Ajax v Man City: Second half to provide the action here
Published:Roberto Mancini is desperate for a Champions League win after Man City suffered setbacks in their opening two encounters and the Italian dare not afford himself a second successive group-stage exit.
City’s only loss this season came in unfortunate circumstances at the Bernabeu, yet they have been far from their slick best this season, stuttering to wins at West Brom and Fulham in their most recent away trips. This deems their 8/11 price a touch on the short side ahead of their visit to Ajax.
Edin Dzeko, however, will be dying to get back out on the road with his side; he’s notched four goals in City’s last three away games. He’s 5/1 to be the last man on target in the Amsterdam Arena, while he’s as short as 5/4 to bag at any time against an Ajax defence who have become unfamiliar with the art of keeping clean sheets of late.
They’ve managed just three in 11 games this season, which is surprising given the fact that they’re unbeaten in the Eredivisie, and have shipped eight goals in their last three outings.
Their most recent games have been all about second half capitulations, with Ajax leading at the break and going on to draw in their last two, while they allowed Real Madrid to score three times in the second 45 as they went down to a 4-1 defeat.
For the Amsterdam club to go in at the break ahead and end up drawing in this one is a massive 14/1, while for City to turn a half-time deficit into a victory at the final whistle is even bigger at 20/1.
In addition to this, Ladbrokes have got over 2.5 second-half goals to be scored chalked up at 11/4. This could be worth a punt as both of these sides have achieved the feat 11 times between them already this term.
All odds and markets accurate as of publication’s time and date
