Mary C Posted May 4, 2022 Share Posted May 4, 2022 POTENTIAL STARTING LINEUPS: MANCHESTER CITY: G | Bravo Ederson CB | Otamendi Stones, Mangala Laporte L FB | Zinchenko Mendy R FB | Walker Cancelo C MF | Roori Fernandinho L MF | Foden Silva R MF | Gundogan De Bruyne W | Sane Sterling, Mahrez B. Silva CF | Jesus Aguero REAL MADRID: G | Thibaut Courtois CB | David Alaba, Eder Militao L FB | Ferland Mendy R FB | Dani Carvajal C MF | Casemiro L MF | Toni Kroos R MF | Luka Modric W | Vinicius Junior, Marco Asensio CF | Karim Benzema As they follow one of the most remarkable and recent Champions League semifinal first leg ties, Real Madrid is set to go against Manchester City at Santiago Bernabeu in pursuit of the second leg on Thursday night. Given the changes in the away goals rule, it will be particularly challenging in the upcoming match. Currently, Manchester City has a four-win streak, with three from the English Premier League, and one from the UEFA Champions League. They hold the top spot in EPL with 26-5-3, 83 points. Real Madrid, on the other hand, is number 1 in La Liga with 25-6-3, 81 points. Manchester City won leg 1 of 2 against Real Madrid last April 28 in a tight 4-3 game. The Citizens scored 16 shots on goal while Los Blancos scored 11. Kevin De Bruyne had the fastest goal in Champions League semifinal history when he opened the scoring inside two minutes; that is until Gabriel Jesus doubled the lead after nine minutes. For the second leg, it is expected that Manchester City will have the upper hand after they outplayed Madrid for the most part of the first half at the Etihad Stadium. To add, Guardiola remains restless as he becomes more eager to claim the European title, especially since their victory over Leeds United places them one point clear of Liverpool at the summit. Carlo Ancelotti’s men enjoyed their weekend after confirming their win for the LaLiga Santander title. However, it is still too early to celebrate as they still have to stop Pep Guardiola, who is on high alert. While Los Blancos managed to overthrow Paris Saint-Germain out of the tournament in the last-16 stage of this season by overturning a one goal deficit, they have never made their way through to the final when they lose the semifinal first leg. If the club is aiming for a 14th European crown, they cannot afford to repeat their mistakes in the past. The top two players of the team, Thibaut Courtois and Vinicius Jr., are expected to kickstart the game. Unfortunately for the Madrid, Gareth Bale is out with a back injury, and David Alba could also be out of the match due to a minor muscular issue which could render the Los Blancos weak in defense. We predict that Manchester City is more likely to win 6-5 on aggregate. If Man City focuses on their strength which is to attack, they can contain Karim Benzema and Vinicius Junior– two players from Madrid who can pluck goals out of nowhere. With the pressure of winning the European title weighing on Man City’s shoulders, we can only expect them to work more. Thursday, May 5, 3 AM PST, Santiago Bernabeu Stadium, Madrid, Spain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gavin1987 Posted May 5, 2022 Share Posted May 5, 2022 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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