Manchester City vs Roma: Champions League match preview

A look ahead to Tuesday’s Champions League fixture at the Etihad Stadium

Ashley Cole in action for Roma (GETTY IMAGES)

Manchester City face a tough task in their must-win Champions League clash with Roma, who have won all six of their matches in all competitions this season.

The Italian club sit top of Group E after demolishing CSKA Moscow 5-1 in their opening fixture, with Gervinho, so often a target for derision during two inconsistent seasons at Arsenal, scoring twice.

City, who lost 1-0 to Bayern first time out after a dramatic strike from Jerome Boateng, go into the match having scored 11 goals in a week, following a seven-goal rout of Sheffield Wednesday in the Capital One Cup with a 4-2 league victory at Hull. The Roma defence should provide more of an obstacle - they have conceded just two goals in Serie A and Europe thus far, and are bolstered by the signing of Ashley Cole, who will make his first appearance back on English soil since leaving Chelsea in the summer.

The clubs have never met, but City will take heart from Roma’s decidedly mixed record against Premier League clubs, particularly away from home. They have failed to win any of their last nine matches on English soil, and Manchester was the site of one of the most humiliating defeats in the club’s history, when Manchester United trounced the Italian side 7-1 in the quarter finals of the 2007 Champions League.

KICK-OFF: Tuesday, 7.45pm

PAST THREE MEETINGS…

The clubs have never met before.

STATS…

Gervinho has scored 15 goals in his first 40 matches for Roma. The Ivorian had scored just six by this point in his Arsenal career.

Roma last won in England on February 22, 2001, when a single goal from Gianni Guigou was enough to beat Liverpool in the second leg of their UEFA Cup fourth round tie. Even then, Liverpool progressed 2-1 on aggregate.

Manchester City completed 352 successful passes at Bayern Munich out of 418 attempts. Their hosts completed 521 out of 598.

Sergio Aguero scored six goals in five games in last year’s Champions League group stage, the most by any Manchester City player.

ODDS…

Man City to win: 1.65

Roma to win: 5.00

Draw: 4.00

TV: Live on ITV1 at 7.45pm, highlights on Sky Sports 5 at 10.00pm and ITV1 at 10.40pm.