Real Madrid have asked UEFA for permission to play Manchester City under a closed roof at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Los Blancos welcome Pep Guardiola’s side to the Spanish capital on Tuesday evening for the first leg of a mouth-watering Champions League quarter-final.
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Manchester City comfortably beat Madrid in the semi-finals last year and Carlo Ancelotti’s men have revenge in mind this time.
As the Italian plays his part in preparing the 14-time European Cup winners for battle, the club’s top brass are doing all they can to ensure conditions are favorable for the home side.
This includes increasing decibel levels by closing the roof of the renovated Santiago Bernabeu.
Club chiefs hope to step up the pressure on City with 80,000 supporters expected on Tuesday evening.
Supporters have been advised to dress all in white for the match to create a carnival atmosphere as Madrid hope to gain the upper hand ahead of next week’s second leg in Manchester.
The Santiago Bernabeu has undergone a radical transformation over the past two years, with the installation of a state-of-the-art retractable roof being the most eye-catching addition.
The roof was first used in the round of 16 match against RB Leipzig last month.
Madrid will know whether its request has been granted when UEFA holds its routine pre-match technical meeting on Tuesday.
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The decision will then be taken with the match referee, it being understood that the match must end in the same conditions as it began.
City drew 1-1 in the first leg of last year’s thrilling semi-final before the second leg’s demolition at the Etihad.
City boss Guardiola believes the two sides could deliver a classic, but warns previous meetings between the teams will count for nothing.
“It feels like a them-versus-us classic,” he said. “It’s the same managers, but we have new players and they have new players, so it will be a completely different game.
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“We have a little advantage with the second leg at home where we play strong and confident, but we have to play 90 minutes here and the matches are long for different reasons.
“Everyone knows the highlights of the transitions with Rodrygo, (Jude) Bellingham, (Federico) Valverde, Vinicius.
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“We can’t come here just to control the game, we have to come here to try to hurt them, to punish them, to let them know that we are here to score goals.
“We talk about Real Madrid, their ability to control many aspects of the game, but we have to impose our game with who we are.”
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