Fresh from Betis defeat, Real Madrid face acid test v Atletico

Real Madrid’s galaxy of attacking stars initially struggled to gel this season, but coach Carlo Ancelotti kept faith and now the “fantastic four” are Los Blancos’ greatest strength as they face rivals Atletico Madrid in the Champions League.

They host Diego Simeone’s Atletico side on Tuesday at the Santiago Bernabeu in the first-leg of their Round of 16 tie. However, Madrid must cope without star midfielder Jude Bellingham in the first-leg after he collected his third booking of the campaign in the play-off round game against Manchester City.

Also Read: ‘It’s hard, we had our chances’

Nevertheless, their clash with City displayed that their formidable attack is finally firing on all cylinders, as the holders hit six goals over the two legs. However, much of that momentum was lost after a 1-2 loss to Real Betis over the weekend, leading Ancelotti to fire a warning shot to his side saying, “If we play like this we will not win on Tuesday.”

That will give local rivals 

Atletico enough hope, along with the fact that they played out two successive draws in this season’s Madrid derby, showing the Los Blancos that they are not an easy side to overcome. Simeone’s team also sit above Real in the La Liga table (second place).

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