Real Madrid vs Liverpool

Estadio Santiago Bernabeu forms the backdrop for the return leg of a mouth-watering Champions League last-16 tie between last season’s tournament finalists Real Madrid and Liverpool.

Real Madrid’s bid to enter the Champions League quarter-finals for the third season running looks like a done deal after they pulled off an outstanding, come-from-behind 5-2 first-leg win at Anfield. While maintaining an outrageous record of 26 progressions from 27 Champions League two-legged ties after winning the first leg on the road looks inevitable, ‘Los Merengues’ will be poised to excel on a landmark day. Indeed, this will be Madrid’s 300th Champions League match. But the Spaniard’s underwhelming three-game competitive form at the Bernabeu (W1, D1, L1) doesn’t inject much confidence. By contrast, Carlo Ancelotti’s men have clocked six wins in their last seven Champions League meetings with Liverpool (D1), including two on the spin on home turf by an aggregate score of 4-1.

In the meantime, Liverpool failed to build on a historic 7-0 home triumph over arch-rivals Manchester United, succumbing to a dreadful 1-0 defeat at Premier League relegation fighters Bournemouth last weekend. Having drawn a blank in back-to-back competitive away games in the run-up to this trip (D1, L1), the ‘Reds’ face an unlikely prospect of turning around a Champions League two-legged tie after losing the first leg by a 3+ goal margin for the second time in the club’s history. But considering the only previous instance that saw them achieve that feat came against non-other than Madrid’s eternal rivals Barcelona in 2018/19, there’s still a reason for cautious optimism. On top of that, they’re one of only four English sides to have won an away match against Madrid in major European competitions.