Manchester City confirm 23-man travelling squad to face Real Madrid in UEFA Champions League Last-16 First-Leg | OneFootball

Pep Guardiola and Manchester City head to the Spanish capital this week for their first-leg of the last-16 tie with Real Madrid in the Champions League.

City’s league phase campaign in the competition began with a 2-0 victory over Napoli at the Etihad Stadium, highlighted by Erling Haaland becoming the fastest player to reach 50 goals in the competition.

Despite mid-campaign stumbles including a 0-2 home defeat to Bayer Leverkusen and 3-1 loss to Bodø/Glimt, City remained resilient through convincing wins against Borussia Dortmund, Villarreal, and a final-matchday 2-0 win over Galatasaray to ensure a top eight finish to bypass the last-16 playoff round.

Arguably the defining moment of the league phase came in December and a blockbuster trip to the Bernabéu, where despite falling behind to an early Rodrygo strike, City showcased maturity as Nico O’Reilly poked home a deserved equaliser, and completed the turnaround when Erling Haaland dispatched a clinical penalty.

With City carrying the psychological advantage of that December win and the momentum of a recent 1-3 FA Cup fifth round victory away at Newcastle, the stage is set for another high-stakes tactical battle as Pep Guardiola looks to navigate Alvaro Arbeloa’s injury-hit squad.

Pep Guardiola and Manchester City have now also confirmed a 23-man travelling party that left Manchester Airport on Tuesday afternoon destined for Spain ahead of the clash with Real Madrid on Wednesday night.

Manchester City’s 23-Man Squad for Madrid Trip

Injury Update: Haaland Returns as Gvardiol Remains Sidelined

Manchester City have seen their injury situation drastically improved in recent weeks, and having been handed a well-deserved rest against Newcastle on Saturday night, Erling Haaland is the notable name to return to the squad.

Josko Gvardiol, however, remains sidelined and out of training as he continues recovery from a leg bone fracture, whilst his Croatian teammate Mateo Kovacic is back in full first-team training and hoping for a return to match action in the coming games.

The latter has been excluded from the travelling squad however, as he continues to build up his own match fitness, whilst Rico Lewis falls into the same category following a recent ankle problem.

Suspension Tightrope: Who Could Miss the Etihad Second Leg?

A number of players from both clubs could yet be suspended for the second-leg at the Etihad Stadium should they pick up a yellow card in this week’s first-leg tie at the Bernabeu.

UEFA Champions League regulations state that any player who accumulates three yellow cards – or any subsequent odd number of bookings – from the league stage onwards is suspended for the next match, while cards are only wiped upon completion of the quarter-finals.

For Real Madrid, that means that all of Jude Bellingham, Vinicius Jr, Rodrygo, Dean Huijsen and Aurelien Tchouameni are all one yellow card from a suspension, while Alvaro Carreras is already on four bookings, meaning one more will see him suspended.

As for Manchester City, Pep Guardiola and his coaching staff could be without two names for the second leg, with Nico O’Reilly and Savinho one yellow card away from a ban.