10 May 2023 , 10:02
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Manchester City have a good chance of winning their first-ever Champions League trophy this season with just Real Madrid and one of the two Milan clubs standing in their way.
On Tuesday night, Pep Guardiola's men came from behind to draw 1-1 with Los Blancos at the Bernabeu with Kevin De Bruyne cancelling out Vinicius Junior's opener in the first leg of their semi-final.
Real travel to the Etihad for the second leg next Wednesday, but City will be hoping that they've learnt from last season's mistakes - when they were knocked out by Los Blancos - and can get the job done at home.
Should City beat Real Madrid and then get the better of one of the two Milan clubs in the final then Guardiola's side qualify for next season's Champions League as the current winners.
However, City have already qualified for the Champions League next season, as they have secured a top-four finish this campaign.
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Unfortunately, for the likes of Newcastle, Manchester United and Liverpool, however, this does not mean that their original place is passed down to the team that finishes fifth.
Kevin De Bruyne scored for Manchester City against Real Madrid (Getty Images)Instead, the spare qualification spot is transferred to the winners of the highest-ranked national league in the UEFA coefficient without an automatic group-stage qualifying spot.
This means that the winners of the Ukrainian Premier League - Shakhtar Donetsk are the current leaders - would immediately earn their place in the Champions League without having to play qualifying games.
Meanwhile, the Premier League club that finishes fifth will automatically qualify for the group stages of the Europa League.
It is possible for five clubs from the same nation to play in the Champions League, but in order for this to happen a team must win the competition but finish outside of the top four in the Premier League.
As things stand, Manchester City and Arsenal are still vying for the title but will take up two of the top four spots this season.
Newcastle are currently third while Manchester United are fourth. Fifth-place Liverpool are chasing the pack but are enjoying the best run of form out of the three.