The 2022/23 European football season comes to its peak this weekend as Manchester City face Internazionale in a stellar Champions League final in Istanbul.
This is do or die for Manchester City. The most dominant team in England has an opportunity to cap off what has been the most illustrious period in the club's history by finally claiming the trophy that has eluded them and their manager for years.
Not only that, but they can complete an unprecedented (for them) and historic treble winning season with a win here, something that would equal the crowning achievement of their greatest rivals and something no other English club outside of Manchester has hitherto managed.
No pressure, then, but this game could not be any bigger for City and many fans may not like the fact that their tag as overwhelming favourites is leading many to simply disregard their opponent's chances - something that Inter will no doubt be using as fuel coming into this game.
Regardless, City have been scintillating in the second half of the season and they enter this game having lost just one of their last twenty-seven matches, a defeat that likely would not even occurred had they not already sewn up the Premier League title before they travelled to Brentford with a weakened team.
Their most recent encounter saw them beat city rivals Manchester United 2-1 in the FA Cup final at Wembley last weekend, and they'll be thankful to have played that game because there was some clear rustiness to their play with several players returning from minor injuries having hardly trained in nearly a fortnight.
As such, City should be close to their best here and both they and everyone else knows that if they perform to the fullest of their abilities no side in Europe can stop them winning.
It's much easier said than done considering the amount of pressure they're under, but they have to be considered overwhelming favourites here.
Inter are gearing up to play what most people consider a shock Champions League final.
Few would have predicted Inter to reach this stage of the competition coming into this season but the luck of the draw presented them with a favourable pathway to Istanbul and they grabbed the opportunity with both fans.
Similar to their opponents, Simone Inzaghi's side started the season off poorly but have improved markedly in the second half of the season and they enter this game having lost just one of their last thirteen games, also winning their last three on the bounce.
Star striker Lautaro Martínez is bang on form coming into this game having scored four goals in his last five games, including a brace in the Coppa Italia final, so the Italian giants could not be coming into this game in better shape.
Inter have a herculean task at hand trying to topple this City side but while they are underdogs they're very, very live and possess a number of players who can pose a huge threat to Pep Guardiola's side.
This is a hugely interesting final and one that should not disappoint. Advantage City, but don't write off the Italians.
For our Manchester City vs. Inter prediction, we're going for a 2-1 win for the Premier League side.
Don’t forget to check out the rest of our previews, tips and offers for this weekend’s action.
