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Real Madrid and Manchester City will square off once again in the Champions League tonight. It will be the first leg of the playoff encounter and will take place at the Etihad Stadium. Both the teams have become arch-nemeses of each other in the recent past and while previously they have faced each other in the later phase of the competition, this time the clash has been scheduled ahead of the Round of 16 round. The team with a better cumulative score will progress to the Round of 16 and for the loser, it will unfortunately be the end of the road. As both the footballing giants are touted as the contenders to win the title, it will be intriguing to see who comes out on top in this year's City vs Madrid encounter.
Ahead of the much-anticipated UCL clash, Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has expressed his thoughts on facing City and admitted that it is a "Clasico" of a kind.
It seems like it’s a Clasico,’ said the Italian, who has won the competition as a manager a record five times. ‘Whether they are in form or not, City are one of the best teams in Europe. It’s always a headache facing City. They still have the best manager out there. It’s the most difficult game we can face, whether they are in form or not. If you’re not 100 per cent, you won’t get the result.
‘They are the most important rival with the best manager. It’s a nightmare for me preparing against Pep (Guardiola) because he always has ideas that make you think.
‘The team who passes this round has the possibility to go far in the competition. The last three years, whoever won this tie won the Champions League. Maybe it can happen this year as well.’
Both City and Madrid are going through a tricky phase in the respective domestic leagues however, as the match has delivered exciting football in the recent past, nothing short of it is expected even this time around.
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