Manchester City “can practically play with their eyes closed,” warns Arbeloa | OneFootball

Álvaro Arbeloa warned that Real Madrid must not get complacent when they face a Manchester City side that can “practically play with their eyes closed” on Tuesday.

Fede Valverde’s stunning hat-trick at the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu last week handed los Blancos a three-goal lead that they carry into Tuesday’s second leg at the Etihad Stadium, where a place in the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals is at stake.

Speaking in his pre-match conference after landing in Manchester on Monday, Arbeloa insisted that “we cannot go out with any other mentality than to win this match.

“I want to see the same Real Madrid as in the first leg. We have no other objective than to go out and win, which is what this badge demands of us. With the same humility, commitment, and sacrifice that we had in the first leg, even more so because we know this stadium is not easy and their fans will push them a lot.”

The Spaniard accepted it won’t be an easy task though, affirming that Real Madrid “have to perform at a very high level – at our best level – like we did in the first leg. That’s the goal, to go out and look for that performance, that level of commitment, solidarity, effort and sacrifice and hurt them a lot with it, like we were able to do in the first leg.”

Pep Guardiola revealed earlier on Monday that Manchester City did not train today, opting instead for a session ahead of kick-off on matchday. That didn’t surprise Arbeloa, who noted that “they’ve done it several times this season and it has worked well for them.

“The other day I heard that against Madrid it was Pep Guardiola’s 987th match as a coach, so I won’t be the one bold enough to give him advice.

“It’s a team that can practically play with their eyes closed. They know each other very well and have been together for many years. I don’t think the fact they didn’t train today will change much about tomorrow’s result.”

Kylian Mbappé has travelled with the squad to Manchester and participated in Real Madrid’s training session on Monday, and Arbeloa noted that “Kylian gives us different qualities than other players like Brahim [Díaz], but he’s also a player who links up very well.

“If Mbappé has one thing, for me, it’s that he’s a very intelligent player. You can look at all of the qualities that he has, but I think intelligence stands above them all. He’s a player capable of moving well into the spaces left by the opponent.”