Five Real Madrid players are on the brink of suspension in the Champions League and risk missing the second leg against Manchester City.
An injury-plagued Real Madrid are headed to the Etihad to take on the defending English champions in the Champions League knockout phase playoffs. Not only will Los Blancos look to leave Manchester with a positive result, but they will also hope a handful of their most important players stay out of the referee's book.
Although Carlo Ancelotti's front three—Vinícius Júnior, Kylian Mbappé and Rodrygo—are all not in danger of suspension, there are five other players in white who could be forced to sit out of the second leg against Manchester City if they receive a yellow card on Tuesday night.
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The Five Real Madrid Players That Need to Avoid a Yellow Card Against Manchester City
Here are the following Real Madrid players that will miss the second leg against City if they receive a yellow card at the Etihad:
- Jude Bellingham
- Aurélien Tchouaméni
- Eduardo Camavinga
- Luka Modrić
- Endrick
Of the five players, losing Tchouaméni would be the most detrimental to Real Madrid. The midfielder already has to play as an emergency center back because Éder Militão, Antonio Rüdiger, David Alaba and Dani Carvajal are all injured. Without Tchouaméni, Los Blancos would have to hope Rüdiger can recover in time for the second leg. If not, then Ferland Mendy just might have to play alongside Raúl Asencio.
Of course, Bellingham is another player Ancelotti can ill afford to lose. The England international's creativity and playmaking fuels Real Madrid's attack, and his defensive work rate is second only to Fede Valverde's.
Camavinga and Modrić give the midfield depth, but with only one of them in line to start on Tuesday, Ancelotti will likely not have to worry about losing both players to suspension. Endrick will also only log a few minutes, if any at all, in the first leg, so there is little danger of the Brazilian entering the referee's book.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as The Five Real Madrid Players That Need to Avoid a Yellow Card Against Manchester City.
