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Manchester City are back in midweek action as they take on Sevilla in the Uefa Super Cup this evening. Pep Guardiola’s men triumphed in the their Champions League final against Inter Milan back in June, securing a treble in the process, and setting up this one-off match against the Europa League winners.
Sevilla are City’s opponents tonight after the Spanish outfit won the Europa Leagu, yet again, by beating Jose Mourinho’s Roma. They are well versed in Super Cup games having lost four of these matches of the last nine seasons while tonight’s game will be City’s first appearance in the Super Cup.
The Champions League winners have a second chance in three games to collect some silverware after they were beaten on penalties by Arsenal in the Community Shield at Wembley 10 days ago. In the interim they got their Premier League season off to a wonderful start with a victory 3-0 over Burnley and will hope to return to Manchester with another trophy under their belt.
Follow all the action and find out the latest odds as Manchester City take on Sevilla in the Super Cup:
Manchester City vs Sevilla
Manchester City take on Sevilla in the Super Cup
The Super Cup is played between the current Champions League winners and the Europa League champions
Man City XI: Ederson, Walker, Akanji, Gvardiol, Ake, Rodri, Kovacic, Foden, Palmer, Grealish, Haaland
Sevilla XI: Bono, Navas, Bade, Gudelj, Acuna, Jordan, Rakitic, Torres, Ocampos, Lamela, En-Nesyri
9’ SAVE! – Bono palms Ake’s header wide of the goal (MCI 0-0 SEV)
Man City 0-0 Sevilla
20:10 , Mike Jones
9 mins: Shot! Cole Palmer has Man City’s first real chance of the night with a driving shot from outside the box. His effort finds the target, unlike Lamela’s, but Yassine Bounou (Bono) clings onto the ball.
Save! City come again and win themselves a corner. Palmer curls it into the box and picks out Nathan Ake who nods the ball into the deck.
It bounces up to a comfortable height for Bono who leans to the left and palms the effort away!
Man City 0-0 Sevilla
20:09 , Mike Jones
6 mins: It’s been a decent start from Sevilla. Having lost the last four matches in the Super Cup the Spaniards will be hoping for a different result tonight.
Jesus Navas floats a cross into the box from the right and almost finds Oliver Torres who fancies a bicycle kick. He misses the ball and it loops up comfortably for Ederson to grab hold of.
Man City 0-0 Sevilla
20:07 , Mike Jones
3 mins: Manuel Akanji loses possession trying to run the ball through midfield. Sevilla work it to Erik Lamela who takes a shot from 20-yards but belts the effort well wide of the target.
Ederson was never worried.
Kick off! Man City 0-0 Sevilla
20:03 , Mike Jones
It’s been over 30 degrees in Athens for most of the day and it remains sweltering hot as Manchester City get the match started. They work the ball to Josko Gvardiol who is making his first start since joining the Champions League winners.
Manchester City vs Sevilla
19:57 , Mike Jones
Here come the team!
Kyle Walker leads out Manchester City in the absence of Kevin De Bruyne tonight. He’s carrying the Champions League trophy with him. Will the experienced right-back be lifting another trophy for City by the end of the night?
Kick off in Athens is up next…
Manchester City vs Sevilla
19:50 , Mike Jones
Manchester City have won all four of their previous meetings with Sevilla – all in the Champions League – by an aggregate score of 12-3.
Pep Guardiola, meanwhile, has won the Super Cup each time he has managed a team in the final, doing so with Barcelona in 2009 and 2011, and Bayern Munich in 2013.
(REUTERS)
Manchester City vs Sevilla
19:45 , Mike Jones
Sevilla have lost four of their past seven meetings with English sides in all European competition (won two, drawn one), as many as they had in their first 18 such matches (eight wins, six draws, four defeats).
They did beat Manchester United 3-0 in their last such game, however.
Super Cup is crucial to Man City’s season but it’s not about the trophy
19:40 , Mike Jones
Manchester City have never enjoyed so many spoils of victory. Pep Guardiola has tended to be justifiably irritated by premature talk of trebles and quadruples in past seasons. His side at least ensured the idea of the septuple was taken off the table by losing the penalty shootout to decide the Community Shield.
But, for the fourth time in five matches, there is a trophy at stake when City take the field in Piraeus this evening. There is the chance to make history in a historic place: as the chief port of ancient Greece, spoils of victory used to pass through Piraeus regularly.
City have become the 23rd club to win the Champions League. They could become the 25th to lift the Uefa Super Cup. It is an eclectic list: for City the aim otherwise these days is not to emulate Mechelen or Aberdeen, let alone Zenit St Petersburg. There is a case for arguing it was the summit of the powers of Sir Alex Ferguson’s Aberdeen: they beat Bayern Munich on their way to the Cup Winners’ Cup final, then Real Madrid in the final, then European Cup winners Hamburg in the Super Cup.
Super Cup is crucial to Man City’s season but it’s not about the trophy
Manchester City vs Sevilla
19:35 , Mike Jones
Manchester City are unbeaten in their last 13 matches in all European competition with eight wins and five draws -it is their longest successful run.
They have also lost just one of their past 11 meetings with Spanish opponents (eight wins, two draws).
Manchester City vs Sevilla
19:30 , Mike Jones
Sevilla have been runners-up in the Super Cup more often than any other side. Having won their first match in 2006, they have lost each of their last five appearances – 2007, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2020.
Kevin De Bruyne facing up to four months out and may require surgery
19:25 , Mike Jones
Pep Guardiola says Manchester City star Kevin De Bruyne faces up to four months out and could require surgery on a hamstring injury.
The 32-year-old was forced off in the first half of June’s Champions League final triumph against Inter Milan and did not play a single minute of pre-season.
De Bruyne returned from that hamstring issue as a second-half substitute in the Community Shield shoot-out loss to Arsenal and captained the side against Burnley in Friday’s Premier League opener.
Kevin De Bruyne facing up to four months out and may require surgery
Manchester City vs Sevilla
19:20 , Mike Jones
Man City will be without Kevin De Bruyne tonight after Pep Guardiola confirmed the midfielder is facing up to four months out because of a hamstring injury.
Portugal defender Ruben Dias is also out after a knock to the head in training while, England centre-back John Stones has a hip injury but could return to face Newcastle United in the Premier League on Sunday.
Manchester City vs Sevilla
19:15 , Mike Jones
Man City midfielder Rodri says his team have a hunger to win every trophy they play for as the Champions League winners prepare to face Sevilla in the Uefa Super Cup in Athens.
Treble winners City were beaten by Arsenal in the Community Shield but have another chance to lift their first trophy of the season tonight.
“We have to arrive with desire like we did our last finals,” said Rodri, “In the last finals we showed the level of hunger.”
Manchester City vs Sevilla team changes
19:10 , Mike Jones
Josko Gvardiol is handed his first start for Manchester City since joining in the summer as Pep Guardiola makes four changes from Friday’s 3-0 win at Burnley.
Cole Palmer, Mateo Kovacic and Jack Grealish also come in with Kevin de Bruyne unavailable after suffering a hamstring injury against the Clarets.
Sevilla boss Jose Luis Mendilibar makes two changes to his side who lost 2-1 against Valencia in La Liga. Fernando and Suso drop out with Joan Jordan and Oliver Torres coming in.
Manchester City vs Sevilla line-ups
19:05 , Mike Jones
Here are the confirmed line-ups for tonight’s match:
Man City XI: Ederson, Walker, Akanji, Gvardiol, Ake, Rodri, Kovacic, Foden, Palmer, Grealish, Haaland
Sevilla XI: Bono, Navas, Bade, Gudelj, Acuna, Jordan, Rakitic, Torres, Ocampos, Lamela, En-Nesyri
Manchester City vs Sevilla
19:01 , Mike Jones
Good evening and welcome to The Independent’s coverage of Uefa’s Super Cup which sees Manchester City take on Sevilla in Athens.
The Champions League winners have the opportunity to pick up more silverware when they face the Europa League champions in a one-off clash tonight.
Pep Guardiola’s men have never featured in a Super Cup before and will be up against a dogged Sevilla who have lost four times in the last nine editions of the match.
After missing out on winning the Community Shield 10 days ago, City will be hoping to return to Manchester with another piece of silverware before turning their attentions back to the Premier League.
