It will be a cracker as Manchester City prepare to take on Real Madrid in the 2023/24 UEFA Champions League quarterfinal first-leg.
The two teams are favorites to win the competition and will certainly leave no stone unturned as they prepare to lay the groundwork for the double-header clash.
Ahead of the cracker, Real Madrid are pulling all necessary strings to put City to the sword at Santiago Bernabeu.
According to reports from The Mail, the LaLiga and European giants have made a shocking move to ambush Manchester City with a well-thought-out plan
They want to make the atmosphere at Santiago Bernabeu as hostile as possible and have reportedly written to UEFA for permission to close the roof of Santiago Bernabeu.
The move to close the roof could be seen as a vengeful step by the hosts to pay Manchester City back with the same coin they used against the 14-time Europeans when they visited Etihad for the semifinal second leg last year.
Manchester City closed the roof of Etihad and eased to a convincing 4-0 victory with Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti taking a jibe at the dominant City for lacking courage.
It is still unclear whether the closed roof at Etihad aided City’s epic win against Real Madrid last year but the European champions will have a taste of a similar scenario at Santiago Bernabeu.
However, UEFA have to approve the request by Real Madrid to close the stadium, and the request will reportedly be granted a few hours before the kickoff.
A lot is at stake between the two sides heading into the game. Real Madrid remain the biggest club in the elite club competition in Europe with a domineering presence. However, City have emerged to challenge that dominance.
A back-to-back knockout triumph over Real Madrid will consolidate City’s status as the emerging new European football powerhouse.
And it is unlikely Real Madrid will easily give in to the challenge of reclaiming their European dominance from City.
What is your prediction?
