Manchester City will aim to maintain their winning run in the UEFA Champions League when they face Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu on Tuesday evening.
The reigning UCL champions have won all eight of their matches in this season’s competition, while the 14-time winners have registered seven victories and one draw.
Can Los Blancos end Man City’s hot streak? Or will Pep Guardiola’s side strengthen their title defence? Read on to discover what Forebet’s algorithm predicts for the first leg.
😁 MODO @lukamodric10: 🔛👟✨ @vinijr pic.twitter.com/HaL4lXmm4Z— Real Madrid C.F. (@realmadrid) April 7, 2024
😁 MODO @lukamodric10: 🔛👟✨ @vinijr pic.twitter.com/HaL4lXmm4Z
Real Madrid head into Tuesday’s clash on the back of a 2-0 victory over Athletic Bilbao, leaving them eight points clear at the summit of the La Liga table.
That win extended Los Blancos’ unbeaten streak to 13 matches across all competitions, with nine victories and four draws coming since their last loss.
In the Champions League, Carlo Ancelotti’s men enjoyed a 100% record during the group stage, finishing eight points clear of second-placed Napoli in Group C.
However, Real Madrid scraped past RB Leipzig in the round of 16, winning 1-0 in Germany before drawing 1-1 in Spain to advance via a 2-1 aggregate victory.
As for Manchester City, they thrashed Crystal Palace 4-2 on Saturday. Consequently, Guardiola’s side find themselves one point behind Liverpool and Arsenal in the Premier League.
The Cityzens have now avoided defeat in each of their last 25 matches across all competitions, suffering a solitary loss in their previous 35 encounters.
Like Real Madrid, Man City won all six of their Champions League group games, scoring an unrivalled 18 goals in the process (3 goals per game).
The defending champions then booked their place in the quarter-finals with a dominant 6-2 aggregate triumph over Copenhagen, winning each leg 3-1.
Head-to-head: Let’s not forget that Man City knocked Real Marid out of the Champions League semi-finals last season, winning the second leg 4-0 at the Bernabeu.
It is also worth remembering that City have won four of their previous six UCL meetings with Los Blancos, suffering a solitary defeat in the process.
Team news: Unfortunately for the hosts, they are still without long-term injury absentees Thibaut Courtois (knee) and David Alaba (knee).
On the flip side, the visitors will be without Nathan Ake (muscle) and Kyle Walker (thigh) for the first leg, while Josko Gvardiol is a doubt.
Tuesday’s clash is destined to be a close-fought battle between two of Europe’s strongest teams, with neither side wanting to give up an advantage.
Accordingly, Forebet predicts that Real Madrid and Manchester City will play out an entertaining draw, with both teams scoring over 1.5 goals.