That’s what the Champions League should be about. After much criticism of the new format this season, it’s a pleasure to bring last season’s finalists together for a rematch. Real Madrid won the June duel at Wembley Stadium 2-0, but Borussia Dortmund were excellent for long stretches.

Madrid seem to have the Midas touch in this particular competition. However, the hosts suffered a shock defeat to Lille in their last European appearance, so the magic may be starting to fade. Madrid bounced back from that defeat with a couple of domestic wins that appear to have stabilized the situation and are currently second in the La Liga table, just three points behind rivals Barcelona.

For the visitors, the Champions League was the season in which they achieved their best result of the season so far with a 3-0 win over Club Brugge and a 7-1 defeat against Celtic. However, consistency has been difficult to achieve in the league and Dortmund are seventh in the table after seven games. They have lost their last two away games in the league and were only able to narrowly edge past St. Pauli at the weekend.

Both sides will be missing key players in what is perhaps the most anticipated midweek clash. Carlo Ancelotti will be without the services of David Alaba, Dani Carvajal, Dani Ceballos and Brahim Diaz. The German team is missing Karim Adeyemi, Gio Reyna and Julien Duranville, while Yan Couto is also a big doubt.

Madrid’s 17-month unbeaten streak in the Champions League may now be over, but their fans can take solace in the fact that they have still not been beaten at home in the competition since April 2022. Somewhat surprisingly, however, they have failed to keep a clean sheet in their last five European games at the Bernabeu.

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Odds Real Madrid vs Borussia Dortmund

BetFair odds were updated at 10pm BST on Monday.

• Madrid win: 2/5
• Pull: 4/1
• Dortmund victory: 11/2

Venue: Santiago Bernabeu – Madrid
Time: 8:00 p.m. BST (3:00 p.m. ET), Tuesday
Streaming: Fubo (US only, try for free)

Form Guide (all competitions)

Real Madrid: WWLDW
Dortmund: WLWWL

Match prediction

Real Madrid 3:1 Dortmund

Dortmund’s record at the Bernabeu is the second highest. In seven appearances on site, the German team lost five and drew the other two. No team has ever managed to secure a win in their first eight games against a Champions League opponent, but Madrid will certainly bounce back from their defeat last time out in the competition. Expect Dortmund to get away with this unwanted record and Madrid to take a comfortable win.

(Photo by Vinicius Junior: Florencia Tan Jun / Getty Images)