Sky Blue News: UCL Nights, Pep & Sergio, Riyad latest, and More...

It’s Matchday in Manchester, as Manchester City host FC Copenhagen at the Etihad. Here are all the latest headlines to catch you up before the match from Sky Blue News.

Man City vs Copenhagen: Live stream, TV channel, kick-off time & where to watch - Goal.com

Who, what, where, when, and most importantly how is the form?

Manchester City will take on Copenhagen in their third game of the 2022-23 Champions League on Wednesday. Pep Guardiola’s team will hope to carry on with their excellent form since the start of the season.

Erling Haaland’s stellar goalscoring has helped Man City rip their opponents apart. They registered a dominant win against Sevilla before getting the better of Borussia Dortmund previously in Group G.

Copenhagen lost to Dortmund but held Sevilla to a goalless draw to secure a point from two matches so far. They are set to take on the biggest challenge of their 2022-23 season when they come up against Premier League champions Man City.

Manchester City v FC Copenhagen: How to Watch, Preview, Team News and Prediction - Saul Garcia - Bitter and Blue

Saul has a little inside into our Danish visitors.

After Sunday’s win against Manchester United, City regained second spot in the Premier League standings winning six out of our first eight games in league action drawing the other two, with City scoring 29 and conceding just nine.

FCC have played 11 games in the Danish Superliga and currently sit in sixth spot, having won five games and losing six in league action.

It should be an interesting match.

Team News

City’s injuries are as so, John Stones,Kalvin Phillips, Kyle Walker, Aymeric Laporte, Rodrigo are all questionable

Everything Pep Guardiola and Sergio Gomez said in Man City press conference ahead of FC Copenhagen in Champions League - Joe Bray - Manchester Evening News

Bray details how City can come close to clinching the knockouts after just three matches in Group G.

City host Copenhagen in the Champions League, and can put one foot in the knockout stages with victory as they would move eight points ahead of their opponents with three games remaining. If Sevilla, who are level with Copenhagen on one point, fail to beat Borussia Dortmund, it would mean City need just one more point to qualify ahead of their trip to Denmark next week.

Guardiola will give an injury update on Kyle Walker, who limped out of the derby rout of United on Sunday, while Aymeric Laporte was a welcome returnee from injury of his own. Rodri missed the derby after picking up a late injury and Guardiola could offer a more detailed update on his condition, with John Stones and Kalvin Phillips also out injured.

Erling Haaland continues to be in electric form, although Guardiola may consider resting him at some stage, with this a potential opportunity to play Julian Alvarez instead.

‘I’M LIVING THE DREAM AT CITY’, SAYS GOMEZ - ManCity.com

True Blue Sergio Gomez is over the moon at the situation he has found himself in.

After a career path that has taken him across Europe from Barcelona’s Academy, through to Borussia Dortmund in Germany and Belgium’s Anderlecht, he made the move to the Etihad in the summer transfer window.

The switch to the Etihad also saw him reunited with Guardiola, who was in charge at Barcelona, when Gomez was part of the Nou Camp side’s Academy set-up.

And, speaking ahead of Wednesday’s latest Champions League Group G clash at home to FC Copenhagen, Gomez revealed how coming on as a substitute in Sunday’s 6-3 derby win against Manchester United was an extra-special moment he would never forget.

“I have always been a City fan, so for me it is a dream come true (being here and figuring in the derby),” Gomez declared.

“I used to watch the games with my brother back in the day.

“I always dreamed to be here and I am living my dream now.

Riyad Mahrez: Manchester City winger must ‘improve condition’ to win back his place, says Pep Guardiola - Mark Critchley - The Independent

Pep lays out the conditions for Mahrez to get more minutes.

Mahrez was only handed a 16-minute cameo in Sunday’s 6-3 Manchester derby win. His last 90-minute run-out came against Bournemouth back in August.

When asked what he wants to see from the Algerian, Guardiola said: “He knows it. I know Riyad perfectly.

“We need him, he has to come back to his best and at his best Riyad in terms of personality, quality, ability, his love for this game how he enjoys to play and step by step he’s going to come back.”

Pep Guardiola makes Erling Haaland declaration and throws down gauntlet to Riyad Mahrez - Kieran King - Mirror

The boss is confident the Algerian can find his way back to top form.

This has been a tactic of Guardiola’s for most of the season, with Foden impressing in that position. However, a player that has been made to sacrifice for Foden’s form is Riyad Mahrez, with the Algerian struggling for game time.

When asked about Mahrez’s lack of minutes, Guardiola said: “He has to come back in a better physical condition and after that the best will come because as a player I cannot teach him anything because he is so good.”

Erling Haaland already a near certainty for the European Golden Shoe - Roddy Cons - as.com

And finally... Shall we just give EBH all the trophies and be done with it already?

A number of different statistics can be used to illustrate the magnitude of what the Norwegian has achieved at the Etihad so far: he has scored 14 goals in eight league matches, 17 times in 11 games in all club competitions this season, has netted hat-tricks in three successive home fixtures and has become the fastest player to score three Premier League hat-tricks, doing so in 40 fewer games than Michael Owen, who is next on the list.

And the current European Golden Shoe rankings is another metric by which to measure his early-season success, with the majority of the other contenders near the top having played double or treble the minutes that Haaland has in the league this term.

The European Golden Shoe – in which only league goals are counted – is calculated using a points system, with goals in different championships worth different amounts of points and multiplied by different factors. The leagues ranked 1st to 5th in the UEFA country rankings (Premier League, LaLiga, Bundesliga, Serie A and Ligue 1) have a factor of 2, leagues from 6th to 22nd have a factor of 1.5 and all other leagues have a factor of 1.

There you have it Blues. Stay with Bitter and Blue throughout the day as we build toward the match. And follow along on Twitter with @BitterandBlue1. COME ON CITY!!!