It sometimes feels as though Real Madrid and the Champions League belong together as undeniably as Laurel and Hardy. No matter their domestic form or the calibre of their opponents, they generally find a way to get over the line. They have won the competition 15 times, an astonishing number when one considers the next most successful team in the tournament’s history, AC Milan, have lifted the trophy on seven occasions.
Real’s rivals Barcelona are sitting pretty at the top of La Liga and Carlo Ancelotti’s side squandered the chance to narrow the gap on the weekend after they were held to a draw by Atletico Madrid. But, as is always the case when it comes to European competition, none of that should have much of an effect on the Champions League specialists.
Lille have not started the season well at all and thus a statement victory seems unlikely. They lost their Champions League opener 2-0 at Sporting Lisbon and, while they will have home advantage here, that has not been much use lately. They have failed to win their last two matches at home and even suffered four defeats in a row earlier this term. By way of contrast, Real have lost just two games in 39 across all competitions and won their Champions League opener comfortably, 3-1 against Stuttgart.
They say anything can happen but it doesn’t feel that way in this instance — not least because, before the weekend, Lille had gone without a win in their previous five matches.
The injuries are piling up for the hosts as well. There is a chance Lille will be without as many as six players for Real’s visit, including the erstwhile Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Nabil Bentaleb and former Manchester United man, Angel Gomes. The latter will be serving a suspension but, in better news for the French outfit, there is also the possibility Real will be without two of their biggest names, Kylian Mbappe and Thibaut Courtois. Still, at times in the Champions League, it feels like the holders could put out a team of randomly selected members of public and still find a way to win.
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Lille vs Real Madrid odds
Odds from BetFair updated as of 6 p.m. BST Tuesday.
- Lille win: 5/1
- Draw: 10/3
- Real Madrid win: 8/13
Venue: Stade Pierre Mauroy — Villeneuve d’Ascq
Time: 8 p.m. BST (3 p.m. ET), Wednesday
Form guide (all competitions)
Lille: W-D-L-L-L
Real Madrid: D-W-W-W-W
Match prediction
Lille 0-3 Real Madrid
It would be weird to suggest it’ll be a Lille win now. Let’s not do that. This should be comfortable for Real Madrid and one could easily envision a margin of a few goals so let’s land on a final score of 0-3.
(Top photo of Rodrygo and Vinicius Junior: Florencia Tan Jun/Getty Images)
