardo Silva, Aguero, Sterling
