Real Madrid earned a sizeable win over Manchester City on aggregate in the Champions League and Micah Richards believes this is down to only two reasons.
The interesting thing about Real Madrid in Europe is that so often they do not actually play that well, but the Spanish team always seem to find a way to come out on top.
However, it would be unfair to say this was the case over the two legs against Manchester City. Madrid had some electric moments in the first leg and created a ton of chances in the second.
Despite this, Micah Richards only believes this was possible because of two factors, which he has revealed while sharing his verdict on the club for the rest of the competition.
Micah Richards reveals why Man City lost to Real Madrid
According to Richards, Real Madrid only won their home fixture against Man City because of how well Fedrico Valverde played.
Then in the away game, another victory was sealed because Bernardo Silva was sent off due to a handball.
Richards told CBS Sports: “Real Madrid winning the whole thing? Right now, I’d say no. The tie vs City, individual brilliance and Bernardo’s red won them the tie. Barcelona on their day could beat anyone. Bayern are also there.
“If I had to bet, I’d say no on Real Madrid winning because there’s better teams. Real Madrid have players for the biggest moments. That’s what the Champions League is. Couple of seasons back they got past Chelsea, City, they weren’t playing well but they just got over the line.
“Every time I rule out Real Madrid, they prove me wrong, every single time,” he added.
Real Madrid deserved to progress against Man City
While Richards is entitled to his opinion, he has to accept that Man City did not offer enough to beat Real Madrid.
They were unable to cope with Valverde in the first leg and Silva’s red card was not the only reason the visitors won in Manchester.
Valverde should have given Real Madrid the lead inside two minutes and even if Silva had not been sent off, Los Blancos would still have been awarded a penalty.
Man City’s performance on Tuesday was respectable, but they can have no complaints about crashing out of the competition. Now, the team just have to focus on bouncing back ahead of the Carabao Cup final.
