Blues to seal top spot?
Victory for City will put the Blues on 15 points with one game to play.
Should Napoli beat or draw with Shakhtar, City will win the group. If Donetsk win, the Blues will need to avoid a defeat of more than one goal in the Ukraine to claim pole position with head-to-head results and score-lines needed to separate the two teams.
City beat Shakhtar 2-0 in September, but Shakhtar have won their other three games and know a draw in Naples will guarantee at least runners-up spot and progression to the Round of 16 – if Napoli win, Shakhtar will need a result against City or else risk Napoli pipping them at the post.
It will be a lot clearer after Tuesday’s games!
Feyenoord form
Feyenoord arrive at the Etihad in poor form having won just one of their past eight games in all competitions.
Domestically, the defending champions are struggling to keep pace with leaders PSV and are already 14 points adrift of top spot in seventh position.
The Dutch side can’t progress to the Round of 16, but winning their final two games could still see them leapfrog Napoli and clinch a Europa League spot so they may arrive at the Etihad and throw caution to the wind.
If they do – and they are likely to be backed by a large, partisan following from Rotterdam – it should make for an entertaining and exciting match.
Rotation
It’s hard to second-guess who will feature on Tuesday for City, though Pep has already indicated Yaya Toure, Ilkay Gundogan, Bernardo Silva and Danilo will start.
Sergio Aguero could play, unless the boss prefers to let him rest ahead of Huddersfield which could mean Gabriel Jesus starting instead.
Defensively, it’s hard to imagine Eliaquim Mangala not starting, but whether his partner will be Vincent Kompany or Nicolas Otamendi remains to be seen.
That leads to our next talking point…
Could Foden play?
City fans have been waiting for an opportunity to see Phil Foden play first-team football since his exciting appearances during the US Tour.
The teenage playmaker has enjoyed an incredible last six months or so and with Pep Guardiola certain to rotate his squad against Feyenoord, he will hope for a place on the bench at the very least.
Keeping the momentum
Despite already qualifying for the Round of 16 and fielding a much-changed starting XI, Pep Guardiola will want to win this game and win it well.
City could record a 17th successive win and stretch the unbeaten run to 25 games in all competitions.
Victory will increase the feel-good factor and the belief that no matter who plays, the personnel, philosophy and effectiveness of the system is maintained.
