Predicted Starting Line-Up: Manchester City vs Real Madrid (UEFA Champions League) | OneFootball

Manchester City are set to meet their old nemesis in the UEFA Champions League play-off round on Tuesday evening as they host Spanish giants Real Madrid at the Etihad Stadium.

Pep Guardiola’s side are fresh off the back of an FA Cup victory against League One side Leyton Orient using a rotated side in the process as they look to keep players fresh heading into the tie with Los Blancos.

But with the showdown at the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday evening set to kick off a gruelling run of fixtures, Pep Guardiola’s team selections will be of paramount importance as the Catalan manager looks to balance his side’s efforts in the cups and the Premier League.

Deadline day signing Nico Gonzalez was substituted out of the Leyton Orient clash on Saturday after suffering a first-half injury, but the former Porto man was spotted in first-team training this week, much to the delight of Manchester City fans.

Ahead of the highly-anticipated showdown with Real Madrid in European competition, let’s take a look at how Pep Guardiola might set up his side to deal with the threat of the visitors from Spain!

Predicted XI

While Stefan Ortega Moreno has deputised for the injured Ederson in the past few weeks, the Brazilian does appear set to come back into the fold on Tuesday evening and trained as normal on Monday afternoon.

Meanwhile, all of Manchester City’s centre-backs appear fit for the first time in a long while, so we could see the return of the full-back-less back-four against Real Madrid, meaning Manuel Akanji will tag in on the right of the defensive unit.

A central defensive pairing of John Stones and Ruben Dias will surely bring tears of happiness to the eyes of Manchester City fans this week, as the iconic Treble-winning partnership is renewed.

Josko Gvardiol excelled against Los Blancos last season, and after resting over the course of the weekend’s FA Cup meeting with Leyton Orient, the Croatian should slot right back into his home at left-back.

The midfield has been a source of concern all season for Manchester City and their supporters, but with reports suggesting that Nico Gonzalez is still carrying a knock coming into this one, we should see the return of Mateo Kovacic, Ilkay Gundogan, and Bernardo Silva.

Expect to see minutes for Kevin De Bruyne and Nico Gonzalez off the bench, however.

While Phil Foden struggled mightily against Arsenal over a week ago, Pep Guardiola may be looking for a reaction from his golden boy. Therefore, the Stockport native should get the nod out on the right against Real Madrid.

Through the middle for Manchester City is none other than the ever-present Erling Haaland, who should be relishing the opportunity to play against the side that has long sought after his signature.

Omar Marmoush has been very active since joining the Premier League champions in the January window, and his pace out on the left should come in handy against a makeshift Real Madrid defence.

Predicted XI: Ederson; Akanji, Stones, Dias, Gvardiol; Kovacic, Gundogan, Bernardo; Foden, Haaland, Marmoush.

Substitutes: Ortega Moreno, Carson, Lewis, Khusanov, Ake, Gonzalez, O’Reilly, Nunes, McAtee, De Bruyne, Savinho, Grealish, Doku.