Manchester City host Real Madrid in the second leg of their UEFA Champions League semifinal on Wednesday and Pep Guardiola’s side are in red-hot form as they chase the treble.
Tied at 1-1 from the superb first leg at the Santiago Bernabeu last week, Man City have the slight advantage as the take reigning European champs Real back to the Etihad Stadium. Guardiola is chasing the holy grail of the Champions League as it is the one trophy City have yet to win and they’ve come so close to winning it on multiple occasions over the last decade. With Erling Haaland and Kevin de Bruyne in this type of form, City look unstoppable and this could be their year.
However, Carlo Ancelotti and Real have been here many times before and their experienced stars have guided them to yet another deep run in the Champions League as they have won a record 14 European cups and aim to stretch their own record further. There is a lovely blend of youth and experience in this Real side and although they may not dominate games they can win them in an instance.
All of the talk is around whether or not City will win the treble and the Premier League is almost sewn up (a home win against Chelsea this Sunday will seal a third-straight title) and they are favorites to win the FA Cup final against Manchester United. So, it comes down to this. Pep had the luxury of resting Kevin de Bruyne at the weekend and Ilkay Gundogan is stepping up masterfully at the business end of the season once again as he’s scored four goals in his last two PL games. Defensively City have found a great formula with their 3-2-4-1 and now it is all about getting their best players in the positions where they can hurt Real Madrid the most.
Speaking of Real Madrid, they have had the luxury of resting their stars as they won the Spanish Cup two weeks ago but were a distant second to Barcelona in La Liga this season. Ancelotti saw Antonio Rudiger and David Alaba handle Haaland in the first leg and they will have to have another dominant display, plus the midfielders ahead of them will also have to stop City’s main men purring. That said, Karim Benzena, Rodrygo, Toni Kroos, Luka Modric and Vinicius Jr are all capable of doing plenty of damage of their own.
The Man City medical team are only looking after one player at the moment in the form of Nathan Ake, who has now sat out the Premier League champions’ last two matches with a hamstring injury sustained against Leeds United earlier this month.
Last week, Guardiola affirmed that Ake was feeling “much better”, but the Dutchman has not made the squad for the second leg. With no other fitness concerns bedevilling them, the hosts ought to revert to a recognisable XI after an expected slew of changes at Goodison Park.
The well-rested De Bruyne, Jack Grealish, Bernardo Silva and John Stones are all primed and ready to be recalled to the starting lineup, as Grealish prepares to resume his feisty one-on-one battle with Real right-back Dani Carvajal following their first-leg fracases.
Similarly, Real Madrid have also the one injury concern to factor in for the second leg, and it also comes on the left-hand side of the backline, as Eduardo Camavinga limped off in the closing stages of their win over Getafe at the weekend.
However, Ancelotti immediately played down fears of a serious injury for Camavinga, who should be good to go at the Etihad, and the same can be said for David Alaba, Karim Benzema and Rodrygo, all of whom were not present in their recent top-flight encounter.
The visitors have also received a triple defensive boost ahead of the second leg, with Eder Militao and Carvajal back from Champions League and La Liga bans respectively, while Ferland Mendy completed 45 minutes of Saturday’s game following a long-standing calf issue.
With Militao back, reports from the Spanish media have claimed that Rodrygo could be sacrificed in a tactical shake-up from Ancelotti, who could deploy Camavinga in a more familiar midfield role.
Manchester City possible starting lineup:
Ederson; Walker, Dias, Akanji; Stones, Rodri; Silva, Gundogan, De Bruyne, Grealish; Haaland
Real Madrid possible starting lineup:
Courtois; Carvajal, Militao, Rudiger, Alaba; Kroos, Camavinga, Modric; Valverde, Benzema, Vinicius Jr
We say: Manchester City 3-2 Real Madrid (Man City win 4-3 on aggregate)
Apparently setting up to hit Man City on the counter once more, such tactics initially paid dividends for European specialists Real Madrid in front of their own fans last week, and discounting Ancelotti’s champions in Europe is often an act of sheer folly.
Following a cagey first leg, the goals ought to flow in Wednesday’s winner-takes-all affair, but with the free-scoring Man City juggernaut slaying every foe that steps before them at the Etihad – as well as a greater depth of attacking talent in reserve – Guardiola’s men should complete their revenge mission from 2022, punch their ticket to the final and inch ever closer to that hitherto elusive European crown.
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