Real Madrid vs Manchester City – Match preview and team news | OneFootball

Real Madrid and Manchester City go head-to-head yet again in the UEFA Champions League as they meet in the first leg of the round of 16 this week.

Los Blancos will look to make home advantage count after they failed to do so when City beat them on their own patch in the league phase earlier this season.

The two sides have faced one other 13 times in the last decade alone in what has been an extremely even rivalry over that period, sharing five wins each and three draws.

Real Madrid vs Manchester City – Match preview and team news

Real Madrid team news

Real head into the tie dealing with several major injury concerns that have significantly affected squad depth in recent weeks.

Jude Bellingham has been ruled out with a hamstring injury sustained earlier this year, while absentees Eder Militao and Dani Ceballos also remain unavailable.

Rodrygo is sidelined with a cruciate ligament injury, and Alvaro Carreras continues recovery from a calf issue.

Kylian Mbappe will miss this match as well due to his knee injury and might also miss the second leg, though Real remain hopeful that he will recover soon. David Alaba is nursing a muscle issue and will not be fit to feature against Manchester City.

Dean Huijsen and Franco Mastantuono have been declared fit for this match and might be involved if Alvaro Arbeloa decides.

Eduardo Camavinga is a minor doubt, but may even start if he is declared fit to play, while Vinicius Junior is expected to lead the attack.

Manchester City team news

City travel to Madrid with far fewer injury concerns and close to a full-strength squad available.

Josko Gvardiol and Mateo Kovacic remain unavailable due to long-term injuries although the latter is back in training, but Pep Guardiola confirmed no fresh setbacks ahead of the European clash.

Erling Haaland, who was rested as a precaution at the weekend, is expected to start and remains City’s primary attacking threat after scoring seven goals in eight Champions League matches in this campaign.

City’s depth has allowed Guardiola to rotate heavily in recent matches, ensuring key players such as Rodri, Bernardo Silva and Ruben Dias arrive fresh for the Bernabeu encounter.

Form

Real Madrid: WLWLW

Real required a late winner in their recent La Liga fixture against Celta Vigo after suffering back-to-back league defeats against Osasuna and Getafe for the first time since October 2018. Despite the injury setbacks, Madrid have continued to score consistently in Europe, averaging over two goals per Champions League match this campaign.

Manchester City: WWWDW

City arrive in excellent form, winning nine of their last eleven matches and drawing the other two across all competitions while maintaining strong attacking consistency.

Guardiola’s side most recently secured a 3-1 victory over Newcastle United in the FA Cup, continuing a run that has reinforced confidence within the squad ahead of the knockout stages.

Predicted lineups

Real Madrid: Courtois; Alexander-Arnold, Asencio, Rudiger, Carreras; Valverde, Tchouameni, Camavinga; Guler; G. Garcia, Vinicius Jr

Manchester City: Donnarumma; Nunes, Dias, Guehi, Ait-Nouri; Bernardo, Rodri, O’Reilly; Semenyo, Haaland, Marmoush

How to watch Real Madrid vs Manchester City?

The match will be broadcast live on TNT Sports and discovery+ in the United Kingdom.

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