Manchester City and Real Madrid are set to resume hostilities this week but both teams are wounded | OneFootball

Following on from their 2-1 win over Leyton Orient, Manchester City will take on Real Madrid on Tuesday night. The match at the Etihad Stadium is the first leg of the Champions League knockout phase play-off between the two teams. Manchester City and Real Madrid have met in each of the past three seasons in the Champions League. On each occasion, the winner of the tie between the two teams over the past three seasons has gone on to win the competition. But his seasons meeting between the two clubs has a very different feel. Both teams are wounded, and that adds a different dynamic to the much-anticipated tie between the two teams.

Manchester City’s struggles this season are well-documented. They haven’t reached the heights we have become accustomed to seeing from Pep Guardiola’s side. Injuries and age have looked to have finally caught up to the Manchester City machine. They did begin their rebuild in the January transfer window but for now, City do have their frailties on the pitch. Their weakness against quick and athletic opponents does seemingly play into Real Madrid’s strength. Carlo Ancelotti’s side has the pace and quality up front with Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo to get at City’s major weakness. But despite this Real Madrid have their own frailties that Pep Guardiola’s side will be looking to exploit.

Real Madrid will enter Tuesday evening’s match with an injury crisis having hit their defence. Antonio Rudiger, David Alaba, Dani Carvajal and Eder Militao are all out of Tuesday’s match. The Real Madrid squad for Tuesday’s match shows that Carlo Ancelotti’s side are weakened at the back. That is one area of the pitch where Manchester City can get at the current European champions.

Manchester City and Real Madrid will resume hostilities this week. But this time both teams are wounded. Typically, both teams have been arguably the best two teams in the Champions League over the past three seasons. But this time they both have significant frailties that are clear to see. That adds another element to the meeting between the two teams. The team which can expose the other teams weaknesses will likely progress over the two legs. That sets the scene for what lies ahead starting on Tuesday evening at the Etihad.