Manchester City are chasing a second historic treble this season – and Steve McManaman believes they’re just as strong as last year.
City beat Real Madrid 4-0 at the Etihad last May on the way to winning the Champions League for the first time in their history, completing the treble after also bagging the Premier League and the FA Cup.
Tonight they host Los Blancos again, this time in the second leg of the quarter-finals, having drawn at the Bernabeu in the first leg – just as they did in last term’s semis.
The two teams also met in the semi finals in 2021-22, when Manchester City won 4-3 at home in the first leg but then lost 3-1 in Spain. This time, McManaman tells FourFourTwo that he fancies Pep Guardiola’s side once more.
“I think Man City are the favourites,” McManaman says. “City are very strong, they were the favourites for the Champions League in August, so the fact that they just need to win at home to go through, you’d take that all day long.
“They scored four against Real Madrid two years ago, they scored four against them last year, Madrid are dangerous and they’re a good team, but I felt Real Madrid needed a lead to take to the Etihad, maybe even a two-goal start. That’s how confident I would have been in Manchester City when they’re at home.”
City moved to the top of the Premier League table at the weekend, having rarely occupied that position this season, but they also trailed Arsenal for much of last season before eventually winning the title.
Captain Ilkay Gundogan joined Barcelona after the treble was secured, and there have been suggestions this season that maybe Manchester City aren’t as strong now as they were when they beat Real Madrid 4-0 last term. McManaman disagrees.
“I think they’re on a par,” says the 52-year-old, who played for both Manchester City and Real Madrid during his career. “I don’t know whether Kyle Walker is going to play the second leg, but that'll be an interesting battle because Real Madrid used that side of the pitch very well at the Bernabeu. Vinicius and Rodrygo were very left side of the pitch a lot, to try to get at Manuel Akanji.
“So I don’t know whether Kyle will play but City are certainly on a par. Yes, they’ve lost a few players from last year, Gundogan went who was a superstar, but Mateo Kovacic came in, Rodri is in incredible form, they missed Kevin De Bruyne in the first leg because he was sick, but he’ll be back. They’re just as strong really.”
The winners of the tie will face Arsenal or Bayern Munich in the semi-final, with Paris Saint-Germain taking on Borussia Dortmund in the other semi. McManaman expects either Manchester City or Real Madrid to lift the trophy.
“Yeah, you’d presume so,” he says. “I mean, it’s not as easy as that, because once they get to the final, 90 minutes at Wembley is a different thing, but when you look at the knockout stages, City are really strong – that side of the draw with City, Real Madrid, Arsenal and Bayern is stronger than the other side.”
McManaman was speaking to FFT to mark the launch of Panini’s Official England Sticker Collection – he features as a legend in the collection, an honour he was grateful for.
“It’s nice,” he says. “If you’re a football fan, you’ve always collected them, going back to my 12-year-old self. I was surprised to be a footballer, then you’re suddenly on these cards in Liverpool kits, then England kits, Real Madrid kits. Representing my country was lovely and to be considered a legend is always a nice thing – I’ve been called worse things than that!
“I’ve got a 12-year-old boy and he loves the football cards like everybody does – they have a little bit of stick with him and his mates, because they all support different teams, so actually to have a card and have his dad on it, I think he’s slightly proud of me for once!”
The Official England Sticker Collection Tournament Edition 2024, with 100 per cent official kits and 387 stickers to collect, is available now at panini.co.uk/englandstickers and retailers nationwide
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