The Spanish capital will play host for one of the most anticipating Quarter-Final fixture on Tuesday night. The Reds will hope to avenge their loss 3 years ago by eliminating Los Blancos from the competition. After struggling so much in the league this season, can they rely on Europe for success? This is Real Madrid Vs Liverpool – 2018 Final Rematch!
Match Preview
Two of the most successful clubs in European football will lock horns Tuesday night in Madrid. Liverpool were able to eliminate Leipzig, winning comfortably 4-0 on aggregate. On the other hand, Real were put to test against a stubborn Atalanta side but were able to secure qualification in the end. However, they have been knocked out in the round of 16 in each of the last two years, losing to Ajax and Manchester City respectively. Will it be the same this year as well? Let’s take a closer look on their form heading into this one.
Real Madrid
Los Blancos have won the first leg of eight of their last nine UEFA Champions League knockout ties, losing the other 2-1 at home to Manchester City in last season’s last 16. This season, despite not playing their best football in the group stages, they still managed to finish top and progress. This basically means that you can’t write this team off, even if they are not as solid as before, especially in this competition.
Zidane’s men head into this game having won nine of their last 11 matches in all competitions, including a 2-0 success over Eibar on Saturday, moving just 3 points behind the leaders Atletico. Real will have a tricky schedule in the coming weeks, with the classico being played before the return leg at Anfield. Benzema has been in a terrific form ever since returning from injury, having now scored in seven consecutive outings for Madrid. Can he also deliver against Liverpool? Statistically speaking he should, since he has scored in all three of his CL appearances against them, scoring four times. In fact, no player has more goals against Liverpool than the Frenchman’s tally of four – level with Didier Drogba, in the history of European competitions.
Liverpool FC
In what is a disappointing season for them so far, Liverpool are trying to turn it around with a top 4 finish and Champions League success. They head into this clash with some stability, as they picked up right where they had left off after 19 days without a game to chalk up three victories, and three clean sheets, in a row. They finally appear back on track, especially with the return of Jota who made an instant impact coming off the bench against Arsenal to score twice. The victory means that the Reds are now in 5th place, just 2 points behind Chelsea in 4th.
Despite their injury concerns, it looks like Liverpool have finally found some stability at the back with Kabak and Phillips keeping a clean sheet in all of their start together. Can they put on another strong performance in what will be the biggest game in their career so far? Although Liverpool’s recent record against Madrid is not very pleasant, having lost each of their last 3 games against them in the CL. However, Klopp has won each of his last five games at the quarter-final stage, including all four of his games at this stage while in charge of the Reds.
Team News
Madrid will be without the services of Sergio Ramos on Tuesday due to a calf problem, while the match is also expected to come too soon for Dani Carvajal and Federico Valverde. Kroos had to withdraw from Germany’s qualification games due to a muscle problem, however he should be ready to start as he recovered.
As for Liverpool, it looks like they will have the same team available from the Arsenal game. Wijnaldum should replace Milner as a starter, while the front three could remain intact with Salah, Mane and Firmino all starting together. Klopp will most probably keep Jota on the bench as a wild card and see how the game develops.
Prediction & Current Odds
Real Madrid Vs Liverpool – 2018 Final Rematch! Bottom line is, we expect this to be an epic battle. Both teams appear to be heading back in the right direction, as their form has improved lately. This encounter could be played on the small details and we don’t really see any favorites here. The most logical result could be a draw, which would leave the tie open for the return leg.
- Below 2.5 goals: 2.00
- Both Teams To Score: 1.66
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