Manchester City vs Real Madrid: Manchester City are closing in on a second straight treble, yet erling Haaland still faces criticism as Real Madrid visit the Etihad on Wednesday looking to exact revenge for last season’s Champions League exit.
The 14-time European champions were thumped 4-0 at the semi-final stage on their visit to Manchester 11 months ago as City won the Champions League for the first time, along with the Premier League and FA Cup.
Pep Guardiola’s men are 12 games away from repeating that remarkable feat even without the form their formidable Norwegians did last season.
Manchester City vs Real Madrid: Haaland’s return to form is still impressive with 31 goals in 38 games this football season, but Haaland has not scored in City’s 3 meetings with Madrid in the past year and has failed to find the net in 13 of his last 20 appearances for club and country.
The 23-year-old is also in the firing line to provide something other than goals.
Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher labeled Haaland the “ultimate luxury player” who has yet to become “world-class”.
Former Manchester United captain Roy Keane, infamously sent off in a Manchester derby due to a long-running feud over an earlier medley on Haaland’s father Alf-Ing, went further to claim that the City striker was playing hold-up. A player in England’s fourth-tier League Two.
The Spanish press have been just as harsh after Haaland failed to fire for the second consecutive year in a thrilling first leg that ended 3-3 at the Santiago Bernabeu last week.
Madrid sports daily Marca described his performance as “impotent”, while AS called him “clumsy and desperate” in his efforts to improve Antonio Rudiger.
Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti will not repeat the same mistake of dropping Rudiger in the second leg as he did last season after keeping Haaland quiet at the Bernabeu.
Manchester City vs Real Madrid: One of the Champions League semi-finalists will be decided in Manchester on Wednesday night, with Manchester City facing Real Madrid at the Etihad. The first match between these teams in Madrid was very entertaining and resulted in an effective draw 3:3. What to expect in the return meeting? We offer a prediction for this match from a team of DailySports experts.
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Manchester City vs Real Madrid: Manchester City
“Citizens” started the match in Madrid well, already scoring a goal in the second minute of the meeting. However, real quickly not only recovered, but also took the lead. Midway through the second half, two crazy goals from Foden and Guardiola turned the game around for City, but they still couldn’t leave the Santiago Bernabeu with a win.
At the weekend, Pep Guardiola’s side expectedly had no trouble beating one of their opponents 5-1 in their home match against Luton. Moreover, City’s rivals in the gold medal clash – Liverpool and Arsenal – have unexpectedly stumbled at home. This allowed City to move into first place in the standings with a two-point deficit. (Manchester City vs Real Madrid)
Manchester City vs Real Madrid: Real Madrid
Creamers received a cold shower at the start of their home match against Manchester City. Andrei Lunin, who did a lot for the final victory against Leipzig in the previous stage, made a mistake with the wall placement and got a strange goal in the 2nd minute already from a free kick could not.
Moreover, in the middle of the second half, “Creamy” got two great goals in their gate, which Carlo Ancelotti called “unbeatable”. Valverde equalized the score in the 79th minute, but now it is “City” facing favorites. At the weekend Real played an away match against Mallorca, where they registered a 1-0 win. “Blancos” are 8 points ahead of Barcelona in La Liga.
Interesting facts about matches and history of head to head meetings
In last season’s Champions League semi-final, after a draw in Madrid, City beat the Blancos 4-0 at home. City’s home winning streak against Real Madrid is three matches long and City have scored at least three goals in their last three. (Manchester City vs Real Madrid) Home game against Real Madrid.
Manchester City vs Real Madrid Prediction
“Citizens” do not go favorites in this match for nothing. In the match at the Santiago Bernabeu, it was clear that City did not play at 100%. Combined with the same Erling Hollan turf, Akandji received the worst rating. Perhaps we should take “Manchester City win” here with odds of 1.71.