Champions League

Liverpool take on Villarreal at Anfield in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League semi-final on Wednesday and we can bring you the details of when and ...

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The Champions League semifinals begin as four teams remain in pursuit of continental glory. The action starts on Tuesday when Real Madrid head to Manchester ...

Match prediction: Manchester City 2, Real Madrid 1. His technical ability and speed should give the Real Madrid center-backs some serious trouble. I'll go with the guy who has to be on for Real to advance. He's had back-to-back hat tricks in the knockout stage and is playing out of his mind. Benzema, 34, is having far and away the best season of his career. The action kicks off on Tuesday when Real Madrid head to Manchester City for the first leg.

Liverpool boss Jürgen Klopp used his pre-Villarreal press conference in the Champions League to address a number of key points, including praising Unai ...

But whichever result we get, we work with it and fight with Villarreal. It means everything to us to make the Champions League final." If you need the next game to be 1000 per cent in, then bring on Villarreal in the Champions League. There are moments where we will suffer tomorrow night and there is no need to be nervous. Klopp was clear that Liverpool will come under pressure at certain times in the tie, but what Villarreal's clash with Bayern Munich proved is that those moments will be sporadic. Klopp is right to say that Liverpool cannot afford to make the mistakes that Juventus and Bayern did, but it is clear that they have the mentality to avoid falling into the same trap. A block on the line is like scoring for me. A big game, but that should be possible if the Reds are at their best. It would be massive but it is for us the same importance." Villarreal and their manager will prove a difficult team to beat over the course of the two legs, but Liverpool are overwhelming favourites, without a doubt. So many coaches and players work their socks off for their whole lives and have no chance to be close to this. We played a really good first half but it was game number 64 or whatever in that season and we had a lot of injury problems. "Unai is a detail-obsessed manager who prepares for all different situations in the game. We have to cherish it and enjoy it.

The possibility of English clubs missing from the Europa Conference League all together. How many English teams qualify for European football? There are seven ...

Their Europa Conference League spot for finishing seventh would disappear. Winning that competition qualifies them for the Champions League group stages. That is irrespective of where they finish in the Premier League table. But if Leicester were to win the Europa Conference League and finish seventh - the place set to be rewarded with a Europa Conference League spot - there would be no English side in the Europa Conference League next season, as Leicester would be bumped up to the Europa League. That happened in Spain last season with Sevilla and no La Liga side involved in the Europa Conference League. If they qualify for the competition through two methods - ie: they win it and finish in the top four - there is no extra Champions League spot created for another team to fill and the number of Premier League clubs in next season's Champions League will remain at four. So that means sides which finish sixth and seventh in the Premier League table are in contention for a place in either the Europa League or Europa Conference League next season.

Carlo Ancelotti believes Real Madrid's record of 13 European Cup wins is a “positive burden” for his players as they face Manchester City in the Champions ...

Normally, if Real Madrid get to the final, there is more of a possibility to win it.” “I think the history that Real Madrid has in this competition counts for a lot, more for us than opponents,” Ancelotti said. Real last won the competition in 2018, sealing a third consecutive triumph, while Ancelotti was the head coach who guided the club to their 10th success in 2014.

Manchester City can take a major step towards a second Champions League final appearance in a row when they welcome Real Madrid to the Etihad Stadium on the ...

"I wait for the training session to see how they feel. With Joao Cancelo suspended for the clash after receiving a yellow card against Atletico Madrid in the second-leg of City's quarter-final tie, it remains to be seen who features at right-back for the Premier League leaders. Manchester City can take a major step towards a second Champions League final appearance in a row when they welcome Real Madrid to the Etihad Stadium on the back of a convincing 5-1 thrashing of Watford in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon.

Liverpool take on Villarreal in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final at Anfield this week and the referee has been confirmed.

The first leg takes place at Anfield on Wednesday night, before Liverpool travel to Spain for the second leg next week. Liverpool fans may remember Marciniak taking charge of two Reds matches already this season, with each of them ending in victories. Marciniak oversaw the 3-2 win over AC Milan in the group stage at Anfield in September, as well as the 2-0 away victory against Inter Milan in the last-16 first leg at the San Siro.

The 13-time European champions were not thought to be among the competition's favourites at the start of the season.

The debate I have to decide on is three strikers or two.” “But for Real Madrid it is not normally a success to reach the semi-finals. It’s a positive responsibility to have that.” Our history helps the players to know what this shirt means." 💬@MrAncelotti: "I think that Real Madrid's history in this competition is very important. “We are happy to be here and competing.

The quarterfinal round saw reigning champions Chelsea, Bayern Munich, Atlético Madrid and Benfica eliminated from the competition, as the field was cut down ...

Manchester City’s own Raheem Sterling secured a total of three goals in the Champions League. Manchester City are the favorite to win against Real Madrid in the semifinals, and also make it to the finals. He scores an average of 1.11 goals every 90 minutes with 32 total goals so far this season, 13 of those being in the UEFA Champions League. Chelsea did come back to claim victory in the second leg at 3-2, but it wasn’t enough for them to advance. Manchester City’s 1-0 victory occurred in the first leg while their second matchup with Atlético Madrid resulted in a tie of 0-0. The second leg of the quarterfinals ended in a tie, 3-3, so Benfica said their goodbyes.

UEFA plans to give two Champions League places to teams that didn't qualify based on their historic record in Europe when the tournament expands to 36 teams ...

“We are just a small club, a middle-class club in Germany, and we are not the voice of all the European clubs,” Hellman said. We could give the other middle-class clubs a voice and organizing an initiative with some other clubs, and that’s something we are working on.” “If you’re participating in the Champions League, your coefficient gets higher and higher and the shop is more closed,” Hellman said in a video call on Monday. “So I do not believe that should be the right requirement to participate in the European competitions.

A Spanish team's run to the semifinals offers a template for how teams can thrive by turning the impatience of Europe's giants against them.

It demonstrates that it is possible to grow strong on the scraps from the feast, to thrive in soccer’s increasingly Anglocentric ecosystem, by remembering that the appeal of a product depends on its use. Villarreal has long nurtured connections in South America in general and in Argentina in particular: When it last reached a Champions League semifinal, in 2006, it was with a team stocked with Boca Juniors alumni. Villarreal, on the other hand, does not feel like a vision of what is to come. “So they created a cleaning product made with vinegar,” Miguel Blanco, a business economics professor at King Juan Carlos University, once told a business journal from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Mercadona, like Villarreal, understands that the appeal of a product depends on how it is used. There is Vicente Iborra, a 34-year-old midfielder who struggled to make an impact at Leicester City, and Pervis Estupiñán, the young Ecuadorean left back who noodled around the great Watford loan factory for a while. But both contained trace elements of lightning strikes, too: difficult — if not impossible — to repeat or replicate. These are held at 10 stores around Spain, and each is devoted to a particular strand of the business: pet care, for example, or snacks or personal hygiene. Those familiar with Villarreal’s strategy say that is not a deliberate policy. To ensure the company is meeting their needs, Mercadona, every so often, invites a selection of its most reliable customers to take part in a testing laboratory. There has, instead, been a degree of opportunism. It was in Monaco’s run past Manchester City and Borussia Dortmund that Kylian Mbappé, Bernardo Silva and Fabinho first pierced the sport’s broader consciousness. Fernando Roig, Villarreal’s president and benefactor, has a minority stake in Mercadona, Spain’s largest retail chain, but it is his brother, Juan, the majority shareholder, who is credited with turning the latter into a staple case study for business schools around the world.

Manchester City midfielder Rodri has been speaking about the threats of Real Madrid talisman Karim Benzema ahead of their Champions League semi-final clash ...

Both them and title rivals Liverpool are in the last four of this season’s Champions League. While City have never won the competition, Guardiola has lifted the trophy twice as a manager. That tally also includes 12 goals in nine Champions League appearances, with hat-tricks in knockout round victories over both Paris-Saint Germain and Chelsea.

The Champions League semifinals are upon us, the action starts Tuesday on CBS and Paramount+. Manchester City host Real Madrid on Tuesday before Liverpool ...

A defense that may have only Craig Dawson as a fit center back will be tested but this is a team that has stood firm at both ends of the pitch in Europe. With the London Stadium at their backs they could well do enough to take control of the tie this week and book their passage back to Seville, where their knockout stage journey began. But, there is something to be said for the remorseless momentum that has gripped this club, where everything is being funneled into their pursuit of continental silverware. if their manager is ready to abandon the possession play he has gravitated to of late. Certainly that's no great surprise in the case of the Champions League where Liverpool and Manchester City have been strides ahead of the field for some time now. But, it was in that first half of the second leg that Villarreal seemed to conclude that they would win this tie, their belief not repressed even by Robert Lewandowski's goal. Here's one that has been sizzling away in the background for a while, not ready to be unleashed on the world until Barcelona crashed out of the Europa League. Now is the time to boldly declare this bit of Premier League exceptionalism. Flip the script of recent Villarreal games and if Klopp needs to tighten things up, he tends to have a top tier midfielder with fresh legs on the bench. Almost certainly not is the answer, an unfortunate one for those of a Villarreal persuasion or indeed those who just want to see a bit of spice in the latter stages of the Champions League. Then again one could have written the exact same thing throughout this competition. Across their Champions League games so far Villarreal have given up 4.85 expected goals and two actual goals in the first half as opposed to 9.73 and nine in the second. As the Belgian has hit top gear in recent weeks he has had something of another Manchester City great to his game. At full pelt Walker should be able to tame the Brazilian. If City do not have their best covering defender at that sort of level, then it might be Vinicius rather than Benzema who does the damage. Real Madrid have not gotten this far because they have been the clearly better team across the entirety of two legs in the previous rounds.

The Champions League returns with some cracking ties promised in the semi-final first legs, exclusively live on BT Sport. Check out previews for every game ...

Man City, who knocked out Real Madrid two seasons previously in the Round of 16, are chasing a European and domestic league double this term. One word of warning though. It promises to be a truly fascinating encounter… On the face of it, Liverpool couldn’t have dreamt they’d be facing a team with the stature of Villarreal in the Champions League semi-finals. For the second time, Manchester City and Real Madrid meet in the Champions League semi-finals in a highly anticipated clash of the titans packed with storylines aplenty. The Champions League semi-finals begin this week as Liverpool, Manchester City, Villarreal and Real Madrid battle to make the final in Paris.

Manchester City go welcome Real Madrid for di first-leg of dia Champions League semi-final match.

Di EPL no dey dia hands to win, but di Champions League and FA Cup still dey dia hand." "DeM dey smell blood and dem no go go away easily. I expect Manchester City to win wit a slim margin, but dis Real Madrid team na Carlo Ancelotti dey coach dem."

Villarreal are thriving against Europe's elite with sights set on Champions League glory. Can they crack Liverpool next in semifinal bid?

Yet he's the one, in the Yellow Submarine's words, ensuring that 'everyone of us, has all we need' for a Champions League semifinal against the six-time competition winners. He was told on arrival that his negative test hadn't been produced early enough to allow him access to the stadium where his team were on the verge of history. Then we have optimistic expectations but based on a lot of work." Win, lose, draw -- Emery immediately sensed that there was urgency, ambition and grit about the Yellow Submarine project. Villarreal were on a promotion mission that, by 1967, would see them wriggle their way back into the third division, and there's a lovely faded black-and-white photo of a fan banner held up by first-team players on the day which reads: "The Yellow Submarine is Advancing At Full Steam." Emery, a Basque-born footballer of workmanlike ability, is a good witness to what his boss has achieved. I experienced the final by myself because my kids were in Poland, my brother was in Poland; everyone was in Poland. I watched more or less alone because my wife finds it very tense. There's a presumption that because the club have only become world-known over the last sixteen or so years the nickname is a modern creation. Relegation, from which the club bounced back with rubber-ball speed, was the most painful experience for him across this magical quarter-century. But 2006, the last time the Yellow Submarine reached the Champions League semifinal, was the more brutally iconic image. Like his brother and sister-in-law, he is a billionaire. On the day when the Beatles' publicity machine for their Yellow Submarine/Eleanor Rigby release went into overdrive, Villarreal were in Spanish football's fifth tier.

Villarreal boss Unai Emery said his team deserve to be in the semifinals of the Champions League ahead of Wednesday's clash with Liverpool.

"Anfield is special and the atmosphere is impressive, incredible," Villarreal midfielder Dani Parejo said. "I recognise the work done and the identity created by Klopp, which has since been further improved. "It's not by chance that we are here," Villarreal midfielder Dani Parejo said. "Any side that is in a Champions League semifinal is there because they deserve to be. They are the number one favourites to win this competition. They will feel like favourites, of course, but will have respect for us."

Liverpool have received news of a massive Champions League boost, as two key Villarreal players will miss the semi-final first leg at Anfield through ...

The case could be made that Pino may not have started the game anyway, given that he didn’t play in either of the Bayern games, with Giovanni Lo Celso preferred. Another blow for the Villarreal is the news that Pino also missed out on the training session. Pino has been making a name for himself this season playing on the right-side of Emery’s 4-4-2.

The stars are out at the Etihad, where the Premier League leader and La Liga leader go head-to-head with a place in the Champions League final the endgame.

Then, City held on for a scrappy 1–0 aggregate win over Atlético Madrid in the quarterfinal. However, Real Madrid eliminated City in the 2016 semifinals on a tight 1–0 aggregate en route to its first of three straight Champions League titles. Then, in the quarterfinals, Real eliminated defending champion Chelsea in extra time after blowing a 3–1 aggregate lead.

The Blues have reached only their third Champions League semi-final, with the likes of Paris Saint-Germain, Sporting CP, and Atletico Madrid already beaten ...

As expected, Pep Guardiola explained in yesterday's pre-match press conference that Kyle Walker and John Stones had not trained with the rest of the City squad and were major doubts for the clash. Manchester City Diego Simeone's La Liga champions were beaten in the quarter-finals, with Kevin De Bruyne's lone goal at the Etihad enough for City to earn progression.

Minute-by-minute report: Join Scott Murray for updates as the two European heavyweights go toe-to-toe at the Etihad.

Kick-off at the City of Manchester Stadium is at 8pm BST. It’s on! It’s the last time they met, so surely those are the most pertinent numbers of all. Then a taking of the knee ... and City get the ball rolling. It’s quite the sight, the sound, the atmosphere. They were humped 5-1 at Hamburg in 1980; lost 4-1 to Borussia Dortmund in 2013; and then there’s the famous 5-0 spanking handed out by Milan in 1989. Pep Guardiola emerges from the tunnel and shares a moment with Carlo Ancelotti. The mutual respect obvious as they embrace.

Hello and welcome to our coverage of tonight's Champions League semi-final where it's Guardiola v Ancelotti, Premier League v La Liga, Modric v De Bruyne.

Those that watched Madrid's away performance to PSG earlier in the competition - a game they lost 1-0 but went through 3-2 on aggregate - will find this start familiar. Manchester City 2-0 Real Madrid: The hosts double their lead through Gabriel Jesus and it's so, so easy for them. Chronic defending from Madrid once again as the home supporters are in full voice and dreaming of another final. Sublime control from Foden to kill a long pass by the end line and drills it into the area. Foden is irate, Pep is irate, Jesus looks sheepish. It would have been a goal to savour, but for now, Madrid are hanging on in there.

Carlo Ancelotti admitted Real Madrid midfielder Casemiro is a doubt ahead of tonight's Champions League semi-final first leg and played down suggestions his ...

'If you are not compact you will suffer,' he said. 'Success is reaching the final where we have a good chance of winning it.' Asked if he felt confident about being able to name his strongest side he said: '[Ferland] Mendy is fine.

Raheem Sterling claims Manchester City are 'focussed' on the Champions League because it is the one trophy the club have yet to win.

I always help the team, if I can get records even better," the winger said. As ever, Sterling was humble in his response, pointing out that he just takes games one at a time. He continued, "It's a special competition, every young player wants to be here.

The Champions League is down to four clubs, two from the Premier League and two from La Liga. Manchester City, Liverpool, Real Madrid and Villarreal will battle ...

Then there's West Ham, who cannot reach the Champions League places in England, so their only route to the Champions League is by winning the Europa League (and look how well that path has worked out for Villarreal!). They're facing a Frankfurt team that sits in ninth place in Germany with a goal differential of -2. While they've played well in the Europa League, they're not likely to provide much of a threat to the Hammers in London. Pick: West Ham and RB Leipzig to win (+156) Rangers getting this far in the competition is a credit to them, but they aren't in the same league as Leipzig, and I can't imagine they'll go to Germany and come away with a result. I see the value on a parlay of the likely winners. Villarreal are a great story and an excellent example of what a club can accomplish when the entire organization is in line and follows a vision. Villarreal's problem is that Liverpool are a club very much in the same mold, but with more money and much better players. After all, Liverpool did allow four goals in two matches against Benfica and have allowed at least one goal in seven of their 10 Champions League matches this season. Like the last round against Chelsea, I want to take the over, but I fear what Carlo Ancelloti did in the Round of 16 against PSG. He sent Real Madrid out there and had them playing like Sean Dyche's Burnley squad. The good news is Villarreal are strong enough in attack that I believe they can get at least one goal of their own more often than not. In other words, a pragmatic approach against City might not work out nearly as well as Ancelloti hopes, so I'm betting on City finding the back of the net at least twice. I can't guarantee anything, but I have a pretty good idea of what to expect. The Champions League semifinals begin this week, and while Manchester City and Liverpool are the heavy favorites to move on and give us an all-England final, Real Madrid has been written off a few times in this tournament already, and it's still here.

Raheem Sterling has described the Champions League as a 'special' competition ahead of City's semi-final first leg against Real Madrid.

He said: “(Benzema is) a top player. To be playing at such a high level for such a long time is a remarkable thing. “It’s a special competition,” the winger said to the media in his pre-match press conference.

Madrid knocked Paris Saint-Germain out in the last 16 before beating Chelsea in the quarter-final to make it this far, both ties as dramatic as can be. City ...

“We have to suffer together when we’re under pressure and attack when we have the ball. City beat Madrid in the last 16 of the Champions League back in 2020, part of the mini-tournament that took place in Lisbon at the height of the pandemic. Much has been made of this throughout this European campaign; Madrid’s ability to dig deep and produce the remarkable. “What I like most of all is that amidst the difficulty, at 3-0 down, they have players who raise their hand and say here I am. City dismantled Sporting Club de Portugal in the last 16 before coming through a gruelling encounter with Atletico Madrid in the quarter-final. Madrid knocked Paris Saint-Germain out in the last 16 before beating Chelsea in the quarter-final to make it this far, both ties as dramatic as can be.

Los Blancos are runaway winners in La Liga, but their expected goal differential is second-best in Spain and suggests that Real Madrid is a bit fortunate to ...

Madrid’s best path to success in this fixture is to sit back and allow City the lion’s share of possession. Los Blancos are runaway winners in La Liga, but their expected goal differential is second-best in Spain and suggests that Real Madrid is a bit fortunate to have such a big cushion over Atletico Madrid and Barcelona. Manchester City and Real Madrid begin their two-leg Champions League semifinal on Tuesday afternoon.

Thirteen-time winners face Manchester City in the first leg of the semi-final at the Etihad Stadium.

We need to suffer, to stick together, when we have the ball, try to attack.” We need to suffer, to stick together, when we have the ball, try to attack. But maybe there are things we have they don’t have, I don’t know. Ancelotti: “We are very close to playing another final of the most important competition in the world and we are worried because we are facing a very strong team. Guardiola: “We have to have the desire to compete against them. “We have to have the desire to compete against them.

The critics say this must be the year Manchester City win the Champions League. The predictor says it's the most likely outcome with Liverpool not far ...

Their opponents shouldn’t expect the same. What that seems to be doing is giving their attackers some space on the occasion that they are attacking. Villarreal seem to know what they’re doing at this stage of knockout tournaments. One step at a time, and the Reds are at 85% to be playing at the Stade de France on 28 May. Unai Emery’s side held Bayern to 0.07 xG per shot over 180 minutes, while Julian Nagelsmann’s side settled for plenty of low-quality opportunities: They’ve had six or fewer high turnovers three times in the Champions League this season. They’ve had 10 or more in the remaining seven. Real Madrid have scored a goal from a high turnover in three straight games. Pep Guardiola’s side have allowed 24 shots on target in the entire competition. But the two Spanish teams they’ll face have just eliminated the last two European champions in Chelsea and Bayern Munich. It should be said their group contained an attacking-mad RB Leipzig and Paris Saint-Germain, but the recent form is nonetheless encouraging. Sixteen of them only played six games.

Manchester City take on Real Madrid at the Etihad in the Champions League tonight.

But we have the desire to play against them and take on this incredible test and we want to improve. This is the motive to do my job.” Reaching the final [last year] is a good lesson for us and for the future it will be good.” “If we have to compete with history, we don’t have any chance. We want to be ourselves.” And ahead of the game, Guardiola said: “We have to be so precise against them.

Jurgen Klopp's side take on Villarreal after Pep Guardiola's team host Real Madrid in first leg of semi-finals this week and there are record sums on offer ...

In a statement UEFA said: “10,000 of the tickets reserved for the fans of the two teams will be offered for free to reward the lifeblood of the game for their loyal support during the pandemic. The final will take place at the Stade de France on Saturday, 28 May with both finalists receiving an allocation of 20,000 and 12,000 more going to those who have applied via the ballot. The Premier League ’s top two face Villarreal and Real Madrid respectively in the first legs of their last four ties this week. The ticket sale and allocation process for the tickets reserved for the fans of the finalist teams will be organised by the clubs involved, including the allocation of the free tickets.” And the finalists get €15.5m (£13.1m) with €4.5m (£3.8m) for the champions According to a breakdown of prize money from football-coefficient, Jurgen Klopp’s side have made €89.1m to date with Pep Guardiola’s side earning €88.8m (£74.8m). Chelsea, who were knocked out in dramatic fashion by Real a fortnight ago, made €81.8m (£69m). Both finalists will receive €15.5m (£13.1m) with the champions getting an additional €4.5m (£3.8m).

"We will suffer" city coach Pep Guardiola has warned as he prepares his side against a team he calls "kings of the competition". City, finalists last year, ...

Now we are trying to be ourselves, to compete well, and we have to play two outstanding games to reach the final, and I hope we can do that." Meanwhile, the Merengue are dreaming of a final victory at the Stade de France after the one they won against Valencia in 2000. Asked what Manchester City must do to beat Real Madrid, Guardiola said "to be there in the last stages with the best teams in the world, in Europe, to be here is good.

Jurgen Klopp's side take on Villarreal after Pep Guardiola's team host Real Madrid in first leg of semi-finals this week and there are record sums on offer ...

In a statement UEFA said: “10,000 of the tickets reserved for the fans of the two teams will be offered for free to reward the lifeblood of the game for their loyal support during the pandemic. The final will take place at the Stade de France on Saturday, 28 May with both finalists receiving an allocation of 20,000 and 12,000 more going to those who have applied via the ballot. The Premier League ’s top two face Villarreal and Real Madrid respectively in the first legs of their last four ties this week. The ticket sale and allocation process for the tickets reserved for the fans of the finalist teams will be organised by the clubs involved, including the allocation of the free tickets.” And the finalists get €15.5m (£13.1m) with €4.5m (£3.8m) for the champions According to a breakdown of prize money from football-coefficient, Jurgen Klopp’s side have made €89.1m to date with Pep Guardiola’s side earning €88.8m (£74.8m). Chelsea, who were knocked out in dramatic fashion by Real a fortnight ago, made €81.8m (£69m). Both finalists will receive €15.5m (£13.1m) with the champions getting an additional €4.5m (£3.8m).

Manchester City face Real Madrid in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final at the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday evening.

Both men coached Bayern Munich and have won everything there is to win in the game. Ancelotti isn’t, however, the coach with the best winning percentage in the history of Madrid. That record belongs to Manuel Pellegrini, now of Real Betis. His record at the Santiago Bernabeu is 75%, beating Ancelotti’s of 74%. Guardiola, with a record of 72%, is the most successful coach in City’s history. Guardiola’s equivalent record stands at 14.5%.

Real have won Europe's top trophy a record 13 times while City remains in search of their first Champions League title after losing in the final to Chelsea last ...

The live streaming of the Champions League semi-final match between Manchester City and Real Madrid will be available on SonyLiv. The Champions League semi-final match between Manchester City and Real Madrid will be played at the Etihad Stadium, Manchester. Where is the Champions League semi-final match between Manchester City and Real Madrid going to be held?