Real Madrid Vs Manchester City [1–2] – Champions League 2025/2026: Efficiency Vs Control At The Bernabéu – Tactical Analysis

Real Madrid hosted Manchester City in a UEFA Champions League clash that renewed the rivalry between the two teams and delivered one of the most-watched encounters in the competition.

The match ended with a 1-2 win for Man City, who climbed to fourth spot and are further confirming their qualification to the knockout round without needing to go through the playoffs, especially if they keep getting positive results in their upcoming games.

On the other hand, Real Madrid failed to win another home game, aggravating the team’s issues and raising further doubts about their head coachs work and his potential sack following the latest unconvincing results.

With Barcelona starting to widen the gap to four points from Real Madrid in the league’s standings due to Real Madrid’s numerous draws in the latest period, in addition to a recent loss last week, Xabi Alonso is starting to be put under heavy pressure from the club, the fans, and the media.

Getting out of this complicated situation will count in Alonso’s favour and confirm that he has a strong personality that allows him to face the challenges of coaching a team like Real Madrid.

But if things don’t go his way during the next few games, it will be complicated for Real Madrid to give him more time, as the club is known for needing immediate results.

In this tactical analysis of the match between Real Madrid vs Manchester City, our attention will be centred on Real Madrid’s created chances and what prevented them from converting those chances into goals.

Real Madrid Vs Manchester City Lineups & Formations

Alonso used a 4-3-3 formation, with Thibaut Courtois as goalkeeper and Raúl Asencio alongside Antonio Rüdiger as the centre-back pairing.

Álvaro Carreras started at left-back, while Federico Valverde started at right-back.

The midfield was composed of Aurélien Tchouaméni, Dani Ceballos, and Jude Bellingham as central midfielders, with Vinícius Júnior and Rodrygo as wingers, supporting the striker Gonzalo García, given the injury to Kylian Mbappé.

On the other hand, Pep Guardiola opted for a 4-3-2-1 formation, relying on Gianluigi Donnarumma in goal, and a defensive line of Rúben Dias and Joško Gvardiol as centre-backs, flanked by Matheus Nunes on the right and Nico O’Reilly on the left as full-backs.

Nico González started as the defensive midfielder, with Bernardo Silva and Phil Foden playing as central midfielders on both sides.

Upfront, Rayan Cherki and Jérémy Doku started as the right and left wingers, with Erling Haaland as the team’s central striker.

Real Madrid Chance Conversion Issues Vs Manchester City

As the above heading suggests, Real Madrid faced real problems converting their chances into goals during the match against Manchester City, and that was one of the main reasons they lost at home.

In fact, Real Madrid started the match very well, winning a dangerous free-kick at the edge of the box, but failed to convert it into a goal due to a deflection off Valverde’s shot.

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