Real Madrid gear up to face Manchester City at the Santiago Bernabeu on Thursday as they look to bounce back in the return leg of the UEFA Champions League semifinals. Carlo Ancelotti’s side suffered a hard-fought 4-3 defeat at the hands of Manchester City last week.
Team News
Real Madrid remain without Eden Hazard and Luka Jovic. David Alaba is not likely to start as he suffers from injury concerns. Furthermore, Gareth Bale remains unavailable, having back issues.
Ancelotti will set his side up in a 4-3-3 formation with his key players set to feature after having rested in the last match. The Italian tactician could go full throttle as he has his eyes set on overthrowing the Sky Blues’ for a place in the finals.
4-3-3 Real Madrid Predicted Lineup Vs Manchester City
Defence
Thibaut Courtois will return to operate in between the sticks for Los Blancos. The Belgian shot-stopper will have to give a strong performance to render the opposition forwards goalless in the home encounter.
David Alaba remains doubtful to start; hence Nacho Fernandes could slot into the centre-back position alongside Eder Militao at the heart of Real Madrid’s backline.
Dani Carvajal will function at right-back while Ferland Mendy features on the other side as the left-back. Both of them will get the license to go forward and impress in the final third.
Midfield
Ancelotti’s midfield could be comprised of Casemiro, Toni Kroos and Luka Modric. They will have to collectively produce a good display if the Madrid giants are to come out on top.
Casemiro would take on a more defensive role to shield the backline. Having him back would provide a great boost to Madrid’s defence.
Attack
Vinicius Junior will function as the left-sided wide player while Fede Valverde looks to be productive from the right as the duo would look to create some clear cut goal scoring chances. Rodrygo looks to provide offensive cover from the bench and would likely be substituted in the latter half.
Karim Benzema will lead the line as he fancies his chances of finding the back of the net against Manchester City, a defensive unit that has conceded seven goals in the last five matches across all fronts.
