Real Madrid “has nothing to fear” against Manchester City, says Dani Carvajal

Dani Carvajal insists that Real Madrid have nothing to fear as they head to the Etihad Stadium for the Champions League semi-final second leg next week.

The tie is delicately on track at 1-1 after a heart-pounding draw in the first meeting between the two teams at the Bernabéu on Tuesday.

Vinicius Junior put Real Madrid in the lead with an impressive first-half goal, but Kevin De Bruyne equalized with an equally brilliant second-half effort.

Real Madrid right-back Carvajal said: “They have world-class players, they move the ball very well, they are very well trained tactically, but I don’t think we have seen a City that is superior to Madrid.

“The team goes home knowing that we played well and that if we do things well, if we take advantage of our chances in Manchester, we have a chance to go through.

“We go there with nothing to fear. We have to go there to win, to play our game, and the team believes in that.”

City dominated from the start at the Bernabéu, but it was Real Madrid who took the lead against the flow of play when Vinicius struck from 25 meters on 36 minutes.

From then on, the hosts did their best to disrupt City’s flow by employing some rude tactics.

Carvajal in particular pushed things to the limit and was involved in a battle with Jack Grealish. At one point, he pushed the England midfielder into billboards and then theatrically fell to the ground as Grealish reacted angrily.

“It’s a semi-final, everyone is playing to the limit, every challenge is a war,” said the Spanish international.

City equalized on 67 minutes, in a period in which Real had been dominating, when De Bruyne hit a ferocious shot from similar distance as Vinicius.

The draw was the least the Premier League leaders deserved, but Real complained about the draw, with suggestions that the ball may have gone out of play in the build-up.

Real manager Carlo Ancelotti was booked for his protests as De Bruyne celebrated.

Carvajal said: “In general I think the referee (Artur Dias from Portugal) was good, he controlled it quite well. It is difficult to referee a Champions League semifinal.

“We have to congratulate him on that, but if the ball went wide, it’s a mistake that could cost us the tie.”