Can Joao Cancelo play against Man City in the Champions League quarter-final for Bayern Munich?

Manchester City take on Bayern Munich in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final tonight and could be on a collision course with defender Joao Cancelo.

Cancelo fell out of favor at the Etihad and in January headed to the Bundesliga until the end of the season.

Getty

Both clubs are two of the favorites to win the Champions League and meet at the Etihad tonight live on talkSPORT, leading to speculation whether the right-back will be able to feature.

He started all but one game for City in the group stage and will now hope to play a part in Bayern’s pursuit of European glory.

Can Cancelo play in the Champions League for bavaria?

Cancelo is cleared to play for Bayern in the Champions League.

According to UEFA, clubs can register a maximum of three new players during the winter and it doesn’t matter if they have already participated in the competition.

Cancelo played in both matches of Bayern’s Round of 16 win over Paris Saint-Germain.

Getty

Can Cancelo play against City?

Although things get a bit complicated when it comes to whether he can play against City, the Portugal international is eligible to play against his parent club.

City could have negotiated a special clause which prevented the right-back from playing against them, but they decided against it.

It means Cancelo, who has made 154 appearances for Man City since leaving Juventus, can feature in both legs.

Getty

However, since arriving in Germany he has only completed 90 minutes once and is not a guaranteed starter.

But if he finds a place in Thomas Tuchel’s XI, the former Chelsea boss will be hoping he can manage his emotions.

Speaking in his pre-match press conference, Tuchel said: “I hope he can manage his emotions and he’s not over-motivated, over-excited, but not too friendly and too shy.

“I know he’s looking forward to it.”