On Wednesday, 19 February, Real will play at home against Manchester City. The first meeting in England ended in a 3-2 victory for Madrid. That is, now the hosts will be satisfied with a draw to reach the 1/8 finals of the Champions League. A minimal defeat for Real will take the game into overtime.

Real, despite the success, further unsuccessfully marked in the Spanish championship. Now the leadership in La Liga is under threat. Carlo Ancelotti's wards did not hold on to victory over Osasuna away. The decisive moment was the removal of Jude Bellingham. The Englishman left the team in ten men in the first half. Real already had problems with rotation, and after that the players had to play under serious pressure of a difficult opponent.

Real's injuries are a central topic for analysts, but Carlo Ancelotti manages to do without any centre-backs at all. Raul Asensio and Aurélien Tchouameni played a very quality game in the Champions League, considering that such a pairing would be unthinkable even in a friendly. Both came out in the game against Osasuna as well. That means that this combination can now be considered the main one for Real Madrid.

At the same time, for the match against Manchester City for the "cream" possible unexpected bonus: Carlo Ancelotti allowed the return to the squad Antonio Rüdiger , Lucas Vazquez and David Alaba. This is a very serious reinforcement, although it is far from certain that the coach will risk putting anyone in the starting line-up, given the downtime.

For Josep Guardiola, on the other hand, the situation is developing in the opposite direction - towards injuries. Definitely the match against Real Madrid will miss the main defender Manuel Akanji, Rodri and Oscar Bobb have been out for a long time,and now Jack Grealish is also in doubt. The Englishman was injured in the first meeting with Madrid.

Manchester City significantly improved their mood before the return match by defeating Newcastle in the APL. Egyptian Omar Marmoush played a historic match. The footballer scored three goals in one half. Now it is very likely to appear in the starting lineup for the meeting against Real Madrid.

Bookmakers offer odds of 1.90 on Real's victory, although the hosts in general will not need to fight in this match for such an outcome. This looks a bit strange. It is doubtful that the hosts will take a risk and pressurise the opponent, but a pragmatic layout is more likely. City were clearly weaker in the first meeting, but tactical surprises are possible and Marmoush is a big joker. A rookie on inspiration is capable of surprising the opponent's experimental defence. The home field factor is not too important in such matches. It's too early to write off City.