The Blues face a tough challenge in their quest to defend their Champions League title in Madrid. However, it is a team they beat on their way to the final in Istanbul last year.
City faced Los Blancos in the semi-final of the competition last year. In the first leg at the Bernabeu, City were held to a 1-1 draw after a hard-fought battle. However, a 4-0 thrashing at the Etihad spurred the Blues to their first-ever Champions League title.
Real Madrid are no pushovers in this competition though, with 14 titles to their name, they are the most successful side in the competition’s history. They also defeated City in the semi-final of the 2021/22 campaign, coming back from 4-3 down in the first leg to win 3-1 in the second leg to get to the final, where they beat Liverpool for their 14th title in Paris.
City come into this game without defeat in this competition since that infamous defeat to Los Blancos in 2021/22. Their Round of 16 tie was against FC Kobenhavn, where two 3-1 victories saw them ease their way into the quarter-finals.
Real Madrid are undefeated also in this campaign so far, with their Round of 16 tie coming against German side RB Leipzig. It was a close matchup between the two sides, with Los Blancos sneaking a narrow 1-0 win in Germany in the first leg. They then managed to hold on to a 1-1 draw at home to see themselves through to this stage.
Both teams also have fine league form ahead of this game. City have yet to be defeated in 2024, whilst Real have only been defeated once this year, as they lost 4-2 to their Madrid rivals Atletico in the Copa Del Ray. However, they sit comfortably at the top of La Liga, whilst City sit third in what is a very close title race in the Premier League.
Team News
The Blues have had their fair share of issues with injuries in recent weeks, and that is no different ahead of this game. Defenders Kyle Walker and Nathan Ake have not travelled with the squad due to recent injuries. This is despite Walker having his first solo training session just days before the game is due to take place.
Josko Gvardiol has travelled with the squad to the Spanish capital after recent news about an injury he sustained during the Blues’ 4-2 victory over Crystal Palace on Saturday. However, manager Pep Guardiola has stated that the Croatian international is a doubt to be involved despite him travelling with the team.
John Stones has seemingly recovered from the injury he sustained whilst on international duty with England as he played 90 minutes against Palace on Saturday. Ederson was also featured on the bench in that game but there are still question marks over if he will start this game.
Real Madrid have no fresh injury concerns ahead of the game against City. However, Aurelien Tchouameni looks set to step up yet again in the centre-back role for Carlo Ancelotti for this game.
Whenever he has been called up to play that position, he has excelled. In the seven matches he has featured in that role, Los Blancos have not been defeated, winning six and drawing one of the games.
However, Ancelotti may have to be careful with his squad selection due to the yellow card rules. Jude Bellingham, Vinicius Jr, Eduardo Camavinga, and Tchouameni are all just one yellow card away from missing the second leg at the Etihad Stadium. Losing any one of these players could be detrimental to Madrid’s hopes of progressing to the semi-finals.
Players to Watch
With both sides possessing unbelievable talent, it is very difficult to select individuals to watch in this game. For City, Phil Foden is in unbelievable form in the Premier League. With 21 G/A in 30 matches this season for the Blues, he will certainly be a threat for Real Madrid to have to counteract.
Erling Haaland is also the obvious choice as he is finally returning to form after his injury. Being a vital piece to City’s treble-winning success last season and providing another 19 goals in 25 matches this season, it would be no surprise if he is on the scoresheet on Tuesday evening.
Rodri currently holds the accolade of being undefeated across all games he has faced for now over a year, with the Spaniard in no hurry to end that run anytime soon. With 137 line-breaking passes in the UCL this season, he leads the competition in that particular statistic. These passes could be vital to unlocking what is a solid Real Madrid defence.
Jude Bellingham has stolen all the headlines in his first season in the capital. Despite playing in a midfield position, he has scored 16 goals for Los Blancos this season, making him their top scorer. He has also either scored or assisted in all six of his Champions League appearances this season.
With all this at just 20 years of age, it will be a massive ask for City to be able to stop Bellingham on home soil. Vinicius has also been mightily impressive for Madrid yet again this year. Since their 2021-22 UCL campaign, he has the most progressive ball carries (373), most completed dribbles (97), and most importantly, the most goal contributions of any player in the competition (27).
Toni Kroos follows closely behind Rodri in the line-breaking pass metric with 127 completed for the German. He also has the best pass completion rate under pressure of any player in the competition this season, with 352 of his 371 attempts being completed giving him an astonishing 95% completion rate.
It is set to be another hugely important game between these two juggernauts in the Champions League, with the winner of Tuesday’s game giving themselves a massive advantage ahead of the second leg in Manchester.