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Carlo Ancelotti’s revelation on the eve of Manchester City’s visit to Madrid might not please Erling Haaland.

Real Madrid defender Antonio Rudiger has recovered from a hamstring injury and is available for selection for Wednesday’s Champions League play-off second leg against Manchester City. 

The German international has missed Real’s previous four matches against Atletico Madrid and Osasuna in LaLiga, Leganes in the Copa del Rey and last week’s visit to Man City after going off 15 minutes into a top-flight clash with Espanyol on January 2.

However, the centre-back is expected to return to the starting line-up for the crucial encounter at the Santiago Bernabeu.

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Will Rudiger shackle Haaland again?

Rudiger’s return is a major boost for Carlo Ancelotti, who is still without several key defenders, including David Alaba, Dani Carvajal and Eder Militao.

“Rudiger can play from the start, (Aurelien) Tchouameni can play as a pivot and (Raul) Asencio can play as a centre-back,” said the Italian manager on Tuesday. “Raul (Asencio) might play at right-back.”

The German defender’s presence will add experience and solidity to the Los Blancos defence, which will be tasked with keeping Man City’s star-studded attack at bay. 

Erling Haaland may have scored in last week’s encounter, but the Norwegian forward had fired blanks in four previous match-ups against the Spanish giants when Rudiger started. 

Real will hope Rudiger’s return lessens the forward’s effectiveness, as they aim to hold on to last week’s 3-2 advantage at the Etihad Stadium, with Kylian Mbappe, Brahim Diaz and Jude Bellingham scoring the goals. 

Wednesday’s victor will advance to the competition’s round of 16.