Jamie Carragher and Thierry Henry predict outcome of Real Madrid-Manchester City UCL semifinal

Arsenal icon Thierry Henry and Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher have backed Manchester City to beat Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League semifinals.

Defending champions Real Madrid won 2-0 in the second leg of their quarterfinal clash against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday (April 18). That allowed them to cruise to the last four with a 4-0 aggregate win.

The Cityzens, meanwhile, beat Bayern Munich 3-0 at the Etihad last week before drawing 1-1 in the second leg in Germany on Wednesday (April 19). Having beaten the six-time winners comprehensively on aggregate (4-1), City will take on Real Madrid in the last four next month.

Henry and Carragher see Manchester City as the better team and have backed them to move closer to winning their first Champions League trophy this season.

Following City’s win over Bayern, Henry said (via Madrid Zone):

“I'm betting against Real Madrid. I am going with Manchester City, they will reach the final.”

Carragher seconded the Frenchman: (via Madrid Zone):

“I think Manchester City will just go through to the final.”

The two-legged clash in May will mark City and Madrid’s second straight Champions League semifinal meeting. Carlo Ancelotti’s men came out on top last season, securing a 6-5 aggregate win.

They lost 4-3 in the first leg at the Etihad before turning the tie around at the Santiago Bernabeu with a 3-1 comeback win. Rodrygo scored twice at the death (90 and 91st minutes) to force extra time, where Karim Benzema scored the winner from the spot in the fifth minute.

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Manchester City's Bernardo Silva confident about beating Real Madrid in Champions League semifinals

Bernardo Silva reckons his team have all it takes to beat Carlo Ancelotti’s reigning European champions in the Champions League semifinals. His comments came after City secured a 1-1 draw in the second leg of their quarterfinal with Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena on Wednesday.

The Portugal ace told BT Sport (via GOAL):

“We will go for it definitely. We always go for it, but we feel the team is very, very confident at the minute. I think we are going through.”

City have now qualified for the semifinals for the third straight year. Before crashing out against Los Blancos last season, they beat Paris Saint-Germain 4-1 (aggregate) in the 2020-21 campaign before losing 1-0 to Chelsea in the final.