Real Madrid and Man City have won the Champions League in 3 recent seasons, in which Los Blancos have won the competition once. Why is this match considered a new super classic of European football? Because in addition to the dominance of the two clubs in the national championship, any team that overcomes its opponent in the Champions League knockout round will be crowned champion.
This season, when the Champions League changed the format with the qualifying round, not the group stage, combined with unstable performance in the domestic league, both Real Madrid and Man City struggled, as evidenced by the inability to finish in the Top 8, leading to each other being eliminated in the play-off round.
Including the first leg of the play-off, in the last 7 encounters, the match between the two sides has witnessed 30 goals. This is the 4th consecutive season that the two teams have faced each other in the knockout round. The appeal of it has been demonstrated through more than 4 million views on the Amazon Prime Video platform in the UK for the first leg last week.
However, the match between Man City and Real Madrid has many other attractive factors besides the explosive numbers. Remember in the first leg, the giant pivo in the Etihad stands with the words "Stop crying your heart out" and the image of Rodri kissing the Ballon d'Or left a huge impression.
It was aimed at Vinicius Jr, who came behind Rodri in France Football's vote. However, when the final whistle blew, the owner of The Best received the MVP title right at the Etihad, instead of the strongest response to The Citizens fans.
For Real Madrid, they always consider the Champions League as a top priority for each season, not just any other domestic title. Especially since the beginning of the season, Los Blancos have had 2 serious defeats, 0-4 and 2-5 against Barcelona. Therefore, raising the European championship title in May at the Allianz Arena is considered a must if La Liga unfortunately has a constant.
"About 5-10 years ago, every time people mentioned the Super classic, people often only talked about the match between Real Madrid and Barcelona. Now, we have to dedicate it to the clash between Real Madrid and Manchester City. Look at their level of play to understand.
I think this is very good because it proves the freshness of the flow of football history. Man City is gradually setting foot in the most glorious arenas, while Real Madrid has been like that in any era. They are the best adaptations to the times" - Jorge Valdano, former Real Madrid coach shared.
Real Madrid coaching staff always consider the match against Man City an early final regardless of the knockout round. They consider Pep Guardiola the most difficult coach to declare in the world. That is why the first leg winning squad at the Etihad does not mean they will continue to be used in the second leg at the Bernabeu.
Not only Valdano, "The Barber" Vicente del Bosque also agreed with the view that the Real Madrid - Man City match is now the most exciting match in Europe. The former Real Madrid captain and also the 2010 world champion with La Roja said that this was the match that attracted the most attention in the world in recent years.
"I think both teams have different ways of dominating world football in recent years. In particular, Real Madrid has maintained its extraordinary class. I still remember in 2022, the team won the championship for the 14th time and the comeback against Man City was the most impressive match in the tournament.
Man City are one of the few teams that can dominate the ball possession period but Real Madrid are very comfortable without the ball in their feet. They take advantage of the high-speed transitions even though they do not lack good ball control factors" - Del Bosque shared.
The match between Man City and Real Madrid is not simply a clash between the two teams on the field. Up front, the owners of each team also consider defeating their opponents as the greatest success of the season. However, it is not so harsh as to be hateful, on the contrary, both sides still have great respect for each other.
"At Real Madrid and Man City, we know who will be responsible for matches like this. In Madrid, that is president Florentino Perez. As for here, everyone understands, there are only things that are not said" - Jorge Valdano shared.
