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5 reasons why Manchester City will struggle against Paris Saint-Germain tonight | UEFA Champions League 2020-21

Neymar Jr. and Kylian Mbappe
Neymar Jr. and Kylian Mbappe

Manchester City have one of the most talented squads in Europe but they will have their work cut out for them against Paris Saint-Germain.

Manchester City will be hoping to ride the momentum from their Carabao Cup triumph over the weekend as they travel to take on Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League semi-final tie.

Pep Guardiola will be desperate to win the UEFA Champions League, which has stayed elusive ever since he took over at Manchester City. He will be up against a familiar foe in Mauricio Pochettino. The Paris Saint-Germain manager will be keen to dispatch yet another Champions League favourite on their way to the final.

Paris Saint-Germain have been in great goalscoring form of late and Manchester City will need to dig deep in order to eke out a favourable result tonight. Without further ado, let's take a look at five reasons why Manchester City will struggle against Paris Saint-Germain tonight.


#5 Manchester City's poor record in Champions League knockout stages

Manchester City v Lyon - UEFA Champions League Quarter Final
Manchester City v Lyon - UEFA Champions League Quarter Final

This is only Manchester City's second UEFA Champions League semi-final in the last decade. Despite all their domestic success in recent seasons, Manchester City have not been able to prove their mettle in Europe's grandest competition.

The last time they made it to the semi-finals was in the 2015-16 season when they lost to Real Madrid 1-0 on aggregate. Cityzens crashed out of the Champions League in the quarter-finals in each of their last three seasons.

Pep Guardiola will be desperate to prove his doubters wrong and get this City side into the semi-final but they will have to play out of their skin to get the better of Paris Saint-Germain. Manchester City have bottled it far too many times in Europe for the occasion to inspire any confidence in them.

#4 Manchester City's form has dropped off a bit in the buildup to the game against Paris Saint-Germain

Manchester City v Leeds United - Premier League
Manchester City v Leeds United - Premier League

Though they have seemed unstoppable for a while since the turn of the year, chinks have started to appear in Manchester City's armour. They looked to be cruising until Manchester United dealt them a 2-0 defeat at the Etihad in early March.

Although they did seem to recover from it quite quickly, they stumbled against Leeds United, losing 2-1 to Marcelo Bielsa's side who were reduced to 10 men. A week later, Pep's side lost the FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea. In fact, all of their last four wins have come by a margin of one goal.

They will definitely need to step it up if they're to make it to the Champions League finals and they will have their work cut out for them against a Paris Saint-Germain side that has enough quality to punish them for any error.

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