The upcoming clash between Real Madrid and Manchester City at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium next Wednesday will mark the seventeenth meeting between the two sides in the UEFA Champions League. Their rivalry began during the 2012-13 season and has intensified in recent years, producing a playoff, a quarter final, and two semi finals in the last five editions of the tournament.

Encounters between Real Madrid and Manchester City have become one of the modern classics of the competition. Although the number of meetings is still far behind the 28 clashes between Real Madrid and Bayern Munich or the 22 duels between the Spanish club and Juventus, the round of 16 tie that begins this week will elevate their rivalry to joint third place among the most frequent matchups in European Cup history. It will equal the total of 17 matches played between AC Milan and Barcelona.

The repeated encounters have also produced some unusual statistics, particularly involving Thibaut Courtois. The goalkeeper has now faced Manchester City more often as a Real Madrid player than during his time in the Premier League. While playing for Chelsea, he met the Manchester side eight times. Since joining Real Madrid, he has already faced the team coached by Pep Guardiola nine times in the Champions League, a number that will rise to eleven once the current tie is completed.

During his four seasons as Chelsea’s goalkeeper, Courtois recorded three defeats, two draws, and three wins against Manchester City. With Real Madrid, his nine encounters in Europe have produced five defeats, three victories, and one draw. Even so, his personal head to head record against the English side is balanced at 2-2, as he missed the 2023-24 quarter final due to injury. In that match, Andriy Lunin played a decisive role in the penalty shootout victory in Manchester.

Manchester City is, in fact, the English club Courtois has faced the most times in his career, with a total of 17 meetings. Interestingly, the first nine teams on the list of his most frequent opponents are all clubs from the Spanish league. The next English side is Liverpool, another familiar rival in Real Madrid’s European campaigns, whom the Belgian goalkeeper has faced 15 times, eight with Chelsea and seven with the Madrid side.

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