Manchester City have lost three games in this season’s Champions League despite going 1-0 up, and doing so a fourth time against Real Madrid on Wednesday would set a new record.
Pep Guardiola‘s side will travel to the Bernabeu on Wednesday, and they will have to overturn a 3-2 deficit if they are to progress to the Champions League round of 16.
It is difficult to see City progressing if they concede first in Spain, and they will have to display a level of defensive resilience that they have so far been unable to show this campaign.
City lost 4-1 against Sporting Lisbon, 4-2 against Paris Saint-Germain and 3-2 against Real Madrid despite taking 1-0 leads in all three matches, and no team in the competition’s history has lost four matches having taked 1-0 leads.
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Do Man City have any hope?
Despite taking 10 minutes to settle into the first leg on February 11, City were arguably the better team for the majority of the game, exploiting Real’s poor out of possession work.
Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius junior were at times lax with their defensive work, and the Citizens found it relatively straightforward to play around the Spanish giants and back into midfield.
Guardiola also chose to set up with a unique shape in possession, starting John Stones at the base of midfield while pushing full-backs Manuel Akji and If the gvviool up alongside the Englishman in order to provide extra defensive solidity.
However, Akanji is set to miss out on action for months after picking up an injury in the first leg and his absence could force the City boss into making changes.
Guardiola may not have had the luxury of playing both Akanji and Gvardiol as full-backs anyway given the English champions have to push for a goal, and their lack of offensive instincts may have proven to be detrimental in the final third.
It should also be noted that Real Madrid have only failed to score in one of their last 78 UEFA Champions League home games, and irrespective of their defensive flaws, they will undoubtedly prove to be dangerous during counter-attacks.
City did beat Newcastle United 4-0 on Saturday and Guardiola hailed midfielder Nico Gonzalez‘s impact, likening him to a “mini Rod“.
Despite his strong performance, asking Gonzalez to perform to a similar standard against Real Madrid would be a big ask considering he only arrived at the end of the January window and is still adapting to a new style of play.
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