Following their respective successes on the European stage last season, Manchester City and Sevilla will compete for the UEFA Super Cup in Greece on Wednesday. The Spaniards, perennial heavyweights of the Europa League stage, are making their eighth appearance in this showpiece match, a total surpassed only by Barcelona and Real Madrid. Unsurprisingly for those who have followed Pep Guardiola’s long chase of the Champions League with this club, which culminated in triumph in June, this will be City’s first appearance in this game.
It is somewhat more than a friendly, slightly less than a serious piece of silverware. Here’s how to watch the game and everything you should know:
Information viewing
• Wednesday, August 16th | 3 p.m. ET
• Venue: Stadio Georgios Karaiskakis in Piraeus, Greece.
•CBS Sports Network | Paramount+ live stream
• Manchester City is -300, the draw is +400, and Sevilla is +800.
Storylines
Manchester City: Guardiola’s preparations have been hampered by Kevin De Bruyne’s hamstring injury in the victory against Burnley, his first competitive game since sustaining a similar ailment in the Champions League final. City are still deciding if surgery on the Belgian is necessary, although their first estimate was three to four months on the sidelines.
In the longer term, De Bruyne’s problem is anticipated to fuel City’s pursuit of West Ham playmaker Lucas Paqueta, a prospective substitute who could cover in midfield and wide on the right like the Belgian, but no one creates and scores like the 32-year-old. The responsibility will fall on the likes of Bernardo Silva and Phil Foden on Wednesday night — City aren’t hungry out there — but it’s a scary way to start a season.
Sevilla: Following a season in which they combined European glory with flirtations with La Liga relegation, Sevilla began 2023-24 with a disappointing 2-1 loss at home to Valencia and are battling to retain key players as their former recruitment chief Monchi looks to bring Marcos Acuna to Aston Villa.
Sevilla has only won one of their last six finals appearances, and their record versus City isn’t much better, with four Champions League meetings all ending in loss by an aggregate score of 12-3.
Prediction
Sevilla thrives as underdogs, but they will need to play well to avoid a humiliating loss against City.
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