After outlasting rivals Atletico Madrid 2-1 in the first leg of the Champions League Round of 16 to avenge a 1-1 draw in LaLiga in their last head-to-head meeting, Real Madrid will like their chances of advancing at the Wanda on Wednesday night when they take on the Rojiblancos in the second leg.
In the first leg, Real Madrid won without Jude Bellingham, who was suspended after picking up a third yellow card on the 2024/25 Champions League capmaign during Real's impressive win over recent European rivals Manchester City in the final leg of the play-off round.
Bellingham is back, but Real Madrid have to be careful that they don't lose any more stars to start the next first leg of the quarterfinal round when Real would almost certainly face a significantly more dangerous Premier League side than Manchester City - Arsenal.
Real Madrid could have a midfield problem
The cards don't reset until the quarterfinals begin, and Real Madrid currently have five key players on two yellow cards - a third yellow card against Atletico Madrid would cost them against Arsenal. Those players are center back Antonio Rudiger, backup forward Endrick, and the midfield trio of Luka Modric, Aurelien Tchouameni, and Eduardo Camavinga.
Most of those players could realistically grab a booking in a heated, do-or-die second leg against Atletico Madrid "on the road". And make no mistake about it, Real Madrid are not safe into the quarterfinals, because Atleti are a very dangerous side and have been arguably more impressive and consistent than Real this season, even if they are just barely behind them in the title race. As we saw last week, they could have easily beaten Real if things shook out differently.
Tchouameni, Camavinga, and Modric will all be in the battles and could all very well get booked. A suspension for Tchouameni would significantly impact the team's structure, while a yellow card for Modric would be even more devastating, looking at how much he has rescued them this season, including in their win over Atletico last week.
Rudiger will face a tough matchup against the likes of Alexander Sorloth, Antoine Griezmann, and Julian Alvarez. If he is suspended, that could spell big trouble for Real Madrid, even against an Arsenal side without a true striker, because it would mean that David Alaba must start a big Champions League game - and he, sadly, appears to be finished at the very highest level of European football.