The Ligue 1 leaders visit the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday night in the last 16 first leg, and the defender insists his side are aware of the Blues’ threats.
“I wouldn’t say we’re the favourites,” he stated. “We’ve seen what City are capable of.
“They are a very good team. It is not easy to stop them but with our strength and qualities, we’ll be looking to put on a good performance.
“We’re here to win. We might alter slightly the way in which we play according to our opposition. They spend a lot of time in opposition penalty area. We’ll have to keep an eye on them. We’ll be playing our way.”
Asked of Monaco’s key strategies, Fabinho laughed: “I can’t pass on that information!
“What I can say is that we’ve analysed our opposition and we’re in good shape. We’re going to try and win the game.”
Both sides head into the game on the back of draws – Monaco’s a 1-1 tie with Bastia. Fabinho insists though neither side will be dwelling on the weekend’s results.
“We’ve put it behind us already,” he continued. “The game tomorrow will be completely different than playing in French league. We are focused on doing our best tomorrow.
“Big teams are going to be more careful after what PSG did against Barcelona last week. We must not give so much space. We’ll play our game. We will try and go out and get a good result.”
Manager Leonardo Jardim revealed all of his players who travelled to Manchester are in contention.
He remained coy when asked of his side’s chances of progression, and spoke of his admiration for City boss Pep Guardiola.
“You know me well: I am a realist,” he said. “You can compare the teams if you want – both teams like to have possession and have a lot of technically gifted players.
“The two sets of backroom staff work well together but there are some things you can’t compare.
“We have some high quality players but basically, it’s all about winning the tie over the course of the two games.”
