The watchword is clear, as 'Carletto' and Rudiger (30) made clear in the press conferences ahead of the second leg of this tie: don't concede a goal in the first 15-20 minutes. After achieving that, it will be all about tackling the rest of the game with the same intensity that allowed them to come back, brilliantly, from 2-0 down in Liverpool.
After drawing with Atletico de Madrid and Real Betis, the Merengue side got back to winning ways in LaLiga with a 3-1 win over Espanyol, which will allow them to go into the second leg of the Champions League round of 16 with greater confidence.
David Alaba (30), who had a word with Ancelotti on the Valdebebas pitch in the last training session before the clash against the English side, is still out. The Austrian centre-back has not been able to get any playing time, which will probably mean that the Rudiger - Militao (25) pairing will continue to accumulate flight hours.
Even with the return of Ferland Mendy (27) from injury, the doubt at left-back will be between Camavinga (20) and Nacho (33). Otherwise, Real Madrid are expected to field their usual line-up at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu.
Meanwhile, Liverpool will arrive in the Spanish capital with the almost impossible task of overturning a three-goal deficit. To do so, they will be able to count on the presence of the top scorer in the current edition of the Champions League, Mo Salah (30), one of the few men who has been making his mark for the Reds so far this season.
There are mixed feelings for Jurgen Klopp's side (55). While a little more than a week ago they thrashed Manchester United with a historical 7-0, in the most recent Premier League fixture they were beaten 1-0 by bottom of the Premier League side Bournemouth. That is why their pride is wounded and they will be very dangerous if they can take an early lead.
The German coach has few absentees for the game against Los Blancos. He will be without the services of Jordan Henderson (32) and Spaniard Stefan Bajcetic (18). This will likely mean that veteran James Milner (37) and Harvey Elliott will be called into action.
Real Madrid - Liverpool possible line-ups
Real Madrid: Courtois; Carvajal, Militao, Rudiger, Nacho; Tchouaméni, Kroos, Modric; Valverde, Vinicius, Benzema.
Liverpool: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konaté, Van Dijk, Robertson; Elliott, Fabinho, Milner; Salah, Gakpo, Darwin Núñez.
