Manchester City travels to the Santiago Bernabeu to face Real Madrid in what could be City’s last Champions League campaign for the next two years.
On the 14th of February 2020, Manchester City was banned from all UEFA club competitions for both the 2020/21 and 2021/22 seasons and was also fined €30 million by the UEFA Club Financial Control Body due to alleged breaches of the UEFA Financial Fair Play Regulations.
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The news came as a shock to all of English football but in a statement that Manchester City put out shortly after the news of their ban came to public, they were not surprised by their punishment but they did make clear their decision to appeal the ban to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
This Champions League campaign holds more weight for Manchester City as if their key players decide to stay at the club, they possibly won’t have the opportunity to play in it for the next two seasons.
Unfortunately for them, they face the most successful club in European history in the knockout stages. Real Madrid, who have won the competition 13 times, six more than any other club, won just three games in the group stage, twice against Galatasaray and once against Club Brugge.
They also sit second in La Liga, two points behind Barcelona and have lost just two league games all season, the least amount in the league. Their 15-match unbeaten run came to an end this weekend however as they fell 1-0 to Levante, their last league fixture before they travel to the Nou Camp to face Barcelona in a title-altering match.
Manchester City Odds for the Champions League Match
Manchester City defeated Leicester 1-0 to expand their gap over them to seven points as they remain a whopping 19 points behind league leaders Liverpool.
City and Real Madrid have previous in the Champions League facing each other four times since 2012. Man City are yet to beat Madrid with two losses and two draws in their four games.
The two clubs last met in the Champions League semi-finals in 2016 where Madrid won 1-0 on aggregate before defeating rivals Atletico Madrid in the final on penalties.
Sportsbooks odds on a Real Madrid win opens at +170, making them underdogs. Odds on a City away win open at +130, making them the favorites for not only this game but to win the Champions League as those odds open at +400.
Could Man City’s Key Players Leave the Club?
We’ve already seen Raheem Sterling talk about how fantastic Real Madrid are following Manchester City’s potential ban from the Champions League.
Players who are at risk of leaving are the likes of Kevin De Bruyne, 29, and Sergio Aguero, 31, due to their ages.
Both players have talked about their passion for winning Europe’s greatest prize and City’s consistent failure in the competition coupled with their potential ban doesn’t spell good reading for the club and their chances of keeping hold of their best players.
Best Sportsbook 2020
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