City host CSKA Moscow on Wednesday night in Group E and are currently two points behind Roma, who face a tricky away fixture against giants Bayern Munich.

The anxiety at the Etihad in the closing minutes of the Manchester derby that gripped the fans and transmitted to the players cannot go on if City are to mount a charge for the Champions League knockout stages.

City take on Alan Pardew’s Newcastle United in the fourth round of the Capital One Cup at The Etihad ahead of Sunday’s game against Manchester United.

City are on the brink of Champions League elimination while the Premier League already seems destined for London pacesetters Chelsea

Dutch manager Van Gaal labelling last week’s 2-2 draw at the Hawthorns United’s best performance of the season will not have inspired confidence ahead of a tough month, starting with Chelsea on Sunday

West Ham have not enjoyed their recent encounters with Man City, including a 9-0 thrashing on aggregate in the Capital One Cup in January as the team prepare to clash on Saturday.

CSKA Moscow were ordered to play the game against City, which ended 2-2 after the Russians equalised late on, behind closed doors because their fans had displayed far-right banners against AS Roma last month and racist behaviour last season

City must win tonight in the Champions League to have any realistic hopes of qualifying from Group E having only picked up one point from their opening two games

Uefa president Michel Platini’s support for the sin-bin rule to be applied in football has brought about the question of whether the beautiful game is going through too many changes

Pep Guardiola’s personal ambition to one day manage Manchester United is again hitting the headlines in Spanish journalist Martí Perarnau’s latest book Pep Confidential

The Red Devils have won two consecutive league games after a turbulent start to the season and now sit in fourth place in the fledgling Premier League standings