Real Madrid seeks to respond to its defeat against City last season with a clean 4-0 (French)
The excitement of the European Champions League returns - today, Tuesday - with two high-caliber matches in the first leg of the quarter-finals, which led experts to describe the confrontation between Real Madrid of Spain and Manchester City of England (the defending champion) as an early final, just as Arsenal of England will play against Bayern Munich of Germany.
The first match will be held at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium, the home of Real Madrid, while the second will be held at the Emirates Stadium, the home of Arsenal in the capital, London, at the same time (9 p.m. Egypt time and 10 p.m. Saudi time).
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— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) April 8, 2024
Real Madrid to compensate and City to maintain the title
Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti, who is playing his 200th match as coach in the Champions League, hopes to make up for his team's heavy defeat last season with a 4-0 win when it hosts Manchester City, while Arsenal seeks to benefit from Bayern's decline.
Real and City have often met in the knockout rounds over the past seasons, and the former emerged victorious in the semi-finals of 2016 (0-0, 1-0) and 2022 (3-4, 3-1) after a very exciting return match that ended after extra time on Real’s way to winning its title. The record 14th, while City excelled in the 2020 semi-final (2-1, 2-1) and the 2023 semi-final (1-1, 4-0) when it won the first title in its history.
Real Madrid is counting on stars led by English attacking midfielder Jude Bellingham (20 years old), who is trying to return to his level after an injury and suspension at the beginning of the year, when he faces a team that tried to include him, but his heart beat for the royal team.
Real Madrid appears to be in a strong position to regain the Spanish League title, as it leads by 8 points over its rival Barcelona, ​​8 stages before the end of the League. It has won 33 of its 42 matches this season and suffered only two losses to its neighbor Atletico Madrid, and it has not lost at home in 27. match.
On the other hand, Manchester City is engaged in a fierce struggle in the English Premier League, where it has been crowned champion 5 times in the last 6 years. It occupies third place, just a point behind Arsenal and Liverpool, the leaders, with 7 matches remaining before the end of the Premier League, and has not lost in 25 matches in various competitions.
Led by his young Norwegian top scorer Erling Haaland and his Belgian playmaker Kevin De Bruyne, he is looking to achieve a good result outside his home stadium, relying in the second leg on his distinguished record at home, where he has not lost in the last 29 matches in the first continental championship (27 wins and two draws).
Midfield maestros 🎻
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— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) April 8, 2024
Channels broadcasting the Real Madrid vs. Manchester City match
The Qatari beIN Sports network has the rights to broadcast Champions League matches exclusively in the Middle East and North Africa, and the match will be broadcast on beIN Sports HD 1 and beIN Sports HD 1 English.
The ambitious Arsenal and the wounded Bayern
In its first quarter-final since 2010, Arsenal welcomes Bayern Munich, which is at the top of the local league, chasing its title since 2004, with a goal difference over Liverpool and a point ahead of Manchester City.
The Gunners team, aspiring for its first title in the competition, is counting on its distinguished record this season at home, as it won its four matches in the Champions League, scoring 13 goals against one goal against its own net.
But the team of Spanish coach Mikel Arteta won only 3 times in 12 matches against Bayern in the Champions League, compared to 7 losses, including the last 3 confrontations, all of which came with one crushing score of 1-5 in 2015 and 2017.
England captain Harry Kane returns to north London, where he played for many years with Tottenham without winning any title.
Once again, the brilliant Kane finds himself with a wounded team, with the Bavarian team giving up the German League title that it won in the last 11 seasons, in favor of Bayer Leverkusen, which logically only needs time to officially guarantee the Bundesliga for the first time in its history. Bayern also bid farewell to the local cup with nostalgia.
The player, who was transferred to Bayern for $108 million, has so far scored 32 goals in 28 league matches and an additional 6 in the Champions League.
Kane (30 years old), who was released by Arsenal as a child, scored 14 goals in 19 matches.
Channels broadcasting the Arsenal vs. Bayern Munich match
The Qatari beIN Sports network has the rights to broadcast the Champions League matches exclusively in the Middle East and North Africa, and the match will be broadcast on the channels (beIN Sports HD 2), (beIN Sports HD 2 English), and (beIN Sports FR HD 1).
Source: Al Jazeera + French