Real Madrid dealt injury blow as star defender set to miss Man City clash

Los Blancos will be without a key central defender as they attempt to overcome a 4-3 aggregate deficit on Wednesday.

Real Madrid defender David Alaba won’t be available for the club’s second-leg Champions League semi-final against Manchester City on Wednesday.

Head coach Carlo Ancelotti has confirmed the 29-year-old Austrian will sit out of the game.

Alaba’s absence comes after he was withdrawn at half-time of last week’s first leg in Manchester. He didn’t play in Saturday’s 4-0 win over Espanyol either, the game which sealed Real Madrid the La Liga title.

“Alaba can’t play, he’s not ready for the [City] game,” Ancelotti announced to reporters in a pre-match press conference on Tuesday.

“It can be a long match, so it’s not as important who starts the match as who is going to finish it.”

Nacho, a Real Madrid academy product, replaced Alaba last week and Ancelotti is confident that the 32-year-old defender is up for the challenge that awaits against City.

“No, it doesn’t change,” the manager said. “It is collective defensive work.

“Alaba is an important piece, but Nacho has also done very well, he has the experience and I am sure he will do well tomorrow.”

Real Madrid head into the second leg hoping to overturn a 4-3 aggregate deficit. At the time of writing, Bet365 has priced a home win at 3.10. This suggests Ancelotti’s men have a 32% chance of winning the return leg.