In 2025 alone, the giants met three times, and in February, the Spaniards won both matches

In the Champions League Round of 16 on March 11, 2026, the first leg between Real Madrid and Manchester City will take place. The central clash of the week between familiar rivals.

The Spanish giants did not win anything in 2025. In January, still under Xabi Alonso, they suffered defeat in the Super Cup. His successor, Arbeloa, immediately lost to Albacete in the Copa del Rey. Only La Liga remains, where they are keeping pace with Barcelona, albeit with mixed results. Last season was also unsuccessful for the English giants. Now, City have reached the League Cup final, where they will face Arsenal. In the Premier League, others are trying to catch up to them.

In the Champions League, Mbappé and company started with three consecutive wins. But then they began to alternate defeats with new victories. In the last round, they lost 2-4 to Benfica. As a result, they faced Benfica again in the February playoffs—this time beating the Portuguese twice, though not without controversy.

Guardiola’s team mostly won in the tournament—five times, including in Madrid. However, they drew in Monaco and lost at home to Bayer and away to Bodo/Glimt. Nevertheless, they are only now starting their playoff campaign.

Real Madrid vs Manchester City: Key Statistics and Trends
Real Madrid have won three of their last four Champions League matches
The team scores an average of 2.40 goals per game and concedes 1.30
Manchester City have won five of their eight matches in the tournament
The club averages 1.88 goals scored and 1.13 goals conceded per game
Real Madrid vs Manchester City: Probable Starting Lineups
Real Madrid (probable lineup): Courtois – Álvaro Carreras, Rüdiger, Asensio, Alexander-Arnold – Camavinga, Tchouaméni, Güler, Valverde – Vinícius Júnior, Gonzalo García

Manchester City (probable lineup): Donnarumma – Aït-Nouri, Guehi, Rúben Dias, Matheus Nunes – Rodri Hernández, O’Riley, Bernardo Silva, Semenyo – Marmoush, Haaland

Head-to-Head: Real Madrid vs Manchester City
In 2025 alone, the giants met three times. In February, the Spaniards won both matches, but in the autumn, the English side took revenge away.