Wounded Liverpool are out for revenge as they host Real Madrid in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League last 16 clash.
Madrid beat Jurgen Klopp’s side 1-0 in last season’s final at the Stade de France courtesy of a Vinicius Junior goal to gift them their 14th title.
Liverpool finished second in Group A with 15 points, level with leaders Napoli, but with an inferior goal difference.
Real Madrid on the other hand won Group F with 13 points, ahead of RB Leipzig, Shakhtar Donetsk and Celtic.
The reds have suffered just one Champions League last-16 exit in the last five years – going down Atletico Madrid in 2020.
Los Blancos secured their fourth successive win in all tournaments on Saturday, defeating Osasuna 2-0 in La Liga to remain hot on Barcelona’s heels.
Liverpool were also 2-0 winners at the weekend against Newcastle and will hope to use their home advantage to get a favorable result.
Defeat to Madrid in last season’s final stretched Liverpool’s winless run against them to 6 matches – their longest-ever winless streak against a team in the Champions League.
The last time Liverpool beat Madrid was in 2009 when they eliminated them after a 4-0 demolition inspired by a Steven Gerrard brace.
Real Madrid have won just two of their last six Champions League games away from home but come into the game with a better record than their opponents.
Will Liverpool’s winless run against the Spanish giants continue or can they get their third successive win in all competitions here?
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What time does Liverpool vs Real Madrid start?
The game kicks off at 11pm Kenyan time at Anfield.
Liverpool vs Real Madrid team news
Darwin Nunez was forced off in the last game due to a shoulder injury and is unlikely to be ready for Tuesday’s clash.
Diogo Jota and Roberto Firmino have recently returned from injury and will battle it out to see whether one of them can feature in the starting XI.
Cody Gakpo seems to have found his footing and will start as well as Mohamed Salah in the final third.
For the visitors, Aurelien Tchouameni and Toni Kroos are likely to miss this clash due to illness with Luka Modric and Federico Valverde primed to start.
Karim Benzema was left out of the weekend win at Osasuna but will return to the starting line-up to lead the attack alongside Vinicius Junior.
Liverpool vs Real Madrid head to head
Madrid have the better record with 5 wins out of the 8 games played between these two teams, while Liverpool have won just twice.
Only one game has ended in a draw, a barren one in April 2021.
Liverpool vs Real Madrid current form
The reds have won twice, lost twice and shared the spoils in one game in their recent run of five matches while Madrid have lost once but won their last four consecutive games.
Liverpool vs Real Madrid prediction
Both teams are very likely to score in this game which is tipped to be an explosive encounter. A draw could be the most possible outcome from this first leg.