UEFA announced the identity of the referee for the Real Madrid and Manchester City match in the second leg of the 2025 Champions League Round of 16 play-off.
French referee Clement Turpin led the first leg at the Etihad Stadium, where Real managed to achieve its first victory there with a score of 3-2.
Who will referee the second leg of the Real Madrid and Manchester City match in the 2025 Champions League?
UEFA assigned the task of managing the second leg of the Real Madrid and Manchester City match to the famous Romanian referee Istvan Kovacs.
This will be the sixth match this season for the 40-year-old referee in the Champions League, noting that he has shown 15 yellow cards and a red card in the previous 5 matches.
Kovacs.. an omen of doom for Real Madrid
Kovacs has previously managed 3 matches for Real Madrid, and this will not be the first time he attends the Merengue and Manchester City match.
With Kovacs, Real Madrid managed to win 5-2 against Borussia Dortmund this season at the Santiago Bernabeu, and 5-2 against Liverpool in 2023.
When he attended the City-Real match, it was in the first leg of the 2021-22 semi-final, when Pep Guardiola’s squad won 4-3 at the Etihad Stadium.
The English club has never been defeated with Kovacs, winning against Club Brugge and Atletico Madrid, as well as the Merengues in 2022.
Real Madrid vs Manchester City match date in the second leg of the Champions League 2025
Real Madrid will meet Manchester City on Wednesday, February 18, 2025 at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in the second leg of the Champions League round of 16 play-off.
The match is scheduled to start at 10 pm Cairo time, 11 pm Mecca time.
City need to win by two goals to qualify for the round of 16, while Real need a draw or win by any score to secure qualification.
It is worth noting that the winner of this match will await either Atletico Madrid or Bayer Leverkusen in the round of 16.
