Manchester City take on Barcelona in the quarter-finals of the Women’s Champions League today.
City have England international Lucy Bronze back available but are again without skipper Steph Houghton for the first leg in Monza. The Lionesses pair have not been involved in City’s last two matches.
While Bronze returns to action after her lay-off, fellow defender Houghton remains sidelined by a problem “in the Achilles area” sustained in the first leg of the last-16 tie against Fiorentina.
Regarding Houghton, boss Gareth Taylor told a press conference on Tuesday: “It’s one we anticipated would have settled down by now. It’s in the Achilles area, and it was in the first game against Fiorentina. I think it’s probably not settled down as quickly as we’d like, or certainly as Steph would like - she’s obviously really disappointed not to be here with the team.
“It’s really difficult to answer in terms of when she’ll be back. We’re hoping it’s not too far away, but we’ll always look at what’s the right thing for the player.
“We had this before, earlier in the season with many of our players, that we’re trying to see the bigger picture. As much as these games are big, we’re trying to see the bigger picture and make sure they’re back for us for the remaining run-in.”
Here’s all you need to know:
When is the match?
The game takes place on Wednesday 24 March with kick-off at 11.30am.
How can I watch it?
It is being broadcast live on BT Sport 2.
Subscribers can also watch the game online via the BT Sport website and the BT Sport app on supported devices.
Who is going to win?
Barcelona 11/20
Draw 23/10
Manchester City 11/2
