The two titans will meet (AGAIN) in 2025 on December 11 at 3 pm EST.
Last time around, Real Madrid came out on top with a 3-1 win. As of now, both teams are struggling to hold up in their respective domestic leagues as well as the Champions League, with Real Madrid slightly ahead performance-wise, thanks to the in-form Kylian Mbappe.
However, people say that this tie has become boring, but I don’t think that is the case.
With fans from both sides rooting for their teams, who’s going to pull a win here? Let’s talk about that.
The Injuries
Starting with the list of injuries, Real Madrid has four players sidelined, and all of them form their backline. The first one is Dani Carvajal, who might come back on time after sustaining a knee injury in the match against FC Barcelona in October.
Then we have David Alaba, who came from Bayern Munich a season ago. He might join Carvajal on time to face the English giants in the Champions League.
Dean Huijsen is another piece of the puzzle that Real Madrid has been missing from their backline. He had a minor muscle injury on November 25. But he, too, will likely be back to face Manchester City. However, I think he won’t start the match but will come in the second half.
Last but not least, Ferland Mendy was recently injured and is expected to miss the tie against City.
On the other hand, Manchester City will be missing only one key player, which is Mateo Kovačić. He is expected to be back around the first week of January, so he sits this one out, along with a couple of other important matches. Rodri is unwell, but he will be back on time to save this City side.
A Must-Watch
I am sure the match is going to be super interesting. It won’t be easy for Real Madrid to grab three points in the new Champions League format. Anyway, I will be tuning in live to watch this match in 4K thanks to my high-speed altafiber Internet with a bag of Doritos.
You might already know about Doritos, so let me explain Alta Fiber. It is one of the reliable internet providers in the US that offers fiber internet connectivity. Not only is it fiber, but it comes without any sort of data caps or contracts. In simple words, you can enjoy as many soccer matches in 4K as you want without worrying about the data overage fee. And in case (which you likely won’t), want to switch, you don’t have to worry about contracts.
Once your internet is sorted, let’s dive a little deeper into what you can expect from this one showdown of a match.
New Coach, New Era for Real Madrid
Carlo Ancelotti has been a phenomenal coach for Real Madrid. He made them win a couple of titles in a smaller stint this time around. Last season, he went off to manage Brazil.
The new manager of Real Madrid is Xabi Alonso. He had a brilliant season with Bayer Leverkusen, which saw him end the winning streak of Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga.
But for the capital of Spain, he needs to find his flow.
I totally don’t mean he is having a bad season, but from the standards of Real Madrid and the pressure of this job at the Santiago Bernabeu, fans are demanding more from the team, especially after they have spent a large amount of money to recruit more talent from around the world. So, it is only natural that the Real Madrid fans are considering this not a great season.
Let’s leave the season aside for a while. Can Xabi Alonso pull ahead in this tie? Let’s have a look.
First things first, Pep Guardiola is an experienced coach, and we have seen him make some tweaks to adjust according to the game state.
For example, Pep Guardiola had the lowest possession of his entire career in a match against Arsenal. They needed to defend well because they weren’t attacking well via a system of attack. So, he tried to capitalize on the counterattacks.
This made sense to me because Arsenal is the best team currently on the planet in club football. So, even though Manchester City leaked a goal in the end, they still grabbed a point against the in-form Arsenal. This was the right move, and they couldn’t have pulled this off without the defending structure.
Who’s Going to Win?
In conclusion, I would say I think Guardiola will do something similar with Real Madrid to stop Kylian Mbappe. Then there is the threat posed by Vinicius Junior. Their defensive woes continue, and it can only be fixed midseason through a tactical switch.
That is the exact reason I predict a draw between the two. There might not be a lot of goals, so a 1 – 1 draw is what I predict.
