Porto v Manchester City: Champions League predictions, free betting tips & TV

Free football tips, best bets and analysis for Porto v Manchester City in the Champions League on Tuesday.

Where to watch

BT Sport 3, 8pm Tuesday

Best bet

Draw
1pt 3-1 general

Team news

Porto
Ex-Liverpool man Marko Grujic is suspended. Veteran defender Pepe (foot) is injured.

Manchester City
Striker Sergio Aguero and defender Nathan Ake are out.

Match preview

Porto and Manchester City have proved their defensive fortitude in the Champions League and more of the same on matchday five would see both achieve the goals they set themselves at the start of the campaign.

A 0-0 draw (or indeed any draw) would be enough for City to secure top spot in Group C while also helping Porto book their place in the last 16 as group runners-up.

A mutually agreeable carve-up is unlikely but there are grounds for thinking this won't be a cavalier free-for-all contest, especially coming in the midst of a gruelling autumn campaign for so many players.

Since the teams met in Manchester on matchday one, when City came from behind to win 3-1 and take a stranglehold of the section, each has played three times, winning to nil against section rivals Marseille and Olympiakos.

Clearly both teams can show defensive strength so the draw becomes a decent option, especially at 3-1.

City, inevitably, are odds-on and if they play the way they did in Saturday's 5-0 thrashing of Burnley then they become hard to ignore. However, that would probably require Porto to play like out-of-form Burnley, which is unlikely.

It wasn't too long ago that City were losing badly at Tottenham or struggling to break down Leeds, West Ham and Sheffield United, bossing possession every time but not always looking sharp in front of goal. The absence of their ace predator Sergio Aguero is a massive factor.

Porto were not outgunned in Manchester in October in a game which was a little flat. There were just 15 chances carved out with City scoring with three of their nine efforts, one an Aguero penalty, after Luis Diaz had fired the Portuguese champions in front.

The Dragons were going through a rocky patch at the time – they also played four Primeira Liga matches in October and failed to win three of them – but Sergio Conceicao's men are back on song having won five in a row.

They don't look prolific up front – Moussa Marega, prolific at the end of last term, has bagged just one in his last ten – with Sergio Oliveira their top scorer contributing seven goals from midfield.

The Dragons know what is required of them and, against a City side likely to be reshuffled after the weekend, they ought to be good enough to get the draw that suits both teams.

Key stat

Manchester City have scored in each of their last 17 Champions League ties played outside England.

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