Man City and Sevilla meet in the 2023 Uefa Super Cup at Stadio Georgios Karaiskakis, Piraeus, on Wednesday, 16 August from 20:50 CAT.
European champions Man City are taking on Uefa Europa League winners Sevilla in the traditional opener to the new Uefa club competition season.
The sides have met four times in Uefa club competition, with City winning all four games (including two in the 2022/23 Champions League group stage). However, Sevilla have been much improved since the arrival of José Luis Mendilibar as coach in March 2023, notably eliminating City’s neighbours Man United en route to winning the Europa League for the seventh time.
This is first-time European Cup-winners City’s maiden Super Cup, while Sevilla have already been here six times before (all as Uefa Cup or Europa League winners). However, they are on a five-game Super Cup losing streak after beating Barcelona 3-0 on their debut in 2006.
Predicted line-ups
Man City: Ortega; Walker, Akanji, Gvardiol, Aké; Rodri, Kovacic; Foden, Álvarez, Grealish; Haaland
Sevilla: Bounou; Jesús Navas, Badé, Gudelj, Acuña; Jordán, Rakitic; Ocampos, Suso, Óliver Torres; En-Nesyri
Do the European champions usually win?
Uefa Champions League winners Real Madrid lifted the trophy in 2022, but this pattern does not always apply. The European Cup/Uefa Champions League holders have won 27 of the 47 editions.
Expert predictions
Matthew Howarth, Man City reporter
City’s penalty shoot-out defeat to Arsenal in the FA Community Shield will only have increased their determination to claim their first silverware of what many expect to be another hugely successful campaign. In Ilkay Gündogan, Pep Guardiola may have lost one of the key protagonists of last season’s treble win, but Croatian duo Mateo Kovacic and Joško Gvardiol are exciting acquisitions. The City boss may experiment in Piraeus, but he will be confident his team is too strong for Sevilla.
Graham Hunter, Sevilla reporter
Despite Sevilla’s positive and productive pre-season, including defeating the team which beat Man City in a recently friendly [Atlético Madrid], this paints as a slightly uphill battle for the Europa League winners. But this is not a problem which has much daunted Los Rojiblancos since Mendilibar took over. They’ve absolutely thrived on an underdog status. One or two minor injuries and one or two players still to be properly registered with LaLiga means this won’t be Sevilla at 100 per cent yet. But they will be smart, competitive and full of ambition as per usual.
View from the camps
Pep Guardiola, Man City manager: “You cannot imagine how happy we are to play this game, because we have won the Champions League. We have to take this opportunity; who knows when we will be back? Sevilla will not be easy. When they play well, they win. They have great character and resilience, and I have the feeling that it will make them dangerous against us.”
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Rodri, Man City midfielder: “Sevilla have shown that they are always competitive. They’ve been sensational in Europe the last few years. We have to show our best level to beat them. Finals are always complicated. It will be even, and Sevilla have their weapons. We must focus on our own game and how to cause trouble to them.”
José Luis Mendilibar, Sevilla coach: “We have to maintain our ideas and try to impose our own football even if we are against the best team in Europe. The side I choose won’t be too different from the last few matches we played in the Europa League last season even if City are a very different, much quicker rival than Roma were.”
Nemanja Gudelj, Sevilla midfielder: “We are very excited about the game. We are confident and looking forward to this beautiful match starting. The results against City in the Champions League group stage [last season] aren’t much of a guide. This is a new season and both teams have new players.”