Credit: Twitter
Manchester City have opted out of the training session at Real Madrid’s home stadium, the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu before their Champions League semifinal clash on Tuesday night. Reportedly, coach Pep Guardiola will set foot in the Madrid stadium one and a half hours before the kick-off.
It will not be until 11: 45 pm IST on Tuesday when Pep’s side will land at the Adolfo Suárez airport in Madrid and will go directly to the Santiago Bernabéu to give the previous official UEFA press conference together with a player from the English club. Both boards will have a board lunch at a restaurant in Madrid.
As per reports from Mundo Deportivo, Guardiola’s side will not arrive in Madrid until around 24 hours before kick-off, not using their UEFA-mandated option to train in Madrid before the matchup. On the other hand, the Citizens will train at their home ground before their flight to Madrid.
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The two sides will face off in the semifinals of the competition for the second consecutive year as Real Madrid beat Man City 7-4 across two legs last year. This is considered a title decider as both teams have great chances to claim the championship this year after giants like Bayern Munich and PSG crashed out of the competition.
Real Madrid beat Chelsea in the quarterfinals while Manchester City dominated the German Champions Bayern Munich to reach the semifinals. The City will face Madrid in the first leg of the semifinal clash on Thursday, May 18 at 12:30 am IST.