The UEFA Champions League is back tonight as Manchester City will take on Real Madrid at Etihad Stadium. Here you will get everything to know about this UCL semi-finals tie between Man City vs Real Madrid, Kickoff Time, How to Watch, Prediction, Team News, and many more.
The English Premier League leaders Man City will host the Spanish La Liga leaders Real Madrid for the first leg of the UCL semi-finals. It is expected to be an eye-appetizing battle between the superpowers of beautiful football.
Match Basics
- Competition: UEFA Champions League Semi-Finals 1st Leg
- Venue: Etihad Stadium, Manchester, the home ground of Manchester City
- Date: Tuesday, 26 April 2022
- Kickoff Time: 7:00 pm GMT, 8:00 pm UK Time, 3:00 pm ET
- Watch: CBS, BT Sport 2
When and Where is Man City vs. Real Madrid?
Manchester City will host the first leg of the UCL semi-finals tie against Real Madrid at Etihad Stadium. It will be a home match for the Citizens. Pep’s men will visit Santiago Bernabeu for the second leg a week later.
Man City vs Real Madrid the UCL semi-finals first leg battle will go underway on Tuesday, 26 April 2022, at 7:00 pm GMT, which is 8:00 pm BST, and 3:00 pm ET.
Match Preview
Let’s see how Man City and Real Madrid are doing in this season and what they can expect going into the most important match so far this season.
Manchester City
Pep Guardiola’s men are having a wonderful season in both domestic and European competitions. They are currently leading the EPL table with a point, with 5 matches to go.
The Citizens will play the second UCL semi-finals in a row tonight. They will be aiming for a second consecutive final appearance in the Champions League. The Manchester Blues are yet to lift the Champions League trophy as they were beaten by Chelsea in the final last season.
Manchester City beat Atletico Madrid in the quarter-finals by 1-0 goals on aggregate to claim their spot in the semi-finals. Kevin de Bruyne got the only goal of that tie in the first leg at home. They maintained the lead after a fierce battle for 0-0 draw in the second leg in the Wanda Metropolitano, Madrid.
The Citizens are coming into this match after a huge home win over Watford by 5-1 goals in the EPL. Brazilian striker Gabriel Juses scored 4 goals for Man City in just 53 minutes. It will give him and the team a huge boost against the Spanish giants tonight.
Real Madrid
The 13 times UCL winners Real Madrid, most in the history of the competition, will have another go tonight for a spot in the final. It will be the 15th appearance for Real Madrid in the semi-finals which is the highest in the competition.
The Madrid giants have been unstoppable in this season, leading the La Liga table by 15 points, with 5 matches to go. They have beaten PSG in the Round of 16 and Chelsea in the Quarter-Finals of this competition in thrilling matches to reach the final four.
Carlo Ancelotti’s men beat the London club Chelsea in the quarter-finals tie by 5-4 goals on aggregate after a thrilling second-leg night at the Santiago Bernabeu. Real Madrid won the first leg by 3-1 goals at Stamford Bridge, Karim Benzema scoring an incredible hat-trick for the visiting side.
The London Blues turned the match on its head in the second-leg, 3-0 ahead in 75 minutes, leading by 4-3 goals on aggregate. But the drama was yet to unfold as the Madrid men held on, scoring a goal to make it 4-4 level, pushing the game into extra time. It was Benzema’s night who scored an unstoppable header to make it 5-4 on aggregate to lead Madrid to the semi-finals. This French goal-machine has scored 4 goals out of their 5 in two legs, 2nd highest scorer with 12 goals in the UCL this season.
Real Madrid will arrive in Manchester after back to back away wins in the La Liga, 2-3 goals win over Sevilla coming from 2 goals behind, and 1-3 goals win over Osasuna.
Real Madrid vs Manchester City should be the most exciting battle of this season’s Champions League. Fans all across the globe will witness the finest football on the earth as the two toppers of two regions clash head to head for a spot in the final.
There is no away goals rule in the UEFA Champions League this season. Hence, the total score on aggregate over two legs will count to take away the winners.
Man City vs. Real Madrid: Stats, H2H, and Previous Meetings
It will be the 7th meeting between Manchester City and Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League. Both sides have won 2 and drawn 2 in the last 6 meetings.
Manchester City beat Real Madrid in both legs in the Round of 16 of 2019-2020 season, those were the last meetings between Man City and Real Madrid.
Real Madrid have not won any of their last three trips to play Manchester City, losing 2 and drawing 1.
Pep Guardiola has eliminated Real Madrid from the Champions League on 2 occasions – once in the 2010-2011 season from the semi-finals with Barcelona, and the latest in the 2019-2020 season from the Round of 16 with Man City.
Team News and Possible Lineup
There’s a few concerns in the Man City backline. Joao Cancelo will be unavailable due to card suspension. Kyle Walker and John Stones are among the doubts due to ankle and muscle injury. Nonetheless, the English International Kyle Walker may start in the full-back position due to the absence of Cancelo. Ruben Dias and Aymeric Laporte should play the centre-backs roles. Oleksandr Zinchenko may occupy the left-back position.
The star midfielder Kevin de Bruyne will not be 100 percent fit due to injury, though he played against Watford this weekend. He will start in the midfield along with Rodri and possibly Bernardo Silva.
Gabriel Jesus should make his way to the Man City attacks, having 4 goals against Watford this weekend. Riyad Mahrez and Raheem Sterling should accompany him in the attack.
On the other hand, Casemiro, David Alaba, and Ferland Mendy are among the doubts for Real Madrid, though they will visit Manchester. Mendy and Alaba should be available in the Real Madrid defense. Eden Hazard will be unavailable due to long-term injury.
Luka Modric and Toni Kroos will lead the attacking role in the middle. Federico Valverde may play the holding role in absence of Casemiro.
Karim Benzema, 2nd highest scorer of the UCL this season with 12 goals, will start in the Madrid attack. Vinicius Junior is a sure starter at the left wing. Rodrygo may start at the right.
Manchester City Possible Lineup
(4-3-3): Ederson; Kyle Walker, Ruben Dias, Aymeric Laporte, Oleksandr Zinchenko; Kevin de Bruyne, Rodri, Bernardo Silva; Riyad Mahrez, Gabriel Jesus, Raheem Sterling
Real Madrid Possible Lineup
(4-3-3): Courtois; Carvajal, Militao, Alaba, Mendy; Luka Modric, Valverde, Toni Kroos; Rodrygo, Benzema, Vinicus
Prediction
The Citizens are a difficult team to beat. Real Madrid showed their class by defeating PSG and Chelsea in thrilling matches this season.
Both the teams are expected to battle toe-to-toe. Man City will get the home advantage. Our experts predict a win for Manchester City by a narrow margin.
- Score Prediction: Manchester City 2-1 Real Madrid
How to Watch
This mouth-watering semi-finals battle between Man City vs Real Madrid will be available live on BT Sport 2 and BT Sport Ultimate in the UK. BT Sport subscribers will also be able to watch the live stream via BT Sports app.
In the United States, CBS will broadcast live the UCL Semi-Finals. You can also subscribe to Paramount Plus to watch the live stream of Man City vs Real Madrid mouth-watering battle. The kickoff time is Tuesday, 26 April 2022, at 7:00 pm GMT, 8:00 pm BST, and 3:00 pm ET.
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