City, who were charged by the Premier League in early 2023 for allegedly breaching financial rules during a nine-year period, are still waiting for an outcome along with the rest of English football.

Bayer Leverkusen predicted lineup vs. Man City (3-4-2-1): Flekken; Quansah, Badé, Belocian; Poku, García, Maza, Grimaldo; Tella, Tillman; Schick. City are going to have to start winning big away games again if they’re to return to a dominant state, but they look comfortable on home soil.

Pep Guardiola has never coached a European competition game below the Champions League level and on Tuesday leads Manchester City in it for the 100th time. City hosts Bayer Leverkusen looking for a 14th straight win against German teams at home to extend a run that started before Guardiola’s arrival in 2016.

Erling Haaland is a phenomenal goalscorer, but even the best have an off day in front of goal, and he had one of his worst on Saturday against Newcastle. Only once has Haaland been more wasteful - based on xG - in a Premier League game than he was at St James' Park and that was in May 2023 at Brighton.

As Newcastle United fans wandered past the statue of Alan Shearer before kick-off at St James' Park, they would have been contemplating the unwanted irony of seeing one of the hero's goalscoring records snatched away in his own backyard.