As Manchester City prepare to face Real Madrid in the Champions League on Tuesday night, we have assembled a combined XI from both sides.
Picking a 4-3-3 formation, we have assembled a team strictly based on this season’s form.
Real Madrid-Manchester City combined XI
Goalkeeper: Courtois starts in net in our Real Madrid-Manchester City combined XI
Alongside Liverpool’s Alisson Becker, Thibaut Courtois is simply the best goalkeeper in the world.
While Ederson is miles better in possession, the Belgian is a much superior player when assessing his overall package.
Real Madrid beat Manchester City at the very start of this combined XI.
Right-back: Kyle Walker strolls into this combined XI
While Dani Carvajal is a legend of the game, his performances have endured a steep decline this season, with many suggesting that it is time for him to be moved on.
Kyle Walker himself has not had his best season but that is largely owing to injuries and perhaps the odd shoddy display but upon his return to the side, he has been as solid as ever.
Manchester City pull one back against Real Madrid in our combined XI.
Centre-backs: Stones & Militao make the cut from Real Madrid and Manchester City
While it does seem harsh to leave the in-form Ruben Dias out of this side, he has well and truly come into his own during the second half of the season.
The same cannot be said for John Stones and Eder Militao, who may be the best centre-halves in the world on form this campaign.
Both Manchester City and Real Madrid have a representative each in the centre of defence in our combined XI and deservedly so.
Left-back: Nathan Ake wins this one comfortably
While Ferland Mendy is currently injured, Eduardo Camavinga took his place at left-back even before his absence due to what has been a disappointing campaign for him.
As for Nathan Ake, there simply have not been many better left-backs than him in the entirety of Europe, owing to his incredible 1v1 ability, neat technical ability and elite pure defensive instincts.
Ultimately, Camavinga is also a midfielder, so it is natural why the Real Madrid man misses out in our combined XI ahead of the Manchester City defender.
Midfield three: Only one Real Madrid magician makes the cut in our combined XI
In this instance, we have made an exception for Luka Modric, despite him not having his finest season as he remains one of the greatest midfielders of all time.
While Toni Kroos has enjoyed a superior campaign to him, it feels borderline wrong to leave the Croatian legend out of any side.
The Sky Blues quota has been filled by Rodri and Kevin De Bruyne, who have been unplayable once again this season and can consider themselves as the best midfielders in the world in their respective roles.
Manchester City beat Real Madrid in the midfield department, as the former are currently leading as per our combined XI picks.
Front three: The headline is Benzema out, Haaland in
As incredible as Karim Benzema is, he has had an injury-riddled season, starting just 21 games in La Liga so far.
On the other hand, Wayne Rooney rightly branded Erling Haaland as the ‘best footballer in the world’ via the Times, as he currently has 51 goals to his name across all competitions being Europe’s top scorer.
However, Los Blancos are simply on another stratosphere out wide, with Vinicius Jr. and Rodrygo arguably being the best wing duo in world football.
All in all, the Sky Blues have five picks, while Real Madrid have six in our combined XI ahead of the much-awaited first leg of the Champions League semi-final clash.
Real Madrid-Manchester City combined XI: Courtois, Walker, Stones, Militao, Ake, Rodri, Modric, De Bruyne, Rodrygo, Haaland, Vinicius Jr.
