Manchester City vs. Real Madrid: Prediction, Preview & Betting Tips

Real Madrid look a more flawed side than they have been in recent seasons, but City have looked so, so poor all season. Pep Guardiola's side are so easy to get at and look completely unable to handle fast transitions, so with the athleticism of Jude Bellingham and Eduardo Camavinga in midfield combined with the threat in behind of Kylian Mbappé and Vinícius Júnior, this looks like a really bad matchup for City.

The last six head-to-head meetings between these two have produced 25 goals so we expect this one to follow that trend, but we expect more of them to go to the visitors than the home side. Manchester City 1-3 Real Madrid.

Manchester City have the chance to salvage their season as they face Real Madrid in the Champions League playoff round.

• Date: 11/02/2025
• Kick-off time: 20:00
• Location: City of Manchester Stadium, Manchester

Manchester City finished 22nd in the Champions League group stage with 11 points from 8 games. City qualified for the playoff round only by the skin of their teeth, beating Club Brugge on the final match week to secure their place. It’s been a very poor campaign by their standards on a domestic level, and their poor league form has been no different in Europe, where City have been well short of what is expected of them. To make matters worse, they’ve been drawn against the Champions League behemoth that is Real Madrid, completing yet another chapter in what is becoming an enthralling series of meetings between the two sides, with this being the third season in a row that these two sides have squared off.

City were heavily beaten away from home by Sporting Lisbon in this competition, while also losing by two goals to both Juventus and PSG. If City are to progress from this tie, they’re probably going to have to deliver their finest performances of the whole season - and by some distance. For a side that’s struggled defensively all season and looks extremely vulnerable in transition, the last players they’ll want to be facing are Kylian Mbappé and Vinícius Júnior, so Guardiola and Co could be in for something of a humbling.

Real Madrid finished 11th in the Champions League group stage with 15 points from 8 games. Los Blancos will be kicking themselves at their careless showings in the group stage, as even despite City’s poor form, they still face a potential banana skin of a tie that could prematurely end their Champions League campaign - a tie that was completely avoidable.

Madrid were beaten by Lille, AC Milan and Liverpool in this season’s competition, which ended up consigning them to a playoff spot. Madrid are top of La Liga and are looking good domestically, but if there’s one criticism you can fire at them this season, it’s been their performances against big sides. Madrid have been battered by rivals Barcelona twice already and were comfortably beaten by Liverpool at Anfield and Milan on their own patch, while also failing to beat 2nd placed Atlético Madrid at the weekend. Madrid are a different beast when it comes to the business end of the Champions League campaign and they usually know how to find another gear in this competition, but it’s certainly something to be wary of when assessing their prospects for this season’s trophy.

Madrid are suffering quite badly with defensive injuries, with Antonio Rüdiger, Éder Militão and David Alaba all on the sidelines, which is forcing midfielder Aurélien Tchouaméni to act as a makeshift centre-back. They’ve still been impressive for the most part, but at this level, it’s something that could cost them.

Regardless of their injuries, though, they’re still the clear favourites to beat this City side. City have looked so, so poor for almost the entire season and Madrid match up with them very favourably from a stylistic perspective - or unfavourably, if you’re looking at it from City’s point of view. The second leg taking place at the Bernabéu is always a major advantage for them too, so as long as they don’t take an absolute hiding here, they should secure their place in the next round.

This game will be streamed live to all subscribed UK viewers on Amazon Prime.

Manchester City Team News:

City's absentees remain unchanged, with Oscar Bobb, Nathan Aké, Jérémy Doku and Rodri all still on the treatment table.

January signing Nicolás González is a major doubt after suffering an injury against Leyton Orient at the weekend, so he is very much touch and go for this one as things stand.

Predicted lineup: Ederson; Nunes, Akanji, Dias, Gvardiol; Silva, Kovačić; Foden, De Bruyne, Sávio; Haaland.

Real Madrid Team News:

Los Blancos have an injury crisis in defence, with Lucas Vázquez, Antonio Rüdiger, Dani Carvajal, Éder Militão and David Alaba all unable to be called upon.

In the absence of Vázquez, Federico Valverde should move over to right-back, with Eduardo Camavingo slotting into the midfield.

Predicted lineup: Courtois; Valverde, Tchouaméni, Asencio, Mendy; Camavinga, Modrić; Rodrygo, Bellingham, Vinícius Júnior; Mbappé.

Manchester City:

Manchester City come enter this game with three wins and two losses from their last five games. City took on Leyton Orient in the FA Cup on Saturday, and despite suffering an early scare and falling 1-0 down, they came back through goals from Rico Lewis and Kevin De Bruyne to win 2-1.

Before that, Pep Guardiola's side were subjected to a 5-1 hammering by Arsenal, which came after a 3-1 win over Club Brugge - thanks to goals from Mateo Kovačić and Sávio (on top of an own goal - and a 3-1 win over Chelsea, courtesy of Joško Gvardiol, Erling Haaland and Phil Foden.

Those results followed a 4-2 loss away at PSG in the Champions League, where City surrendered a 2-0 lead after Jack Grealish and Haaland had put them ahead.

Real Madrid:

Real Madrid come into this one with three wins, one draw and one loss from their last five matches. Los Blancos faced off against city rivals Atlético Madrid at the weekend and were held to a 1-1 draw, with Kylian Mbappé scoring the goal.

Prior to that, Madrid beat Leganés 3-2 in the Copa del Rey through goals from Luka Modrić, Endrick and Gonzalo García, which was preceded by a 1-0 loss to Espanyol and successive 3-0 wins over Brest and Real Valladolid, with Mbappé, Rodrygo and Jude Bellingham scoring the goals in those games.

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