Almost an inevitability in this day and age of the Champions League, Liverpool and Real Madrid cross paths again, this time at Anfield in Tuesday's league-phase contest.
The Reds stopped the domestic rut in Saturday's 2-0 victory over Aston Villa, while ex-Liverpool lynchpin Xabi Alonso has turned Los Blancos into a winning machine since taking the reins from Carlo Ancelotti.
Match preview
After arguably"sacking off" the EFL Cupby sending out the kids and the reserves against Crystal Palace, Arne Slot had no other option but to mastermind a victory over Aston Villa in Saturday's Premier League clash, lest talk of a shock sack grew inevitably louder.
The under-fire Dutchman could have become the first Liverpool boss to oversee five consecutive defeats in the Premier League, but he belatedly got the response he was looking for, as Mohamed Salah's 250th Reds goal preceded a deflected second from Ryan Gravenberch on Merseyside.
While Unai Emery's men were very much the architects of their own downfall, vastly improved individual displays from Slot's side were also highlighted, as the rejuvenated English champions marched to just a second win from eight games in all tournaments.
The only other success in that sequence was an emphatic European one, as the Reds obliterated Eintracht Frankfurt 5-1 on Champions League matchday three to rise into the top 10 of the league-phase table, only outside the automatic last-16 places on goal difference.
That embarrassment of Eintracht preceded a dismal loss to Galatasaray and 3-2 home win over Atletico Madrid, the latter result representing an incredible 15th straight victory in European group stage/league-phase home games for Liverpool, who finally know what it feels like to spoil the Real party again.
Real Madrid head coach Xabi Alonso on August 19, 2025
Before Paris Saint-Germain crushed Liverpool's hopes of European glory last season, the Reds bested Real Madrid 2-0 at Anfield in the league phase to end an agonising eight-game losing run against Los Blancos, who had won seven of those contests during that hot streak.
Ancelotti and Alonso were coincidentally both slain at Anfield in 2024-26 - the latter's Bayer Leverkusen side were subjected to a 4-0 beating - but the now-Real boss returns to his old stomping ground once again with a Blancos side who just cannot stop succeeding.
Three for three in Europe - taking down Marseille, Kairat and most recently Juventus - the visitors have also assumed control of the La Liga title race, following up their quintessentially chaotic Clasico win over Barcelona with a 4-0 hammering of Valenciaon Saturday.
Thirteen of Real Madrid's 14 games in all competitions this season have now ended in triumph - the one aberration being their bewildering 5-2 derby loss to Atletico - although they are the lowest-ranked of the five Champions League teams with nine points from their first three games.
Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich, Inter Milan and Arsenal can all boast a superior goal difference to the fifth-placed Blancos, who have also won just two of their last nine competitive games against English clubs, but fans have learned to write off Real Madrid in the Champions League at their peril.
Liverpool Champions League form:
Liverpool form (all competitions):
L
L
W
L
L
W
Real Madrid Champions League form:
Real Madrid form (all competitions):
W
W
W
W
W
W
Team News
Liverpool's Alexander Isak pictured on November 1, 2025
Gravenberch's return from an ankle injury was an extremely welcome sight for Liverpool fans on Saturday night, but Alexander Isak and Curtis Jones were both absent on account of their groin problems, having only been given a 0.01% chance of being involved by Slot.
The 72-hour turnaround means that both men can also be considered major doubts for Tuesday, when Alisson Becker (hamstring), Giovanni Leoni (ACL) and Jeremie Frimpong (hamstring) will definitely be watching on from the sidelines.
Slot's decision to bench Florian Wirtz and Milos Kerkez worked a treat at the weekend, and the Dutchman should see no need to disrupt the harmony against the 15-time champions of Europe, so expect a revitalised Alexis Mac Allister and Andy Robertson to be retained.
Over in Madrid, Alonso is preparing for the trip to Anfield without experienced defensive trio Dani Carvajal (knee), Antonio Rudiger (muscle) and David Alaba (calf), and only the latter may be in with the slimmest chance of coming back for Tuesday.
Carvajal would ordinarily return from a Champions League ban for the league-phase contest, but as the Spaniard is now out until 2026, Trent Alexander-Arnold is very much in contention for a start against his former employers.
The right-back has not played a single minute since recovering from a hamstring problem, only being an unused substitute in Real's last two La Liga games, so Federico Valverde may line up in defence again if Alonso feels Alexander-Arnold's fitness levels are not up to scratch.
Liverpool possible starting lineup:
Mamardashvili; Bradley, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Gravenberch, Mac Allister; Salah, Szoboszlai, Gakpo; Ekitike
Real Madrid possible starting lineup:
Courtois; Alexander-Arnold, Militao, Huijsen, Carreras; Valverde, Tchouameni; Guler, Bellingham, Vinicius Jr; Mbappe
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We say: Liverpool 1-2 Real Madrid
Alonso's ride at Real Madrid has not been smooth-sailing so far; from the Vinicius Junior Clasico meltdown to reports of unhappy senior players, the former Liverpool man has overseen a significant culture change in the Spanish capital.
However, that shake-up has translated to success after success on the pitch, and as it is too early to tell whether Liverpool's win over Villa is a sign of a sustained improvement, a more consistent Blancos side have our vote to ruin the Reds' parade once again.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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