Manchester City vs AEK Athens Preview

Both clubs lost on matchday two and sit on three points, with Manchester City going down 4-2 at home to PSG and AEK Athens losing 3-1 away at Shakhtar Donetsk. They meet at the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday night, with City 17th in the league phase standings and AEK 20th, split only by goal difference. City won their opener 2-0 and AEK won theirs 1-0, so each has one win and one defeat from two. City bounced back on Saturday with a 3-2 home win over Ipswich in the Premier League, while AEK’s last domestic game was a 3-0 home win over OFI Crete on 10 October. Neither side can afford a second straight defeat in a 36-team table. Kick-off in Manchester is at 8pm UK time.

Manchester City have won four of their last five, scoring 18 goals and conceding nine. Saturday’s 3-2 home win over Ipswich in the Premier League is the latest, and it was a game in which City conceded twice. Before that, PSG won 4-2 at City in the Champions League on 14 October, the one defeat of the five and the most goals City have conceded in a game in the run. Further back, they won 3-0 away at Liverpool on 11 October, 5-3 at home against Sunderland on 20 September and 5-0 at home against Norwich in the EFL Cup on 17 September. City scored at least twice in each of the five games and kept two clean sheets, at Liverpool and against Norwich. At the Etihad Stadium, they won three of their four home games in the sample, scoring 15 goals and conceding nine.

AEK Athens have won three, drawn one and lost one of their last five, scoring 15 goals and conceding six. Wednesday’s 3-1 defeat away at Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League is the latest and the only loss of the run. Before that, OFI Crete were beaten 3-0 at home in the Greek Super League on 10 October, the only clean sheet of the five. Earlier in the run, Volos were beaten 2-1 away on 20 September, Panserraikos 8-1 at home in the Greek Cup on 17 September, a thumping by any scoreline, and Asteras Tripolis held them to a 1-1 draw away on 13 September. AEK scored in every game of the five and have conceded in four of them. Away from home, they won once, drew once and lost once.

There is no previous meeting between Manchester City and AEK Athens on record, so both clubs sit on zero wins, zero draws and zero defeats against each other. With nothing to lean on from past fixtures, the home and away split in recent form is the clearest guide. City won three of their four home games in the sample at the Etihad Stadium, while AEK took four points from three away matches, with a win at Volos, a draw at Asteras Tripolis and the defeat at Shakhtar Donetsk. The visitors have conceded in all three of those away games.

Manchester City are 17th in the league phase standings on three points with a goal difference of 0, and AEK Athens are 20th on three points with -1. A win would take City to six points, though their position would depend on results elsewhere on matchday three.

In the UK, the match is live on TNT Sports 1 and TNT Sports Ultimate, with HBO Max streaming. Viewers in Greece can watch on MagentaSport 2, while in the USA it’s on Paramount+ and DAZN USA. In Ireland, TNT Sports 1 and HBO Max carry the game.

Possible Lineups

Manchester City — Form

AEK Athens — Form

Head to Head

Where to Watch

Table

Champions League Standings