Four days after winning the League, Real Madrid dreams of a comeback this Wednesday against Manchester City (15:00 HB) to give him the pass to the Champions League final protected by the ‘magic’ of his Santiago Bernabéu.
the meringue team managed to limit the damage a week ago at the Etihad Stadium losing 4-3 in a match in which City had plenty of chances to add to their tally, ones they could regret on Wednesday.
The City faces a Real Madrid that arrives excited after winning the League on Saturday with a 4-0 thrashing of Espanyol, with four games to go before the end of the championship.
With homework done the meringues are now focused on beating City at the Bernabéu, recalling the comebacks against Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea, in the round of 16 and quarter-finals.
“The atmosphere is very good and we can do it”, Real Madrid coach Carlos Ancelotti assured this Monday, once again highlighting the offensive power of his team.
“We have the quality to risk”, he stated, praising his strikers Karim Benzema and Vinicius.
the french striker he will once again be the great offensive reference in order to achieve the goals that lead to the Champions League final.
– Top scorer –
His double in the first leg, made him the top scorer of this edition of the Champions League with 14 goals, one more than Robert Lewandowski.
The Frenchman is only three goals away from the record of goals for an edition of the continental competition, which Cristiano Ronaldo has with 17 goals and one of Lewandowski’s 85 goals as the third best scorer in the competition since it became the Champions League in the 1992/1993 season.
the meringue captain will be accompanied in the attack by Vinicius, author of a goal in the first leg and a real headache due to his speed for the ‘citizen’ defence.
If the forward is covered, in the rear, Ancelotti anticipated that “(David) Alaba can’t play, he’s not going to be ready for the game”, after suffering a muscle injury at the Etihad.
the white team will try to give another great European night to his fans against a City, which could have secured a better result.
“The lap will be a good test of the team’s personality,” warned the ‘citizens’ coach Pep Guardiola, after his team’s short victory.
The City turned on the opposite goal with 77 attacks for the 28 of Real Madrid, but failed to reflect this situation on the scoreboard.
– ‘Ready for Madrid’ –
Facing a Real Madrid unconcerned about their League, the English team, leader of theirs, is still fighting for the Premier with a small point of advantage over Liverpool.
City already suffered in the quarter-final second leg against Atlético de Madrid at the Metropolitano, ending almost enclosing in his field, and Guardiola is clear that this should not be repeated.
“Winning or losing, you have to go to the Santiago Bernabéu to play your game. If we play like in the second half of the Wanda Metropolitano, we won’t have any options,” said the City manager.
City will try to regain possession of the ball as he did in the first leg and besiege the goal of the merengue team.
“We are ready for the game in Madrid”warned City’s Spanish international centre-back, Aymeric Laporte.
City looks to get into its second Champions League final consecutive and reach the first ‘Orejona’ in its history.
Likely teams:
Real Madrid: Courtois – Carvajal, Militao, Nacho, Mendy – Modric, Casemiro, Kroos – Valverde, Benzema, Vinicius. Coach: Carlos Ancelotti (ITA).
Manchester City: Ederson – João Cancelo, Rúben Dias, Laporte, Zinchenko – De Bruyne, Rodri, Bernardo Silva – Mahrez, Gabriel Jesus, Foden. Coach: Josep Guardiola (ESP).
Referee: Daniele Orsato (ITA).
