Borussia Monchengladbach can enjoy Manchester City tie without pressure - View from Germany

Boss Marco Rose has called Pep Guardiola’s Premier League leaders “arguably the best team currently in the world”, ahead of facing them in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie in Budapest on Wednesday night. Eurosport Germany’s Marc Hlusiak says there is no expectation for Gladbach to pull off a shock, so they can enjoy the occasion.

Borussia Monchengladbach head coach Marco Rose has described Manchester City as “arguably the best team currently in the world” ahead of facing them in the Champions League last-16 on Wednesday.

The first leg is being played in Budapest, Hungary, due to Germany’s coronavirus travel restrictions.

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We have been catching up with Eurosport Germany’s football expert Marc Hlusiak to get his view on whether Gladbach have any chance of pulling off a shock (short answer - no!).

Has Rose already lost the dressing room?

Appointing managers for the future, particularly when they are already attached to a club, rarely goes well for the team which is about to lose them. Since Borussia Dortmund confirmed Rose will be arriving in this summer, Gladbach have drawn at Wolfsburg and lost at home to Mainz.

That followed wins last month over both Rose’s next side, and Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich.

“It's hard to see Gladbach getting a good result against the hottest team in Europe (despite Atlético) right now”, said Hlusiak.

“In addition to that, it could be possible that the news about Rose is having a bad influence on the team and how they are playing.

“To me, Gladbach seems more motivated when playing against big clubs. They find it hard to get going against smaller clubs.

“Maybe it has something to do with their overall mentality.”

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Attack the best form of defence?

With City going into the tie on the back of 18 wins in all competitions, it is a tall order to expect Gladbach to contain them, but Hlusiak believes one player can cause Pep Guardiola’s men a few problems.

Borussia Monchengladbach captain Lars Stindl

Image credit: Getty Images

“Gladbach has a strong attack”, he said, “the most dangerous player this year seems to be German international Lars Stindl.

“He has good experience, he’s the captain of the team and scored 13 goals in his 31 appearances.

“Stindl is a very smart player who often makes the right decisions. Whether it is to pass the ball to his team mates or to try on his own. He has a strong right foot and a good shot from distance.”

Do Gladbach have any chance of causing an upset?

“No” is Hlusiak’s short answer, but Rose has already taken the heat off by telling his players to “go out and enjoy” the fixture and that they need no extra motivation to face City.

Asked it they will be worried about the challenge, Hlusiak answered: “I think they won't be concerned at all.

“They will try to enjoy two extra games in the Champions League as nobody thought they would get out of a group with Real Madrid and Inter Milan.

“Now they play without any pressure. There will be no bad press in Germany, as long as they don't get defeated on aggregate by double figures”.

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