Man City
City will be heading into this encounter with the utmost confidence. Their unbeaten run that dates back to December continued on the weekend, thrashing Luton Town 5-0. With both Liverpool and Arsenal losing, it allowed the Sky Blues to move two points clear at the top of the table. The treble is still very much in sight for Pep Guardiola’s men.
The Cityzens went to absolute battle with Madrid last week in the Spanish capital. Bernardo Silva opened the scoring early with a crafty free kick but Real responded rather quickly. The two sides exchanged blows, with Phil Foden and Josko Gvardiol bagging the other two goals. Both were beautiful strikes, too. City won’t love conceding three times in the opening leg, but they’re still in a solid position heading into the return leg.
Guardiola’s group has yet to taste defeat on home soil this term, which is certainly a promising sign heading into Wednesday. They’ve gone 12-5-0 in the Premier League on home soil and a perfect 3-0-0 in the Champions League. If they do make the semifinals, it’ll be the fourth year in a row City has progressed to that stage. The hosts are a -155 favorite at Bodog.
Real Madrid
Los Blancos are on track to win LaLiga, sitting eight points clear at the top of the standings. But, their focus is surely the Champions League, a competition they’ve won a record 14 times in their history. One could call Madrid the king of the UCL. Madrid flew through the group stages with a perfect 6-0-0 record just like City before just getting past RB Leipzig in the Round of 16.
Carlo Ancelotti’s squad also locked horns with Man City last year in the semifinals but ended up losing across two legs, so revenge is certainly on their minds. Los Blancos looked solid in the first leg, going toe to toe with the title-holders. An own goal got them on the scoresheet early but Valverde and Rodrygo also hit the back of the net.
When it comes to recent form, Real is in the midst of a 15-game unbeaten run. Their last defeat was in the Copa del Rey on January 18th to Atletico. Over the weekend, Ancelotti’s men beat Mallorca 1-0 thanks to a second-half goal from Aurelien Tchouameni. Madrid should’ve won by a lot more, however, registering nine shots on target. They will need to be a lot more clinical with their chances in Manchester. The visitors are a clear underdog for the second leg at soccer betting sites.
Injury news
Man City is fortunate here with no injury concerns. John Stones is dealing with something minor, but he’s expected to feature. Kyle Walker and Kevin De Bruyne will return. For Madrid, David Alaba and Thibaut Courtois remain out with long-term injuries, while Eder Militao could get some minutes as a substitute. Overall, both clubs are at relatively full strength.
