Two Manchester City players have been ruled out of the UEFA Champions League quarter-final against Real Madrid which will be played at Santiago Bernabeu on April 9, confirmed the club on Monday.
Kyle Walker and Nathan Ake have not travelled with the squad to Spain as both players continue to recover from injuries they picked in the international break.
Walker injured his hamstring during the match between England and Brazil at Wembley after which he left the field with the help of physios. Man City boss Pep Guardiola had hoped that the 32-year-old would be fit enough to face Los Blancos but that is not going to be the case.
On the other hand, Madrid have no such injury issues apart from David Alaba and Thibaut Courtois as both players have long-term injuries.
Squads
Man City: Ruben Dias, John Stones, Mateo Kovacic, Erling Haaland, Jack Grealish, Jeremy Doku, Rodrigo, Kevin De Bruyne, Stefan Ortega Moreno, Julian Alvarez, Bernardo Silva, Sergio Gomez, Josko Gvardiol, Manuel Akanji, Matheus Nunes, Ederson, Scott Carson, Phil Foden, Oscar Bobb, Mahamadou Susoho, Rico Lewis
Real Madrid: Andriy Lunin, Kepa and Fran, Dani Carvajal, Eder Militao, Nacho Fernandez, Lucas Vazquez, Fran Garcia, Antonio Rudiger, Ferland Mendy, Jude Bellingham, Toni Kroos, Luka Modric, Eduardo Camavinga, Fede Valverde, Aurelien Tchouameni, Dani Ceballos, Arda Guler, Vini Jr., Rodrygo, Joselu and Brahim Diaz.
Remember, Man City and Real Madrid took on one another in the 2021/22 and 2022/23 seasons in the semi-finals of the tournament. Los Blancos defeated the Cityzens in one of the most memorable comebacks in history in 2022 and advanced to the final which they eventually won.
Pep Guardiola's troops handed Madrid a four-goal defeat in 2023 and went on to qualify for the final which they won by beating Inter Milan.