The upcoming clash between Real Madrid and Manchester City in the UEFA Champions League semi-finals promises to be an exciting encounter. Manchester City, who have been in excellent form this season, will be looking to avenge their loss to Real Madrid in the semi-finals of last year’s competition. Real Madrid, on the other hand, will be looking to maintain their perfect home record in the competition and book their place in the final.
Manchester City, led by the tactical genius of Pep Guardiola, have been in excellent form this season. They currently lead the Premier League by four points and are unbeaten in their last 20 matches in all competitions. The visitors are also unbeaten in away matches in this competition, although their last four have all ended in draws. Manchester City will be hoping that their star players such as Kevin De Bruyne, Jack Grealish, and Bernardo Silva can perform to their best and help them secure a positive result in Madrid.
Real Madrid, the defending champions, have not been in the best form this season. They lost their last match 2-0 to Real Sociedad, which saw them overtaken by Atletico Madrid, forcing them into third place in La Liga. However, in this competition, Los Blancos have a perfect record on home soil, winning all five of their matches to date. The hosts scored 12 goals and conceded just two in those five matches and come into this one on a three-match winning run at home in all competitions. Real Madrid will be looking to their talismanic players such as Karim Benzema, Luka Modric, and Sergio Ramos to lead them to victory.
Both teams have a few injury concerns going into this match. Manchester City picked up a fresh injury concern in their weekend league fixture against Leeds, with Nathan Ake being withdrawn before the hour mark with a hamstring injury. Real Madrid, on the other hand, will have to contend without the services of Militao, who is suspended for this fixture after picking up his third yellow card of the tournament in the last round. Ferland Mendy is also likely to be out through injury, which should see Antonio Rudiger and David Alaba team up at the back for the hosts. Luca Modric has returned to fitness after a hamstring strain and is expected to slot straight back into midfield.
In conclusion, the upcoming clash between Real Madrid and Manchester City promises to be an exciting encounter. Both teams have some injury concerns, but they also have some world-class players who can turn the match on its head. The winners of this clash of the heavyweights will go on to face either Inter Milan or AC Milan in the final on June 10, at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Turkey.