GROUP A: Manchester City v Napoli: Venue: Etihad Stadium Kick-off: 7.45 On TV: Setanta Ireland, Sky Sports 2:MANCHESTER CITY are about to step into a brave new world and when it comes to the significance of the moment, it is probably worth reminding ourselves that the last time they were in the same position was in the weeks before Nasa sent its first manned Apollo mission into orbit and Led Zeppelin played their debut gig.
City never did fulfil Malcolm Allison’s claim that it was a case of “Next stop Mars”.
The team that swept into the 1968-69 European Cup did so with Allison talking of a competition filled with cowards. City were paired against Fenerbahce, drew the home leg and lost 2-1 in Istanbul. They have been to Macclesfield, Mansfield Town and Midtjylland since then – but never Mars.
Yet it is not entirely correct to think of this being a team of complete newbies ahead of Napoli’s visit for the opening game of Group A. Roberto Mancini has 14 players who have played in the competition before.
Yaya Toure and Carlos Tevez are former winners, with Barcelona and Manchester United respectively, while Owen Hargreaves, who shared the podium with Tevez in 2008, can be brought into the 25-man list in the knockout stages.
They do, however, have the toughest assignment of all the English clubs. Bayern Munich, the four-times winners, have scored 16 goals and conceded only one in five Bundesliga games.
Villarreal were the next best thing to Barcelona, Real Madrid and Valencia last season.
Napoli, also Champions League debutants, have the disadvantage of having played only one fixture this season, compared to City’s five, but will be a challenge.
Ezequiel Lavezzi has kept Sergio Aguero out of the Argentina team in recent months. Edinson Cavani scored 26 goals in Serie A last season and Marek Hamsik is a midfielder of guile and influence.
“It is probably the only group where all four teams can win the group or finish fourth,” Mancini said. “It could have been a lot easier.”
The flip side is that the high calibre of opponents adds to the excitement after previous forays into the convoluted Europa League.
City’s training session yesterday was most notable for the involvement of Gareth Barry and James Milner, both of whom had been expected to miss the match because of injury.
Barry is in the slightly more advanced condition and could return to partner Yaya Toure in 4-2-3-1 system.
Mario Balotelli is suspended until the fourth group game because of his red card against Dynamo Kyiv last season.
Guardian Service
