‘We are expecting a tough challenge’ – Taylor previews Manchester City’s fixture against Hammarby | OneFootball

Manchester City head coach Gareth Taylor says that he is expecting a tough challenge when his side face Hammarby IF at The Joie Stadium this evening.

The two sides meet at The City Football Academy to contest their latest UEFA Women’s Champions League group stage fixture.

Manchester City have maximum points after two rounds of matches and will be the favourites this evening, however, Taylor sees opponents Hammarby as a threat.

“We are expecting a tough challenge there’s no doubt,” Taylor said when speaking in the pre-match press conference. “We are fully-aware of their strengths and areas where we can potentially exploit. We try as much as we possibly can to make it about us and what we do, where we feel the important parts of the game are going to be.

“They are a team that are capable in certain games. They’ve beaten Rosengård and I think they’re the only team to do that in their title-winning season. Obviously, one of our former players Julie [Blakstad] is there too, so we tend to keep an eye on things to see how she’s doing.

“It’s a big game for us, an important game for us. We are pleased to be back here playing at home and we are looking forward to the challenge.”

Hammarby crashed to a 9-0 defeat to European champions FC Barcelona on Matchday 2. Taylor felt that the result was more of a Barcelona reaction rather than a poor Hammarby performance.

He said “When I watched that game, I still felt that they came out and tried to engage and be aggressive. We have seen quite an aggressive style from them. The Pölten game was very fast, both teams really attacking a lot. There was a lot of attacking and defensive transition, so I don’t expect changes with that.

“I spoke about Barcelona after we beat them here at The Joie and said that the reaction from them would be very good. Why? Because they are the champions and this is why they’ve won a lot; their reaction will be to regroup very quickly. The way that they went out and hammered Hammarby was very impressive. I wasn’t surprised by that but do I expect this game to be the same? Probably not, because we know that sometimes, the margins are going to be really tight.

“I’m expecting them to be aggressive in what they do and we have to be prepared for that.”

The Hammarby fans are known for their fanatical support of their team and Taylor is looking forward to witnessing a fantastic atmosphere at The Joie Stadium this evening.

He said “I think it’s a good thing, it makes for an improved atmosphere. We had a good experience at the Etihad on Friday night against Tottenham where we were able to go to a wider audience. Of course, we love playing at The Joie Stadium and if that away support is good and noisy, then that’s great, it makes for a better atmosphere.”

Manchester City’s UEFA Women’s Champions League group stage fixture against Hammarby kicks-off at 8pm this evening. Tickets remain on-sale and can be purchased by clicking here.