Manchester City will face Italian side Atalanta at the Etihad later on this week as their Champions League campaign continues.

Manchester City (1/6)

Manchester City are considered to be one of the favourites to win the entire Champions League this season, and rightly so. In their last six games they’ve been in a pretty strong position, starting off with an 8-0 battering of Watford. They proceeded to defeat Preston 3-0 in the Carabao Cup, before switching it on in the second half against Everton in order to beat the Toffees 3-1. Then, they dispatched of Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions League and beat Crystal Palace in their last outing. However, they did have a blip against Wolves, losing 2-0 to Nuno’s side.

City have the ability to turn it on against anyone in world football and that should mean goals, goals, goals. It makes sense to back the over 2.5 goals wherever Pep’s men are concerned, and rightly so. They just seem to be one step ahead of their opponents in any and all situations, and that’s not a bad place to be in.

Atalanta (14/1)

Atalanta haven’t exactly been phased by their Champions League duties, although that doesn’t mean they’ve been playing particularly well in the competition. Their last game in the UCL ended in a heartbreaking 2-1 defeat to Shakhtar Donetsk, so if they want to qualify, they’ll need to bounce back against City. In the league, though, they’ve won three and lost two of their last five. They succeeded against Roma, Sassuolo and Lecce, but dropped points in incredibly entertaining games against Fiorentina and Lazio.

The Italian side guarantees one thing in their games regardless of whether it’s for or against them: goals. They leave it all out there on the pitch and there aren’t all too many clubs that can say that. Whether or not that’ll lead them to glory domestically and in Europe, though, is a different matter altogether.

Conclusion

Atalanta have been valiant in their efforts in the early stages of their maiden Champions League tenure, but we just don’t think it’s going to be enough for them. The Italian side are going to put up a decent fight against City and may even score, but Pep Guardiola’s men are too good to get anything other than three points. They’ll be desperate to retain their Premier League title, but European glory is arguably even more important for them.

Given the number of goals both teams tend to score and concede, the only logical move in regards to the 2.5 goals wager is to go for the over. The Champions League always serves up the kind of games that will be remembered for years to come, and this one will be no different.

Verdict: Back the home win at odds of 1/6 and the over 2.5 goals scored at odds of 3/10. (All odds are taken from bet365).

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