"It's not Haaland vs Mbappe, it's Man City vs Real Madrid"

Man City captain Ruben Dias was present alongside Pep Guardiola for a pre-match press conference ahead of the first leg of the Champions League play-off tie against Real Madrid at the Etihad Stadium. Despite City's struggles this season, the Portuguese defender was positive that his side still have a shot at achieving "something beautiful". 

"Since I have been here this is maybe the most difficult season so far, but I am a firm believer that in the most difficult scenario, you can still achieve something beautiful," Dias told reporters on Monday. "We know it will be difficult to get there but we have to believe in what we have in the dressing room... With the right belief, we are able to do anything."

The Citizens have gone up against the 'Merengues' various times over the past few seasons, with the fixture already establishing itself as a modern European classic. Man City lost out to Ancelotti's men in last year's edition of the Champions League quarter-finals in a dramatic tie that was decided with a penalty shootout. "Last year was frustrating because we dominated the game and even so we weren't able to score the goal that would have made a difference," added the centre-back.

Speaking on what the Sky Blues can do to avoid defeat this time round, the 27-year-old said: "We understand how good we need to be to win this game. We know who we are facing - a team that plays differently from us. They won't make it easy. We need to do what we do better than ever. The first error we can make is to relax because of Real Madrid’s defensive absences. We have to be up to their level and then maybe we can exploit that."

 

February 10, 2025

Walker's absence and Haaland-Mbappe duel

Contrary to last year, Manchester City will be without Kyle Walker after he completed a loan move to AC Milan to end his seven-year stay at the Etihad. Walker was crucial in keeping Real Madrid forward Vinicius at bay using his pace and many fear that his absence could come as an advantage to the Brazilian superstar and his side.

While appreciating the key role played by Walker, Dias was confident in Man City's resources to deal with his departure. Speaking on the ex-City captain, Dias said: "He was a player we all relied on. He's not here now so time for another one to step up and we've got enough names that are able to step up. We don’t know who’s going to play but we have options to replace Walker but it’s the collective that will make the difference and we don’t focus on any individual player of our opponents."

Ahead of the showdown, the spotlight has been particularly put on the duel between Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe, the two main men upfront for their respective sides. Nevertheless, the Portugal international highlighted that a fixture of such magnitude should not be reduced to a few names as he said: "I don’t sense Erling versus Kylian vibes. It is Man City versus Madrid. There are big names on both sides."

 

February 9, 2025