Man City v Real Madrid: Three key battles in the Champions League quarter-final showdown 

The sides face off at the Bernabeu on Tuesday night. 

Real Madrid's Jude Bellingham applauds during the warm up at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium. Pic: AP Photo/M. Gracia Jimenez

A.N. OTHER v VINICIUS JUNIOR 

The loss of injured Kyle Walker is a major blow to Pep Guardiola’s plans to shackle the brilliant Brazilian winger.

It has left the City manager with a major selection headache as to who will start at right-back. The smart money, surely, is on the experienced John Stones ahead of youngster Rico Lewis or any other re-shufffle.

But this is Guardiola and it would not be beyond the realms to see City do something unorthodox.

Whatever it is, it had better work.

Walker has done brilliantly against the Real star, although Vinicius did give the Spanish side the lead at the Bernabeu, in last season’s 1-1 draw.

The more alarming precedent for the Blues is the fact that City appeared to be heading to the Final in 2022 in Madrid, only for Walker to come off after 72 minutes, with his team up 5-3 on aggregate.

Famously, Vinicius inspired a comeback for the ages and a Walker-less City went out in extra-time.

RODRI v BELLINGHAM

Jude Bellingham is, arguably, England’s best player currently. Rodri has not lost a game for club or country in over a year.

Something has to give over the next two games and, if Guardiola puts his holding midfielder on Bellingham, that could be the area that decides what.

As befits his prodigious talents, Bellingham has something of a free role, or at least a hybrid one, under Carlo Ancelotti.

Part high midfielder/number 10, part false nine… call him what you want, like many before him at Real, it is hard to pin down exactly what he does.

So, how does Guardiola counter that? The obvious answer is the brilliant Rodri - “the best midfielder in the world,” according to his manager. But does pushing him higher if, and when, Bellingham drops deeper compromise City’s structure?

HAALAND v RUDIGER 

Yes, Haaland’s productivity has dropped off to the point that Roy Keane likened him to a League Two player recently - well, not exactly, but that was the interpretation mischievously applied to his TV comments.

This, a striker whose career record in European games now stands at 45 goals from 43 appearances!

However much Haaland is struggling to match the form that brought him 52 goals last season - and he is struggling, which is not unreasonable - it is a fair bet that chances will come his way tonight, and in the return.

Antonio Rudiger, no stranger to English football, played in last season’s first leg, a 1-1 draw, but was then benched for the return at the Etihad. By the time Carlo Ancelotti realised his mistake and brought him on just after the hour, City were 2-0 up on the way to a 4-0 win.

From a City perspective, Haaland scored in neither game last season and will be keen to put that right. From Real’s, Ancelotti will not make the same mistake of leaving out Rudiger again.