Manchester City are just 90 minutes away from securing their second consecutive UEFA Champions League final appearance and simply need to avoid defeat to Real Madrid to secure their place in Paris on May 28.
The Citizens defeated their Spanish opposition 4-3 in the first leg of their semi-final last week, and now head to the Bernabeu tonight looking to complete the job in order to join Liverpool in the final, who beat Villarreal 3-2 on Tuesday night.
Former Liverpool and Real Madrid striker Michael Owen has given his verdict on the action ahead of another huge night in the Champions League, as the semi-finals reach their conclusion.
Speaking to BetVictor , Owen said: “The first leg was a classic, this one should be just as dramatic. For Real, only losing by a goal was a brilliant result for them, and they’ll be hoping for more heroics at the Bernabeu. Benzema has obviously been incredible in this competition, Real will need more of the same if they are to go through.
“For City, I’m not sure how they didn’t win by more. They could have been three or four up in the first half, but didn’t take their chances and were left to rue them. There was some excellent performances in the side, but De Bruyne and Silva were simply brilliant.
“If City play like they did in Manchester, I think they will go through. The atmosphere in Madrid will be amazing, and Real will try to take the game to City. That should suit City though, and I can see them winning this 2-1.”
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City have that one-goal advantage following last week’s scintillating tie at the Etihad Stadium, but they will rue not having a bigger lead ahead of kick-off tonight at the Santiago Bernabeu after a number of wasted chances in the first leg.
It took just two minutes for the hosts to break the deadlock through Kevin de Bruyne, while Gabriel Jesus doubled the lead after 11 minutes, before Karim Benzema halved the deficit in the 33rd minute. Phil Foden restored the two goal cushion after 53 minutes, but Vinicius Jr cut the gap once again just two minutes later.
Bernardo Silva then gave his side a two goal advantage for the third time in the match, but Benzema grabbed his second of the game with a cheeky Panenka penalty to bring Real right back into the tie with eight minutes to go, meaning all is to play for ahead of the return leg in the Spanish capital.
Both teams are flying in their respective domestic campaigns, with City leading the Premier League on 83 points, but only one ahead of Liverpool with four games to go, while Madrid were crowned La Liga champions at the weekend following a 4-0 victory over Espanyol to go 15 points clear with four games to spare.
This competition is arguably of higher priority to Pep Guardiola, as it is the only trophy he has failed to add to his collection since becoming manager of the club in 2016. City reached their first Champions League final last year, but lost 1-0 to Chelsea, and now they are hoping that it will be second time lucky this campaign.
As for Carlo Ancelotti’s side, they are aiming for a record 13th title in this competition, and last won it back in 2019, which was their third in a row. With Karim Benzema in their side, anything is possible in the second leg, and they’ll be hoping to reach yet another Champions League final with a victory here.
