The Blues’ opponents can boast such stellar talents as Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema but the Argentine defender thinks that his side will be more than a match over the two-legged meeting.
His two meetings with Los Blancos during his final season with Valencia before moving to City yielded a win, a draw and even a goal for Nicolas – the winner, when the two sides met in January last year.
“Coming up against this kind of team is always something,” says the 28-year-old. “It’s not just Ronaldo, they’ve got Bale, all across the pitch they’ve got great players in every position.
“We know that if we make one error they will be all over us and make the most of it. But knowing that gives us confidence that we can do what we are doing, we are there against them as equals so we have full confidence in our abilities.”
The experienced international feels that tonight’s last four meeting is all part of City’s destiny and reflects the club’s progress in recent years.
“For City it is so important. The club has gone out and bought players precisely with a view to getting us to this point, and here we are up there among four of the best teams in Europe.
“It’s the first time I’ve ever got to the semi-finals, this is the kind of competition you always want to be playing in. To come up against great teams, playing against them on an equal level - I’m always happy to do that kind of thing.”
