Predicted Starting Line-Up: Real Madrid vs Manchester City (UEFA Champions League) | OneFootball

Manchester City return to European action on Wednesday night in a mammoth clash against familiar continental adversaries Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu.

The Blues earned themselves an invaluable three points against newly-promoted Sunderland in the Premier League on Saturday as goals from Ruben Dias, Josko Gvardiol and Phil Foden earned a routine 3-0 triumph for Pep Guardiola’s side.

In the context of the Premier League title race, the victory over the Black Cats saw the Blues secure a trio of domestic wins in seven days and capitalise on a much-awaited slip-up from title rivals Arsenal in injury time against Aston Villa.

Manchester City were dispossessed of their four-year long held Premier League crown by Liverpool last year but are now just two points adrift of the Gunners as attention temporarily turns back to the UEFA Champions League this week.

Guardiola and co are aiming to carry their domestic momentum into Europe as focus shifts to Real Madrid, with Los Blancos entering the game off the back of a shock 2-0 La Liga defeat to Celta Vigo at the weekend.

With all of John Stones, Rodri, Kalvin Phillips, and Mateo Kovacic sidelined for the Blues’ visit to the Spanish capital, here is how we predict Pep Guardiola is going to line-up his Manchester City side!

Predicted XI

In between the sticks, sensational summer signing Gianluigi Donnarumma looks to have taken ownership of the No.1 spot in goal for Pep Guardiola, producing consistent stellar performances since his arrival. And his heroics will likely be integral in the Bernabéu visit.

Starting off the back-four, the man who has improved exponentially in recent months, Matheus Nunes is our prediction to fulfil right-back against Xabi Alonso’s side. Whilst there is an argument for the pace of Abdukodir Khusanov, the Uzbek’s lack of minutes is what suggests the Portuguese may get the nod.

At the heart of defence, a pairing of the imperious Ruben Dias and Josko Gvardiol are set to shield the Manchester City goalkeeper, as the Blues’ No.3 and No.24 have formed a rather formidable partnership and appear to be the club’s best options in central defence.

Completing the sky blue back-line, budding starlet Nico O’Reilly appears set to hold down his position off the back of exemplary performances across competitions from the 20-year-old academy graduate thus far.

In the midfielder engine room this week, a pairing of Bernardo Silva and Nico Gonzalez is predicted to anchor on Wednesday night. The duo provide a perfect combination of energy, intelligence and control, and in the case of the No.20, a raft of experience.

This collaboration has proved very effective in recent weeks, and so the Catalan tactician is likely to stick with this pivot selection against the 15-time UEFA Champions League winners this week.

Ahead of his fellow midfield teammates, an in-form Phil Foden looks an almost certain name on the team sheet given recent performances, bringing about six goal involvements in his last three appearances.

Off the right-flank, summer signing Rayan Cherki will look to replicate the impressive display he produced against Sunderland, where his flair and creativity saw him play a key role in his side’s victory and the Frenchman earning Man of the Match. Given the clear talent and ability of the 22-year-old, having him in the frontline in Madrid seems like a no-brainer.

Leading the line, who else but Manchester City’s goal machine, Erling Haaland? The Norwegian is ever-present in the striker role for the residents of the Etihad Stadium and will be hungry to add to his tally of five UEFA Champions League goals so far this term.

Completing the front three, the ever-electric Jeremy Doku is predicted to keep his place in Pep Guardiola’s starting eleven, as his sheer pace and dynamism are assets that simply cannot be overlooked.

This could no doubt be a brilliant weapon in the arsenal of Manchester City in the Spanish capital, especially considering the ongoing defensive injury woes of Wednesday’s opposition.

Starting XI: Donnarumma; Nunes, Dias, Gvardiol, O’Reilly; Nico, Bernardo, Foden; Cherki, Haaland, Doku.

Substitutes: Trafford, Bettinelli, Lewis, Khusanov, Ake, Ait-Nouri, Reijnders, Bobb, Savinho, Marmoush.