Villarreal will host Manchester City at Estadio de la Ceramica on Tuesday, looking to pick up their first win of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League campaign.

Villarreal have picked up a defeat and a draw in the first two matches of the European campaign ahead of the game vs Manchester City. This will be a massive challenge for them, and it remains to be seen whether they can beat the Premier League.

Meanwhile, Manchester City have picked up a win and a draw from their first two matches. They will look to pick up a win away from home and continue their impressive run of form. Pep Guardiola’s men are coming into the game on the back of four wins from the last five matches in all competitions.

Manchester City will be the favourites here, and Villarreal will have to raise their performance levels to get something out of this contest. The Yellow Submarine are without a win in their last three outings in all competitions, and they need to step up to get the job done. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at th encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.

Team News & Tactics

Villarreal

The home team will be without Loigan Costa, Pau Cabanes, and Willy Kambwala. Villarreal are likely to shape up in a 4-4-2 formation vs Manchester City, with Luiz Junior in goal.

Pau Navarro and Alfonso Pedraza will start as the full-backs, and they will look to keep things tight at the back and nullify the wide threat from Manchester City. Rafa Marin will form the central defensive partnership alongside Renato Veiga.

As for the midfield unit, Dani Parejo and Pape Gueye will add control and defensive cover in the middle of the park. Tajon Buchanan and Alberto Moleiro will look to protect the full-backs and hit Manchester City on the break from the wide areas. Finally, Georges Mikautadze will lead the line alongside Nicolas Pepe.

Probable Lineup (4-4-2): Junior; Navarro, Marin, Veiga, Pedraza; Buchanan, Parejo, Gueye, Moleiro; Mikautadze, Pepe

Manchester City

Abdukodir Khusanov, Rodri, and Rayan Ait-Nouri remain sidelined for the away side here. Manchester City will shape up in their usual 4-1-4-1 formation vs Villarreal, with Gianluigi Donnarumma in goal.

Matheus Nunes and Nico O’Reilly will start as the full-backs. They will help out at both ends of the pitch. At the heart of the Manchester City defence, Ruben Dias will start alongside Josko Gvardiol.

As for the midfield unit, Nico Gonzalez will start in the anchor role, and he will look to dictate the tempo of the game from the deep. Tijjani Reijnders and Phil Foden will start as the advanced central midfielders. They will add control and creativity to the side.

Savinho and Jeremy Doku will add pace, flair and goals from the flanks, with Erling Haaland leading the line for Manchester City vs Villarreal at Estadio de la Ceramica on Tuesday night.

Probable Lineup (4-1-4-1): Donnarumma; Nunes, Dias, Gvardiol, O’Reilly; Gonzalez; Doku, Reijnders, Foden, Savinho; Haaland

Key Stats

• Villarreal are winless in their last three matches in all competitions.
• Manchester City are unbeaten in their last six matches (W4 D2).
• Manchester City have won their last two matches against Villarreal.
• Six goals have been scored in the last two matches between Villarreal and Manchester City.
• Pep Guardiola has never lost against Villarreal in his managerial career, facing them on eight occasions (W5 D3). The only Spanish opponents he has faced more times without suffering defeat are Athletic Club (14) and Valencia (10).

Player to Watch

Erling Haaland

The Norwegian striker is in spectacular form right now, and he is our key player to watch out for. He could make a big difference for Manchester City in the final third. Villarreal is struggling right now, and they are without a win in the last three matches.

The Yellow Submarine have looked vulnerable defensively, and Haaland has the quality to expose them at the back. Meanwhile, Haaland has scored eight goals in eight UEFA Champions League appearances against Spanish opponents, courtesy of four separate braces.

This is already the most times one player has scored two or more goals against Spanish sides in the competition’s history, ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo (3) and Kylian Mbappe (3). He would look to score goals here and create opportunities for his teammates as well.

Prediction

Villarreal 1-3 Manchester City

Both teams will look to pick up a win here, and this could be an open game with a number of goals. Villarreal are struggling with their form and confidence right now. It will be a difficult outing for them, and the Yellow Submarine are unlikely to come away with anything from this contest.

On the other hand, Manchester City are full of confidence, and they have the quality and the depth to get the job done. They are likely to pick up a comfortable victory away from home. The Hard Tackle predicts a 3-1 win for Pep Guardiola and his charges.