Real Madrid confirmed starting XI against Manchester City today: why is Mbappé not playing?

With a 3-0 cushion from the first leg and a very familiar starting XI, Real Madrid arrive at Manchester City’s Etihad Stadium looking to seal their place in the Champions League quarterfinals. Álvaro Arbeloa, dealing with a long list of injuries, has built a tightly knit squad in which he makes only minimal changes from match to match. The lineup he fields against City will look almost identical to the teams that won at the Bernabéu last Wednesday and at home against Elche on Saturday.

What’s Madrid’s Mbappé plan in Manchester?

Barring a surprise involving Kylian Mbappé, there are virtually no doubts about the starters. The only question mark lies in the final spot of the midfield quartet: Eduardo Camavinga or Arda Güler. All signs, however, point to Güler getting the nod again, just as he did in the first leg. The Turkish playmaker was rotated out against Elche in favor of Camavinga, but came off the bench to score a stunning goal that capped the victory. The other three spots appear locked in: Aurélien Tchouaméni, Fede Valverde and academy product Thiago Pitarch, who is set for his fifth straight start.

Arbeloa won’t be able to repeat the first‑leg backline due to Ferland Mendy’s injury. His absence opens the door at left back for Fran García, who played the second half against City at the Bernabéu, and also featured against Elche. The right‑back role goes to Trent Alexander-Arnold, who was rested over the weekend. Antonio Rüdiger and Dean Huijsen will once again be the pairing at center back. The German completed only part of Monday’s session with the group, but that was planned and will not keep him out of the starting XI. And between the posts, as always, will be Thibaut Courtois.

Up front, Madrid will roll out the same duo from the last two games: Brahim Díaz and Vinícius Júnior. Mbappé is expected to begin on the bench, awaiting his chance to return after missing five matches.

Possible Real Madrid starting XI vs Manchester City:

Courtois; Alexander-Arnold, Rüdiger, Huijsen, Fran García; Valverde, Thiago, Tchouameni, Güler; Brahim and Vinicius.

Arbeloa has taken a squad of 26 players to Manchester. Also in Los Blancos’ travelling party are: Andriy Lunin, Fran González; Dani Carvajal, David Alaba, Álvaro Carreras, Diego Aguado, Mario Rivas, Jorge Cestero, Manuel Ángel, César Palacios, Jude Bellingham, Javier Mastantuono, Gonzalo García and Mbappé.

The Madrid head coach will need to trim that roster down to a final matchday group of 23 - and one of the cuts will be Bellingham. “He wanted to travel with his teammates, but he won’t be available tomorrow [Tuesday],” Arbeloa told his prematch press conference on Monday.

Real Madrid absentees

In addition to the present-but-unavailable Bellingham, Madrid head into the match missing five other players: Éder Militao, Raúl Asencio, Mendy, Dani Ceballos and Rodrygo Goes.

Who’s a yellow away from a ban?

Four available players are one booking away from suspension and would miss the first leg of the quarterfinals if they are shown a yellow card and Madrid advance: Vinícius, Tchouameni, Huijsen and Carreras.

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