When is Man City vs Real Madrid in the Champions League semi-finals? Dates & who plays at home first

Manchester City progressed to the Champions League semi-finals on Wednesday, where they’re set to play Real Madrid.

The Premier League champions eliminated Real’s city rivals Atletico Madrid in the quarter-finals after playing out a 0-0 draw at the Wanda Metropolitano, but moved onto the semis courtesy of a 1-0 aggregate win.

As for Los Blancos, they progressed to the final four by overcoming Chelsea courtesy of a dramatic 5-4 two-legged win, while Carlo Ancelotti’s side also beat Paris Saint-Germain in the last-16 stage.

The other semi-final pits Liverpool against Villarreal, where the winner will play either City or Real in May’s final.

When do Man City play Real Madrid in the semi-finals?

The Etihad plays host to the first leg between City and the 13-time European champions. That takes place on 26 April and comes in between the Sky Blues’ clashes against Watford and Leeds United.

The second leg of the semi-final will be on 4 May and will be staged at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Have City played Real Madrid before?

The clubs have met on six previous occasions, and the results have been evenly split, with two wins, two draws and two defeats for City.

City and Real were paired together in the 2012 Champions League group stages, while four years later the side from the Spanish capital won 1-0 over two legs in the semi-finals.

However, City progressed the last time they played Real in Europe, with Pep Guardiola’s men dumping them out at the last-16 stage, although there was nearly five months between the two legs due to the outbreak of Covid-19 in 2020.

How semi-final progress affects Premier League campaign

While City’s progression to the semi-final is evidently a massive positive, it does pose a slight problem for their Premier League campaign.

The champions still have to find a date for the trip to Wolverhampton Wanderers, and had Guardiola’s men been eliminated, it would have opened up two free midweek slots in the calendar.

However, moving onto the Champions League semi-finals means the clash at Molineux will likely be played on 10/11 or 17/18 May.