Na big match dey for Champions League quarter-final tonight as Real Madrid go host Bayern Munich for Santiago Bernabeu. The two giants of European football go lock horns for first leg of quarter-final, and tension don dey high.
Real Madrid dey enter this match with heavy heart after dem suffer disappointing 2-1 loss to RCD Mallorca for La Liga last Saturday. Vedat Muriqi score last-minute winner for Mallorca, and that loss push Madrid seven points behind Barcelona for league table. Barcelona win 2-1 against Atletico Madrid same day, make dem firm favourites to retain La Liga title.
But Champions League na different ball game entirely. Madrid, wey get record 15 European Cup/Champions League titles, dey desperate for redemption. Dem progress to this stage after dem hammer Manchester City 5-1 on aggregate for round of 16. But Bayern Munich no be small team wey dem fit push aside like that.
Bayern dey come into this match with confidence wey full dem body. Dem just win dramatic 3-2 victory over SC Freiburg for Bundesliga last weekend, with Tom Bischof score two goals and Lennart Karl net winner for stoppage-time. That victory maintain Bayern nine-point lead for top of Bundesliga, with Borussia Dortmund dey second place.
Vincent Kompany‘s Bayern side don lose just one of 28 top-flight matches this season. Dem don dey unbeaten since January, and even without Harry Kane for Freiburg match, dem still find way to win. Kane don return from injury and go start for Bayern tonight.
For Madrid side, injury wahala dey. Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois dey out after injury for Manchester City match. Rodrygo no fit play, while Ferland Mendy and Dani Ceballos dey doubtful. Jude Bellingham wey get hamstring injury might start from bench.
Bayern get their own injury problems. Sven Ulreich, Cassiano Kiala, David Santos, and Wisdom Mike all no go play for visitors.
This match go be 29th meeting between these two European giants for Champions League and former European Cup. Na the most-played fixture for competition history. Head-to-head record slightly favour Real Madrid with 13 wins compared to Bayern 11 wins, with 4 draws.
Both teams get strikers wey dey fire. Kylian Mbappé don score 13 goals for Champions League this season, while Harry Kane don net 10 goals. The battle between these two goal machines go be one to watch.
Kick-off time na 20:00 BST (15:00 ET / 12:00 PT). For UK, live TV coverage dey on TNT Sports 1, while streaming dey on HBO Max app. TNT Sports cost £30.99 per month and dey available for many devices including smart TVs and gaming consoles.
Despite Bayern current form, Real Madrid get better record against dem for recent meetings. Madrid sabi perform for big stage, and dem get home advantage tonight. But Bayern confidence dey sky-high after dem maintain unbeaten run.
Do you have a news tip for NNN? Please email us at editor @ nnn.ng
