Manchester City vs. Atalanta: Pep Guardiola’s men favourites to ease past attacking Italian side

It’s top against bottom in Champions League Group C as Atalanta make their way to the blue half of Manchester to take on Pep Guardiola’s side on Tuesday evening.

And the two sides couldn’t be more different going into the encounter. City sit top of the group thanks to two comfortable victories from their opening two games.

Guardiola has guided his side to two clean sheets in the 3-0 and 2-0 victories against Shakhtar Donetsk and Dinamo Zagreb respectively.

Manchester City odds on for Champions League success over Atalanta

City have been a force to be reckoned with in Europe this season. But it’s their domestic form that has been of concern for players, fans and coaches alike. Fortunately they can afford the luxury of resting several key players, evident in the opening day victory against Shakhtar.

Gabriel Jesus filled in for Sergio Aguero that evening and was on the scoresheet. The Brazilian is 15/4 to open the scoring against Atalanta.

They did, however, rely on the reliable Raheem Sterling to find the net against Zagreb. The England winger is 15/4 to score first and 8/11 to score anytime.

The Italian side are 12/1 to cause a major upset and take all three points away from their trip to England, after losing both of their two games so far.

Manchester face Atalanta in the Champions League tonight

In their first ever Champions League campaign, Atalanta’s idiosyncratic 3-4-3 formation has been exposed on Europe’s top stage. They lost 4-0 at Zagreb before falling 2-1 at home to Shakhtar.

They could be in for another heavy defeat at Etihad Stadium, with City 13/8 to score over 3.5 goals against an Atalanta defence bereft of confidence.

Both Atalanta and City have dominated possession and shots on goal in their previous European fixtures, so an open, end-to-end encounter awaits.

With the Serie A side likely to approach the game directly, and with the Premier League outfit keen to bounce back from some disappointing results domestically, goals can be expected. It’s 5/1 for five goals across the 90 minutes.

And Atalanta’s main threat Duvan Zapata will undoubtedly be at the centre of the action.

The Colombian striker bagged 23 league goals last season to secure a third place spot behind Napoli and Juventus. He’s available at 9/1 to score anytime throughout the game. And it’s 21/10 for him to score anytime.

The home side topped their Champions League group last season before crashing out to eventual finalists Tottenham in the quarter-final. They are on course for another stroll to first place finish in the group stages this time around.