Where are they now? Real Madrid and Manchester City starting line-ups from 2012 UEFA Champions League classic

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The UEFA Champions League has thrown up a huge clash in the knockout phase play-off round as Manchester City meet Real Madrid for a place in the last 16. Ahead of the highly-anticipated clash between the two European heavyweights, TNT Sports takes a look back at their first meeting in the competition back in 2012 and the cast of characters for that particular show at the Bernabeu.

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Manchester City and Real Madrid renew pleasantries in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday after being drawn together in the knockout phase play-off round.

Failure to finish in the top eight of the new league phase has set up this mouth-watering clash that has become something of a regular feature in the competition, with the two powerhouses going head-to-head on several occasions in recent years and producing some classic matches.

Pep Guardiola has labelled the match a "derby", with the tone undeniably set in their first-ever meeting back in 2012. On September 18, in the old group stages, City travelled to Madrid and stared down their illustrious opponents.

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An electric second half saw City substitute Edin Dzeko stun the Bernabeu to put the visitors in front, before now-retired Marcelo hit back with a stunning curling effort on his weaker right foot to level things up.

Undaunted, City found themselves back in front with five minutes to play when another substitute, Aleksandar Kolorov, curled home a free-kick which evaded everybody as it beat Iker Casillas.

Certainly not for the last time between these two sides, there was late drama as Karim Benzema, also off the bench, fired beyond Joe Hart for 2-2 with two minutes left on the clock.

With the match heading for a draw, Cristiano Ronaldo took centre stage, cutting inside from the left before hitting a shot that seemingly baffled Hart, creeping under the keeper and into the back of the net for 3-2, prompting Real manager Jose Mourinho to ruin his suit with a dramatic knee-slide celebration on the turf as he charged onto the pitch.

Here we look back at the two starting line-ups that day and see what they’ve done since that dramatic night.

Real Madrid starting XI

Real Madrid starting line-up

Image credit: Getty Images

Goalkeeper: Iker Casillas

The legendary goalkeeper went on to captain Real to the milestone ‘Decima’ Champions League win in 2014, lifting the trophy for a third time in his career.

The following year, after 725 appearances in Real colours, Casillas left to join FC Porto, helping them to the 2018 Portuguese league title, before a frightening training ground heart attack in 2019 eventually saw him call time on his illustrious career a year later despite his recovery.

Casillas currently works as a commentator in Spain.

Right-back: Alvaro Arbeloa

The ex-Liverpool defender featured in Champions League winning squads for Real in 2014 and 2016 before leaving the club to make a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it Premier League return at West Ham.

After just four first team appearances for the Irons, Arbeloa retired in 2017 and currently manages the Real youth team, having been appointed in 2022.

Centre-back: Raphael Varane

The French centre-back went from strength to strength at the Bernabeu, eventually unseating club hero Pepe and helping the club to four Champions League titles.

Considered by many to be the best defender in the world for a time, Varane eventually left Real for Manchester United in 2021, and despite his injuries and inconsistent form while at Old Trafford, he was able to add an EFL Cup and FA Cup medal to his collection before leaving in 2024.

Signing for newly-promoted Serie A side Como on a free transfer, a knee injury just 20 minutes into his debut forced him to announce his retirement after just two months with the club.

Centre-back: Pepe

Also retiring in 2024 was Pepe. The Portuguese hard man said goodbye to Real after 10 years in 2017, joining Turkish side Besiktas.

In January 2019, Pepe was back at Porto, the club he left Real for in 2007.

Pepe continued to play until the age of 41 and, even more remarkably, was still competing at international level, featuring for Portugal in their run to the Euro 2024 quarter-finals.

Left-back: Marcelo

The Brazilian left-back remained with the club until 2022, leaving with a princely haul of 25 trophies in 15 years - including five Champions League wins - at the time, making him the most decorated player in the club’s history.

A brief five-month, 10-game spell at Greek side Olympiacos followed before a return to his first club Fluminense, in his native Brazil in 2023. Here, he lifted the Copa Libertadores, joining the elite few to have won both that and the Champions League in their careers, before retiring at the start of 2025.

Centre-midfield: Sami Khedira

A key cog in Real’s midfield for a time, an ACL injury in 2013 somewhat halted his progress at the club.

Despite returning to start the 2014 Champions League final, the German left the club a year later for Juventus where he remained for six years before moving to Hertha Berlin at the start of 2021 ahead of his retirement that summer.

He also lifted the World Cup with Germany in 2014, notably scoring the fifth goal in the 7-1 semi-final thrashing of hosts Brazil.

Centre-midfield: Xabi Alonso

Another ex-Liverpool man, Alonso traded Madrid for Munich after the 2014 Champions League win, joining Bayern to win three successive Bundesliga titles before his 2017 retirement.

Moving into management, his first senior role would be at Leverkusen in 2022, culminating in an historic league and cup double, and a record 51-game unbeaten run in all competitions in 2024.

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Centre-midfield: Michael Essien

The midfield star was on loan from Chelsea at the time as he temporarily reunited with Jose Mourinho, who originally signed him for The Blues.

Essien then spent a year at AC Milan, and had a brief spell at Panathinaikos before winding down his career with short-term moves to Persib Bandung in Indonesia and Sabail in Azerbaijan.

He is currently assistant manager of Danish Superliga side FC Nordsjaelland.

Right-wing: Angel Di Maria

Another to depart following the 2014 Champions League triumph, Di Maria had an unsuccessful season at Manchester United in 2014/15 before finding his feet again at Paris Saint-Germain between 2015 and 2022.

An injury-impacted season at Juventus then saw him return to Benfica, where he continues to play today.

Di Maria scored the second goal in the 2022 World Cup final as his Argentina side went on to the lift the trophy following a penalty shoot-out win over France.

Left-wing: Cristiano Ronaldo

A quite understated career would follow for the match-winner that night at the Bernabeu…

Ronaldo went on to score a record 450 goals for Real – 140 of which would come in the Champions League – helping the club lift Europe’s premier trophy four times, as well as two La Liga titles.

Four of his five Ballon d’Or crowns followed in Madrid white, before a move to Juventus in 2018, helping the club to two Serie A titles.

A return to Manchester United in 2021 added to his Premier League legacy. However, an acrimonious departure in 2022 saw him begin the Saudi revolution by signing for Al Nassr.

In this time, he also helped Portugal to Euro 2016 glory and became the top scoring male player of all time at international level.

Having just turned 40, he still shows little sign of slowing down.

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Striker: Gonzalo Higuain

This would be the Argentine striker’s final season with Real, joining Napoli the following summer, where he would remain for three years and win the Italian golden boot in 2016, ahead of a move to rivals Juventus a year later.

For the 2018 season, Higuain would have two loan spells with Milan and Chelsea, before a return to Juve the following year.

In 2020, he moved to Inter Miami in MLS before calling time on his career two years later.

MANAGER: Jose Mourinho

This would be Mourinho's final season in Madrid after failure to win the Champions League, La Liga and a Copa del Rey final defeat to rivals Atletico saw him depart for a return to Chelsea.

A third Premier League title in 2015 with the Blues was the high point of his return, but he was gone just six months after that triumph, taking the Manchester United job the following summer and winning the Europa League in his first season.

After being sacked in 2018, he was appointed Tottenham manager a year later, but only lasted 17 months in the job.

He took the Roma job in 2021, successfully winning the UEFA Conference League in his first season but another early departure in 2024 followed.

For now, Mourinho is currently in charge of Turkish club Fenerbache having taken the job last summer.

Subs:

Antonio Adan, Sergio Ramos, Fabio Coentrao, Kaka, Mesut Ozil, Luka Modric, Karim Benzema.

Manchester City starting XI

Manchester City starting XI

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Goalkeeper: Joe Hart

A stellar spell in Manchester saw Hart as No. 1 for two Premier League title wins, but the arrival of Pep Guardiola in 2016 saw him dropped from the side.

The 75-cap England stopper had loan spells at Torino and West Ham before leaving the Etihad for Burnley in 2018.

Hart joined Tottenham as a back-up in 2020 for three years and three SPL titles with Celtic before his 2024 retirement.

Right-back: Maicon

One could quite easily argue the Brazilian left more of an impression on English football being run ragged by Gareth Bale while playing for Inter years before his City stint.

A largely forgettable spell in the Premier League saw him return to Serie A with Roma after just one season, where he spent three years playing infrequently before a return to Brazil, where he flitted around with the likes of Avai, Criciuma, Villa Nova and Sona in the lower reaches of the league structure.

Retirement in 2023 followed a month-long return to Europe with Tre Penne in the San Marino league.

Centre-back: Vincent Kompany

City’s greatest club captain led his side to four Premier League titles in total before his departure, and he returned to his native Belgium as player-manager of Anderlecht in 2019.

In 2022, he was appointed Burnley manager, which saw Championship promotion and Premier League relegation in his two years in charge.

Kompany was the shock choice to take over at Bayern Munich in 2024 and currently has the side sitting top of the Bundesliga.

Vincent Kompany

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Centre-back: Matija Nastasic

Touted as a major future star, injury would impact the Serbian’s time at the Etihad, leading to his departure for Schalke in 2015.

Featuring over 150 times for the side, he eventually departed following their Bundesliga relegation in 2021, returning to Fiorentina before moving to Mallorca and then Leganes where he currently plays.

Left-back: Gael Clichy

The Frenchman helped City to a further league title in 2014 and eventually left the club in 2017 to join Turkish side Istanbul Basaksehir, where he was part of a historic first ever title-winning team in 2020.

He then joined Swiss side Servette in 2020 before retiring in 2023. He is currently assistant manager of France’s under-21 team.

Midfield: Samir Nasri

Following injuries and a loss of form, Nasri was loaned to Sevilla in 2016 and moved to Antalyaspor in 2017.

Nasri was banned for a doping violation in 2018 before signing a short-term deal with West Ham in 2019 and joining up with Kompany at Anderlecht that summer. After being released in 2020, he retired from the sport.

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Midfield: Javi Garcia

A player who represented both clubs, Real academy star Garcia’s two years in Manchester ended in 2014 when he joined Zenit Saint Petersburg ahead of a return to Spain with Real Betis in 2017.

After joining Portuguese side Boavista in 2020, he retired two years later and was assistant manager of Benfica until 2024.

Midfield: Gareth Barry

The former England midfielder left City on loan to Everton in 2013 before making his move to Goodison permanent a year later.

Joining West Brom in 2017, Barry would break the record for most Premier League appearances, setting a new total of 653 by the time he left the club in 2020.

Aged 43, Barry came out of retirement in 2024 to sign for village side Hurstpierpoint in the 12th tier of English football.

Midfield: David Silva

City legend Silva ended a glittering decade at the club in 2020, returning to Spain to play for Real Sociedad, helping them to Copa del Rey success in his first season.

After suffering an ACL injury in 2023, Silva opted to retire from the sport.

Along with Kompany, the Spaniard has been immortalised with a statue outside City’s Etihad Stadium.

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Midfield: Yaya Toure

The Ivorian put in a fantastic performance at the Bernabeu which was to be a feature of the next couple of years in City blue as his Player of the Year campaign the next season propelled the club to the 2014 Premier League title.

After leaving City in 2018, Toure had short spells with former club Olympiacos and Chinese side Qingdao Huanghai before retiring.

Toure has since coached at Olimpik Donetsk in Ukraine, Akhmat Grozny in Russia, at Tottenham as a youth coach, as well as assistant manager for Standard Liege in Belgium and the Saudi Arabia national team.

Striker: Carlos Tevez

Tevez said farewell to City in the summer of 2013, joining Juventus and helping the club to two Serie A titles before making an emotional return to Boca Juniors in 2015.

In 2017, he briefly moved to Shanghai Shenhua in the Chinese Super League before returning to Boca after a year where he ended his career in 2022.

Tevez has since had short managerial spells at Rosario Central and Independiente.

MANAGER: Roberto Mancini

The Italian left City at the end of the season having failed to defend the Premier League title and suffering a shick FA Cup final defeat to Wigan.

He did however win the Turkish Cup the following season as manager of Galatasaray before a return to former club Inter between 2014 and 2016. After a year in charge of Russian side Zenit Saint Petersburg, Mancini then took over as Italy manager in 2018, leading the Azzurri to Euro 2020 glory and a international record 37 match-unbeaten run.

Failure to qualfiy for the Qatar 2022 World Cup however saw him eventually resign in 2023 and take up the role as manager of Saudi Arabia, although poor results led to him leaving his post after a year.

Subs:

Costel Pantilimon, Pablo Zabaleta, Joleon Lescott, Aleksandar Kolarov, Jack Rodwell, Edin Dzeko, Sergio Aguero

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