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Manchester City will train today ahead of Wednesday's Champions League trip to face Real Madrid.

City go into the game on the back of Saturday's Premier League victory over Leicester and will hope for a fully fit squad to take to Spain.

Aymeric Laporte and David Silva played at Leicester, although Laporte was substituted in the second half. Leroy Sane is getting closer to a return to match fitness, while Raheem Sterling should also have recovered from his hamstring injury.

After the win against Leicester, Pep Guardiola said that both Sterling and Laporte should be fit to face Real.

"[Laporte] asked me to be substituted, but he's not injured," Guardiola said. "He's been four months, five months injured, we can't forget that. He had to run a lot. [Sterling] is much, much, much better, I think he'll be ready."

Recap our live blog below for all the latest City news.

Angelino in team of the week

Angelino has made a European Team of the Week for his goal against Schalke for RB Leipzig.

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Liverpool are in action tonight

We don’t need reminding that the Premier League title is bound for Anfield, but City would prefer that Liverpool don’t win the league at the Etihad in April.

That’s a distinct possibility, assuming both sides win all their Premier League fixtures until then - and both progress to the FA Cup quarter finals that would see the fixtures on March 21 postponed.

City host Liverpool on April 4, where anything but a home win would secure the league for Jurgen Klopp’s men in that scenario.

So City might be hoping for West Ham to take a point or three off Liverpool tonight to minimise that risk. A long shot, we know.

City beat West Ham last week.
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Pundit predicts high scoring game in Madrid

Charlie Nicholas tells Sky Sports that he thinks City will leave the Bernabeu with a 2-2 draw this week.

He said:

Real Madrid are unpredictable. They blew their position at the top of La Liga with defeat at Levante. But they are the masters of this competition.


They knew how to win it even when they were not playing well. They were not favourites then, and they are not favourites now. I do not even think they are favourites in this tie.


I see Manchester City scoring here. Aymeric Laporte played another 75 minutes and hopefully he is fit as he will be a positive for them at the back.

Where is the big fear factor for City? Sergio Ramos is coming to the end and will be moving on. Eden Hazard is out. I think they’d sell Luka Modric and Gareth Bale if they could. The reputation of the club is the answer but Pep Guardiola has won there in domestic competitions before. City will embrace the Bernabeu.


They have not been playing as well as they should but when they go after a game, they are a different class, especially when they get on the ball. Ilkay Gundogan, Kevin de Bruyne and Bernardo Silva will be key.

The UEFA Champions League football trophy
(Image: FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP via Getty Images)
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City train ahead of Real Madrid tie

No sign of Leroy Sane or Raheem Sterling in these pictures, but that’s not to say they didn’t train.

We’ll know the full training squad at open training tomorrow morning.

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Leipzig offer Angelino transfer update

Leipzig director of football Markus Krösche says the club will wait to make a decision over whether to sign Angelino permanently.

Angelino, on loan from City, scored his first goal for Leipzig at the weekend. They have an option to buy him permanently for around £25m in the summer.

Krösche told Kicker:

“Angeliño learns very quickly. He hasn’t been there long, but his achievements show how intelligent the boy is and the quality he has.


“We deliberately incorporated the options in both contracts (Angeliño’s and Patrik Schick’s) so that we have enough time to make an informed decision. We don’t have to make a decision under pressure. Not next week, not in two weeks and not in four weeks. Both are definitely players with whom we can imagine continuing to work”.

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Man City told Kevin De Bruyne won't look for transfer despite Champions League ban

Belgium manager Roberto Martinez is confident Kevin De Bruyne will remain at Manchester City in spite of the club’s ban from the Champions League.

UEFA found City to be guilty of ‘serious breaches’ of Financial Fair Play and, in a statement issued on February 14, banned them from European competitions for the next two seasons.

The decision is subject to an appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

However, should the ban be upheld, it could have massive implications for the club and the futures of some star players could be in serious doubt.

However, Martinez, who manages De Bruyne at international level, suggested he believes De Bruyne will remain in Manchester regardless.

Read what he said here.

Kevin De Bruyne of Manchester City
Kevin De Bruyne of Manchester City (Image: Malcolm Couzens/Getty Images)
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Aguero previews Madrid match

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Shearer predicts Sterling departure if City's Champions League ban is upheld

Alan Shearer believes that star players like Raheem Sterling may leave Manchester City if their ban from the Champions League is upheld following an appeal.

“Don’t forget he’s still only 25, so he should have his best years ahead of him,” Shearer told the Sun .


“I don’t see the Champions League tie as an audition - he will want to put on a show regardless to help City into the quarter-finals.


“Yet you don’t need to be a genius to work out the impact of City being banned from Europe for two years if they fail with their appeal.


“Whether it is Sterling or another star like Kevin De Bruyne, it doesn’t matter what they may claim - they will want to be playing in Europe. Rival clubs will know that, too.”

Raheem Sterling of Manchester City
Raheem Sterling of Manchester City (Image: James Williamson - AMA/Getty Images)
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Vote in today's blog!

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Looks even better like this

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The nine upgrades Man City have made since last Real Madrid meeting

Two visits, two defeats. Manchester City’s Champions League record at Real Madrid is not encouraging.

But the Blues were three minutes away from a famous victory at the Bernabeu in 2012, before two late goals from Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo saw them go down 3-2.

And in the semi-final in 2016, the Blues remarkably only lost by a solitary goal despite having a centre-back pairing of Eliaquim Mangala and Nicolas Otamendi up against Benzema, Ronaldo and Gareth Bale for 80 minutes.

That semi-final is a decent yardstick for City’s progress in European football under Pep Guardiola, as Real – apart from losing superstar Ronaldo – have barely changed.

The Blues are significantly different in terms of manpower, set-up and mentality from that team, which was distinctly second-best over the two legs and was grateful to two typically defiant Joe Hart displays in goal to keep the score down.

Read on here.

Manchester City's Brazilian midfielder Fernando (L) vies with Real Madrid's Welsh forward Gareth Bale during the UEFA Champions League semi-final second leg football match Real Madrid CF vs Manchester City FC at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid, on May 4, 2016. / AFP / JAVIER SORIANO (Photo credit should read JAVIER SORIANO/AFP via Getty Images)
Manchester City's Brazilian midfielder Fernando (L) vies with Real Madrid's Welsh forward Gareth Bale during the UEFA Champions League semi-final second leg football match Real Madrid CF vs Manchester City FC at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid, on May 4, 2016. / AFP / JAVIER SORIANO (Photo credit should read JAVIER SORIANO/AFP via Getty Images)
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Officials for Real Madrid vs Man City confirmed

There will be a team of Italians in charge when City travel to Madrid on Wednesday for the first leg of their Last-16 tie with Real.

Daniele Orsato will be the man in the middle and there will be a familiar face manning the VAR operations with Massimiliano Irrati, who was also the VAR official when the Blues were eliminated against Tottenham last season.

The full list of officials is as follows:

Referee

Daniele Orsato (ITA)

Assistant referees

Lorenzo Manganelli (ITA)

Alessandro Giallatini (ITA)

Video Assistant Referee

Massimiliano Irrati (ITA)

Assistant Video Assistant Referee

Ciro Carbone (ITA)

Fourth official

Daniele Doveri (ITA)

Referee Daniele Orsato
Referee Daniele Orsato (Image: Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)
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FA change heading laws in football

Primary school kids have been banned from heading balls in football training.

The ban has been introduced with immediate effect - with England, Northern Ireland and Scotland all taking the same stance.

The three football associations issued a statement today confirming changes to their heading guidance, which come in the wake of a study which suggested a link between the sport and dementia.

The FIELD study showed former footballers were three-and-a-half times more likely to die of neurodegenerative disease than others of the same age.

Read the full story here.

(Image: Manchester Evening News)
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Battle stations!

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Man City boss Pep Guardiola explains how Real Madrid have changed since Cristiano Ronaldo left

Pep Guardiola believes Real Madrid have become a more aggressive pressing team since selling Cristiano Ronaldo to Juventus.

Manchester City travel to Madrid for the first leg of a last-16 Champions League tie on Wednesday night and it’s now a Los Blancos side without the threat of Ronaldo, who left after Real’s 13th European title was secured in 2018.

While the Portuguese is now at Juventus his former club have struggled at times without him, finishing third in La Liga last season and exiting the Champions League at this stage to Ajax.

But with Zinedine Zidane back at the helm they’ve been better this season, although a shock defeat to Leganes on Saturday night saw them surrender top spot in La Liga.

See what he said here.

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Gabriel Jesus believes Leicester victory was perfect preparation for Real Madrid

“[Leicester] are a good team, a good club, they have a lot of quality, they play deep, [it was a] tough game and the atmosphere was so hot,” Jesus told Manchester City.


“It’s a little bit the same I think [against Real Madrid], I have never been in the Bernabeu but I think the atmosphere is good so that’s amazing for us to win here to get confidence for Wednesday.”

 Gabriel Jesus is congratulated by Pep Guardiola
Gabriel Jesus is congratulated by Pep Guardiola (Image: Matthew Ashton - AMA/Getty Images)
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A year ago today...

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Guardiola says City want to emulate Madrid

Pep Guardiola has named Real Madrid as the club Manchester City want to copy ahead of the sides meeting in the last-16 of the Champions League.

The Blues head to the Bernabeu on Wednesday for the first leg of what is undoubtedly the tie of the round and Guardiola has been fulsome in his praise of Zinedine Zidane’s side.

Real Madrid’s 13 European Cup and Champions League titles sets the gold standard on the continent, with City still learning the ropes in the competition, having reached just one semi-final, which ended in defeat to Real in 2016.

Despite having a fractious history with Real during his days as a Barcelona player and manager, Guardiola has held Los Blancos up as the team that City are trying to become, in what may be seen in Catalonia as another slight at Barca, after the Blues boss hit out at president Josep Maria Bartomeu on Wednesday after he came out in support of City’s two-year ban from the Champions League.

Read what Guardiola had to say here.

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Mahrez explains how Man City penalty woes have made them stronger

Riyad Mahrez says his Manchester City teammates showed character to go on and beat Leicester after Sergio Aguero became the latest player to miss a penalty.

Aguero’s second half spot kick was saved by the legs of Kasper Schmeichel, but City persevered and earned the win through Gabriel Jesus’ late winner and Mahrez heaped praise on his teammates for bouncing back to win the game.

“Sometimes it happens,” he said of the penalty.


“The most important thing is that we won today - even though we missed a penalty. We missed a penalty against Tottenham and we lost.

Read the full story here.

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Madrid suffer major injury blow ahead of Man City game

Eden Hazard will miss Real Madrid’s Champions League clash against Manchester City on Wednesday after limping off during their defeat to Levante on Saturday.

The Belgian joined Madrid in the summer from Chelsea but has missed the majority of the season with an ankle issue.

In just his second game since returning from a three month absence, Hazard limped off in the 67th minute to be replaced by Vinicius Junior.

Speaking after the game, Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane confirmed that the winger had suffered another injury to the same ankle area.

He said: “I think it’s a knock to the same area where he suffered his last injury and it does not look good.”

Read the full story here.

Eden Hazard limps off the field in the second half with an ankle injury.
(Image: Photo by Pablo Morano/MB Media/Getty Images)
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De Bruyne reveals why he does not take Man City penalties

Kevin De Bruyne says he will take Manchester City penalties if he is asked.

But the Blues midfielder believes that it is important for strikers to take spot kicks to build their goals tally and so boost their confidence.

City have, astonishingly, missed five of their seven penalties this season, after Sergio Aguero saw his effort saved by Leicester keeper Kasper Schmeichel on Saturday.

That was Aguero’s first miss this season, after three successes, and added to failures by Gabriel Jesus (2), Ilkay Gundogan and Raheem Sterling.

Many City fans have been at a loss as to why De Bruyne does not take them.

Read the full story here.

Manchester City's Belgian midfielder Kevin De Bruyne leaps over the ball during the English Premier League football match between Leicester City and Manchester City at King Power Stadium in Leicester, central England on February 22, 2020. (Photo by Oli SCARFF / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or 'live' services. Online in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No video emulation. Social media in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No use in betting publications, games or single club/league/player publications. / (Photo by OLI SCARFF/AFP via Getty Images)
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Good morning!

Hello, and welcome to today’s City blog!

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