Manchester City vs Real Madrid predictions, H2H and match preview for this Friday’s game in the UEFA Champions League. Read on for analysis, free betting tips and predicted line-ups as Los Blancos aim to turn a 1st Leg deficit around.
by Mark Sochon (@marksoc1)
Manchester City vs Real Madrid Preview
Real Madrid head to the Etihad on Friday evening aiming to turn a 2-1 deficit around in the 2nd Leg of their UEFA Champions League last 16 tie against Manchester City. It’s a tall order for Los Blancos but if recent history teaches us anything, it’s never to write off Real Madrid in this competition.
Zinedine Zidane’s side are fresh from having won LaLiga with a game to spare having reeled off 10 straight league victories immediately following the restart. While they were seldom scintillating, Real Madrid showcased firm defensive foundations and consistently found a way to win tight matches with 6 of those 10 wins coming by a single goal margin.
They are up against a familiar foe here in the shape of Pep Guardiola and his Manchester City team. Pep has failed to add to the two Champions League triumphs he claimed during four years as Barcelona boss while City have never won the trophy. However the possibility that both droughts will end this year looks real, particularly after the English club left Madrid with a 2-1 advantage in the 1st Leg of this tie back in March with Gabriel Jesus and Kevin De Bruyne scoring late goals.
Manchester City’s form has been somewhat mixed since the resumption of football in England with defensive weaknesses and the absence of Sergio Aguero meaning they are not the unstoppable force that clinched back-to-back Premier League titles. However this is still going to be a really tough ask for a Real Madrid side that hasn’t been scoring many goals and is missing the influential Sergio Ramos to suspension.
We will have UCL & UEL predictions and previews for every game involving Spanish sides between now and the end of the season.
Manchester City vs Real Madrid Predictions
Score Prediction: 1-1 Draw (Man City Progress)
The absence of Ramos is significant at both ends of the pitch as Real Madrid’s skipper has been their most likely source of a goal since the restart and tends to turn up on these big European nights. They won’t fear the task here having gone and won away to many of the strongest teams on the continent in this competition in recent years, sometimes convincingly. However that was mostly with Cristiano Ronaldo in their team and their lack of goals is a real concern on a night where they need to score at least twice to stand a chance of progressing.
Overall, we expect City to finish the job and progress into the last eight, although perhaps without winning on the night.
Manchester City vs Real Madrid Betting Tips (18+)
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Manchester City vs Real Madrid H2H
- Last 5 Competitive Meetings: 2 Real Madrid Wins, 2 Draws, 1 Manchester City Win.
- City beat Real Madrid for the first time in this competition in the 1st Leg at the Bernabeu.
- Prior to that, Los Blancos were unbeaten against City in UCL action.
- Real Madrid were 1-0 aggregate winners when the sides met in the 2016 Semi-Finals.
- The two previous meetings at the Etihad both ended all square.
Predicted Line Ups
Man City Team:
Ederson – Walker, Fernandinho, Laporte, Zinchenko – Rodri, Gundogan, De Bruyne – Mahrez, Jesus, Sterling (4-3-3)
Madrid Team:
Courtois – Carvajal, Varane, Militao, Mendy – Valverde, Casemiro, Kroos – Vinicius, Benzema, Hazard (4-3-3)
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