Man City vs Real Madrid preview, H2H, team news, line-ups, and prediction

Two of the last four Champions League finalists, Manchester City and Real Madrid, will square off at the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday, 11th February, in what would be their fourth consecutive knockout clash in the UEFA Champions League.

After the introduction of the Champions League phase, fans of some of the top European clubs had already tipped their team to secure automatic qualification by finishing in the top eight.

However, arguably nobody would have anticipated that the winners of the competition in the last two seasons would not only miss out on the last eight but also need a much-needed victory in their respective last games to secure a place in the playoffs.

Some might argue that it’s probably the introduction of the new league phase, but in reality, the tempo of some top-performing teams like Paris Saint-Germain, Borussia Dortmund, City, and Madrid have dropped a gear in the competition this season.

For Madrid, back-to-back losses, three losses in four games, posed a significant threat to their qualification to the next round. Although they produced a scintillating display to come back from two goals down to defeat Dortmund 5-2, the losses against Lille, AC Milan, and Liverpool, where they scored only two goals, posed question marks on their attacking proficiency despite having one of Europe’s best attackers.

As expected of a defending champion and the most dominant team in the Champions League, 11 goals and three consecutive wins in their next games against Atalanta, Salzburg, and Brest propelled them to eleventh place on 15 points, just a point adrift of eighth-placed Aston Villa.

Domestically, Carlo Ancelotti’s team currently leads Laliga and have advanced to the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey.

Their spot in the cup’s final four was secured on Wednesday night following a thrilling 3-2 victory over Leganés. Gonzalo García’s maiden goal for the club clinched a last-minute win for Los Blancos.

A table-deciding clash against second-place Atletico Madrid in the 238th Madrid derby on February 8th will be their next concentration before changing focus to the Champions League, where they’ll face City.

The Premier League defending champions have faced a dip in form in the domestic league and Europe this season.

Giving up a three-goal lead to draw, giving up a two-goal lead to lose, going on a four-game winless run, and losing three of their last away games, City’s Champions League campaign can be summed up as disappointing.

After their opening three games, where they needed nine goals and conceded none, handing them the favourites tag in October last year wouldn’t come as a surprise or doubt to anyone.

In November, tides began to change rather disappointingly as a 4-1 loss to Sporting CP was part of a bizarre run of fixtures that month where they lost five consecutive games.

While the 3-3 draw against Feyenoord ended their losing streak, giving up their three-goal lead further exposed City’s leaky defence, which they’ve now reinforced with two additions in the recently concluded winter transfer window.

Their struggles this season were further exposed when they faced Juventus, as second-half goals from Dusan Vlahovic and Weston McKennie put the Cityzens to the sword at Allianz Stadium.

It did not end there as they let yet another lead slip, but this time they weren’t lucky enough to secure a draw. Luis Enrique’s Paris Saint-Germain side came out guns blazing in the second half to secure a 4-2 win despite having two goals down till the 56th minute.

Their Champions League fate was then decided in the final group stage game against Club Brugge, where they came from a goal down to win 3-1. While City fans won’t be rushing to buy their Champions League final tickets just yet, it’s proof that they can’t be written off in the competition.

Man City vs. Real Madrid match details

• Date: Tuesday, 11th February, 2025
• Location: Manchester, England
• Venue: Etihad Stadium
• Kick-off time: 08:00 PM GMT
• Tickets: Fans can buy Champions League tickets from UEFA, the clubs or via trusted online resellers.

Match stats and head-to-head

• Guardiola suffered defeats in his first two encounters with Ancelotti’s Madrid while managing Bayern Munich but has since lost just twice in his last nine meetings with the Italian across all competitions (W6 D1), all during his tenure at Manchester City.

• In four Champions League knockout clashes between them, Ancelotti’s teams have advanced three times (2013-14, 2021-22, and 2023-24).

• Madrid and City will be meeting in the Champions League knockout stage for a fourth consecutive season.

• Los Blancos have won their last three games in the competition while also netting 11 goals in that run.

• Since the 5-0 win against Czech side Sparta Praha in October, City have only won one of their next five games in the Champions League, losing three.

• The win against Sparta was also the last time the Cityzens kept a clean sheet in the competition, conceding 14 goals in their next five games.

Team news

Madrid remain hopeful about the fitness of several key players ahead of their clash with Manchester City, with Kylian Mbappe, Jude Bellingham, and Lucas Vazquez expected to be available.

Mbappe, Bellingham, and Vazquez missed the Leganes match due to minor issues, while Eduardo Camavinga was still recovering from a hamstring injury. However, Ancelotti has suggested that all four should be fit for the weekend.

Particularly, Camavinga has already been confirmed to be fully fit and in contention for the clash against Atletico Madrid. Ancelotti will hope the Frenchman completes the game against Atletico unscathed, as he’ll need his best legs against City.

Antonio Rudiger is set to remain out for at least two more weeks due to a thigh injury, while Eder Militao and Dani Carvajal continue their long-term recovery from serious knee issues.

David Alaba is also expected to miss additional time with a muscular problem, leaving Aurelien Tchouameni and Raul Asencio as the likely central defensive pairing for Madrid against City.

For City, Ederson, who missed the 5-1 defeat to Arsenal, is tipped to make a return to the squad against Madrid.

The Brazilian is expected to be accessed ahead of City’s next game in the FA Cup against League 1 side Leyton Orient on Saturday.

Oscar Bobb is nearing a return since picking up an injury in the Community Shield victory over Manchester United in August.

Ballon d’Or winner Rodri have been included in City’s squad for the knockout phase, raising optimism about his possible return from a lengthy knee injury before the end of the campaign.

Brazilian centre-back Vitor Reis, who joined from Palmeiras in the recently concluded winter transfer window, has been omitted from the club’s Champions League squad, while other winter recruits Nico Gonzalez, Omar Marmoush, and Abdukodir Khusanov have been included in the list.

At the time of writing, Jeremy Doku, Nathan Ake, and Ruben Dias have not recovered from their respective injuries, having been sidelined in recent weeks.

It remains to be seen if the trio will recover in time to face Madrid, as Guardiola will need his best players available to get anything out of the game.

Predicted starting lineup

Real Madrid predicted starting lineup:

Courtois; Vazquez, Tchouameni, Asencio, Mendy; Valverde, Camavinga; Rodrygo, Bellingham, Vinicius; Mbappe.

Man City predicted starting lineup:

Ederson; Nunes; Akanji, Stones, Gvardiol; Gundogan, Gonzalez; Silva, De Bruyne, Savinho; Haaland.

Prediction

The clash between Madrid and City can now be tagged as a rivalry, as they just can’t avoid playing each other en route to the final.

However, this season’s clash holds a much lighter weight as it won’t be a clash between the best English team versus the best Spanish team.

While Madrid are the LaLiga leaders, it’s a different story for the opponent who have struggled significantly this season and currently sit outside the top four of the Premier League table.

One similar theme among these two sides is the myriad of injuries they have. Both managers will hope to have their best players available for this clash to stand a chance of securing a first-leg win on Tuesday.

We’re predicting a 3-1 win for Madrid.