Manchester City vs. Bayern: Full Preview, Live Stream, Start Time and Schedule

Manchester City is in dire need of a win to keep its Champions League hopes alive as Group A winner Bayern Munich visits Eastlands. When the two teams met in late September, Mario Gomez scored twice to lead FCB past the Citizens.

City currently finds itself one point behind second place Napoli in the group. The Partenopei face a much easier matchup against Villarreal, a team that hasn't earned a single point during the stage, which means the Citizens' hopes are hanging by a thread.

The situation is a lot better for Bayern, which has already clinched a spot in the knockout stages. A 1-1 draw against Napoli are the only two points FCB have dropped during the group stage. They are certainly looking like a strong contender in the early going.

Where: City of Manchester Stadium in Manchester, England

When: Wednesday, Dec. 7 at 2:45 p.m. ET

Watch: Fox Soccer Plus and FoxSoccer.tv

Betting Odds: Manchester City -172, Bayern Munich +410, Draw +280

Player To Watch for Manchester City: GK Joe Hart

When a team needs a big win, it all starts with keeping things clean in the defensive third. That effort is usually led by the goalkeeper and few in the world are better than Hart when he's in the zone. If he can manage his second clean sheet of the tournament, it's be the first step toward victory.

Player To Watch for Bayern Munich: M Franck Ribery

It's unclear if Bayern will field its strongest lineup or rest some of its key players ahead of a tricky road test against Stuttgart on Sunday. Should he play, Ribery will be a pain in City's side as he seems to be for every opponent. The talented midfielder has two goals and an assist in Champions League play.

Key Matchup: Sergio Aguero and Edin Dzeko vs. Bayern back line

Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini has been rotating Aguero, Dzeko and Mario Balotelli up top, with the trio combining to score 28 goals in league play. Aguero and Dzeko started against Nowrich and had a lot of success. They'll need to be on the attack from the opening whistle to secure all three points.

What They're Saying

Mancini thinks opponents have been taking advantage of Balotelli's short fuse, which is one of the main reasons he's been using him off the bench. If the Italian sensation wants to take his game to the next level, he'll need to keep his temper in check (via ESPNsoccernet).

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"Mario has a lot of faults but I think the referee should understand that sometimes there are some players that provoke him.

Mario should pay attention and he should be clever. I can do nothing—only he is on the pitch. He should pay attention and think only about football and not other things," said Mancini.

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There's been an intense, yet friendly, battle going on between Thomas Muller and Arjen Robben for a spot in Jupp Heynckes' starting lineup. Both players are dynamic offensive threats when fit and in form, so it will continue to be a luxury as one can accept beginning the game on the bench (via Goal).

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"I've never seen Arjen as competition,” Muller told Goal.com. “I see him as my team-mate."

With Muller currently struggling with an illness, it seems likely that Robben will start against Manchester City in their Champions League clash at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday night.

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Prediction: Manchester City 2, Bayern Munich 1