Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti has expressed concern about the availability of two of his star players.
Real Madrid beat Osasuna 3-1 in the last La Liga fixture but Austrian defender David Alaba picked up a strain.
The other concern for Real Madrid is Brazilian midfielder Casemiro who has not featured since they defeated Chelsea in the second leg.
Ancelloti gave an update about the availability of the two stars in his press conference. He added that the players continue to train with their teammates preparing for the game.
According to the experienced Italian manager, both players will be a game-time decision before facing Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.
“We had some doubts about David Alaba and Casemiro. We will see them train today and we will decide. We have more doubts about Alaba than Casemiro but we will see. If he can’t play tomorrow he will definitely be ready for the second leg.”
Ancelotti then went on to explain the challenge of facing Manchester City. The Real Madrid boss stated that he expects Pep Guardiola’s team to be open.
He said, “Well, we have to play well. It’s going to be a very open tie.
“We’ll have to spend a lot of time on the pitch and there are very mixed feelings ahead of these games because on the one hand, we’re very happy because we’re very close to the Champions League final, which is the most important competition in the world but on the other hand, we’re facing a very tough opponent.
“We are used of course to this situation and these kind of opponents. Lately, we have had some tough matches, we’ve managed to beat teams who were considered to be favourites to win this competition and we’re ready for another tough opponent and we’ll try to do our best.”
Manchester City come into the clash against Real Madrid with Gabriel Jesus scoring four goals in their last Premier League fixture.
