"This is a dangerous game for Manchester City" – Chris Sutton makes prediction for UCL final between City and Inter Milan
Former Chelsea striker Chris Sutton has predicted a 4-0 victory for Manchester City in the UEFA Champions League final clash against Inter Milan at the Ataturk Stadium in Istanbul on Saturday (June 10).
Manchester City are set to feature in their second UEFA Champions League final in three seasons. They defeated holders Real Madrid 5-1 on aggregate in the last-four after beating Bayern Munich 4-1 in the quarter-finals.
Inter Milan, on the other hand, are set to appear in their first European final in 13 years. They made the most of their comparatively easier route to Istanbul, beating AC Milan 3-0 in the semi-final and Benfica 5-3 in the last-eight stage.
Writing in his BBC column, Sutton shared his thoughts on the upcoming continental summit clash. He elaborated:
"This is a dangerous game for Manchester City. Inter Milan are giants of European football but at this moment in time, Pep Guardiola's side are far superior. Everyone expects City to win but there must be the thought that they have been in this situation before – when everyone expected them to beat lesser teams, and they didn't do it."
Backing the Cityzens to beat Inter and lift their first-ever UEFA Champions League trophy, Sutton concluded:
"City's history in the Champions League since Guardiola took charge as their manager in 2016 does make you wonder whether they will somehow miss out again, but this could be seventh time lucky for him. It should be."
Both the finalists have already secured two trophies so far this season. While City have added the Premier League title and the FA Cup to their collection, Inter have won the Coppa Italia and the Supercoppa Italiana so far this term.
Chris Sutton opines on Manchester City star ahead of Inter Milan clash
Speaking to BBC, Chris Sutton cast some doubt over Manchester City star Erling Haaland's recent form. He said:
"Haaland hasn't been as prolific of late, with only one goal in his past seven appearances, but it's never been the case that City have just been reliant on him. Haaland is a machine, which is why he has scored 52 this season."
Haaland, 22, has been nothing short of a revelation for Pep Guardiola's side so far this season. Since arriving from Borussia Dortmund for an initial £51 million last summer, he has registered 52 goals and nine assists in 52 games.
Apart from Haaland, Manchester City have other stars to inflict pain on Inter Milan this weekend. Kevin De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva and Jack Grealish are all in fine form, while Ilkay Gundogan has also found his scoring boots of late.