Man City boss Pep Guardiola gives magnificent claim about Real Madrid
Real Madrid and Manchester City will face off in the Champions League knockout stages for the third consecutive year. One of those meetings, the first, was a true classic. When all hope appeared to be lost, who can forget Rodrygo’s brace? In the second, Pep Guardiola’s team easily defeated the opposition to win the competition for the first time. The match was far more one-sided. What does this matchup mean for two of the top teams in Europe?
The drama has already largely played out for us. In an exciting match of football, Real Madrid and Manchester City drew 3-3 at Santiago Bernabeu.
Bernardo Silva gave the visitors the lead inside 2 minutes. But an own goal from Ruben Dias and one from Rodrygo just a couple of minutes after that put Real Madrid in front. Then it was Manchester City’s turn to reply and they did. Goals from Phil Foden and Josko Gvardiol in the second half meant they were leading again. A brilliant strike from Fede Valverde made it 3-3 in the 79th minute and that’s how it ended.
Of course, the Premier League giants will be the happier of the two, having managed to get a result away in the Spanish capital. Now, it is up to Real Madrid to go to their backyard and defeat them, easier said than done.
Guardiola seems to hold Real Madrid in the highest regard and knows what Los Blancos can do, especially at home. As reported by The Guardian, the Manchester City manager said:
“Fantastic goals for all three [of City’s] and Valverde as well. We were unfortunate for the deflections but it’s football. What I liked most is how we played in the second half, 2-1 down playing here without much composure. They are so dangerous on transitions and could score more goals but we controlled the game really well. One of the key points in these games is being stable emotionally. It’s fundamental. Take the good moments and be stable in the bad moments.
“It’s Madrid, it’s special. We go 2-3 but here it is never over. We take the result – in one week [on Wednesday] in Manchester it will be sold out and our people will help us to score one goal and we will do the rest. We will try to reach the semi-final.”
It is Real Madrid who have the tougher task at hand in the second leg. They have to do something that they failed to do against Guardiola’s side in their previous two meetings in Manchester.
In 2022, they lost 4-3 away against Manchester City. Last year, it was completely one-sided with Guardiola’s side playing Real Madrid off the park and winning 4-0.
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UEFA confirms the Real Madrid Bernabeu roof request decision for the Man City match
Real Madrid’s desire to play their Champions League match against Manchester City under cover has been approved by UEFA.
The Santiago Bernabeu is undergoing renovations, and one of the new roofs installed in September has the ability to shut down the stadium when it is in use. Real will be able to organize more events throughout the year to diversify their revenue stream with the help of a retractable roof, but Los Blancos have also utilized it for football.
Real Madrid asked UEFA if Tuesday’s match may assist them achieve their goal of scaring the team that eliminated them from the Champions League the previous season.
As part of their plans to create an intimidating atmosphere to help the team against the club who knocked them out of the Champions League last season, Real asked UEFA if Tuesday’s game could take place with the roof closed – and the request has been accepted. City were aware of the situation but did not have a say in the decision as the away team.
At Real’s last game, fans held up a banner calling for all supporters to dress in white for the first leg of their quarter-final as they aim to put on a show against City. The atmosphere at the Etihad for last year’s semi-final stunned Real players and Spanish journalists in attendance, and the La Liga giants are desperate to make the most of their home advantage this year ahead of what they expect to be another tough second leg in Manchester.
Meanwhile, Spanish police confirmed they are on high alert after ISIS issued a stark warning ahead of Real’s clash with City in Madrid. The Al Azaim Foundation, a media outlet frequently used by ISIS to disseminate messages, released a chilling poster with the message ‘Kill them all’ and listing the names of the four venues hosting Champions League matches. This has led to heightened security measures in Madrid.
As for the match itself, Pep Guardiola would love his team to triumph again, although admits City are weaker than they would like to be heading into this one. Nathan Ake and Kyle Walker have been ruled out completely with injury, while there are also doubts over Josko Gvardiol.
“He’s a doubt. It is what it is. Also Madrid have [Thibault] Courtois, [David] Alaba, [Eder] Militao out this season,” said Guardiola. “It’s true that the best player to control a player like Vinicius is Kyle. Unfortunately he was injured in a friendly game. It is what it is.
“We would love to have him but what can I say. We play with 11 and try to adapt with the players that we have because injuries are part of a long season.
“But in a decisive part we have a lot of injuries in the same department in the back four and we have to find a solution. We have to think more about what we have to do and get a good result for the second leg.”
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