Real Madrid-Juventus: Champion's League Preview

It’s time for the return fixture between the most successful club in Spain and their Italian counterparts.

Juventus won the first meeting in Turin 2-1 after an Allessandro Del Piero stunner in the opening minutes and a repeat by Amauri in the second half. Ruud van Nistelrooy added his name to the score-sheet for Madrid but it didn’t get closer than that for the visitors.

Just like history was in favor of the Bianconeri in Turin, it now favors Los Merengues in Madrid. The last encounter between the two clubs at Bernabeu saw the Italians lose 1-0 courtesy of an Ivan Helguera header in 2005.

Juventus holds the advantage in the group with seven points, but Real is only one point shy of the top spot and could very well head the group Wednesday evening.

Real Madrid

Real Madrid comes into the game after a turbulent spell.

Ramon Calderon has been arguing ostentatiously in the media with Manchester United manager, Sir Alex Ferguson. There have been clear signs of unrest in the team after Ramos openly criticized Schuster's rotation policy and De La Red’s health scare.

Real Madrid has only collected four points in the three games following their last encounter with Juventus. The team is currently occupying third spot on the table; two points from top rivals Barcelona.

In the win against Athletic Bilbao, Real managed to throw away a 2-0 lead before another goal from Higuain brought all three points to the Madrid side. It’s becoming a bad habit for Los Merengues to capitulate towards the end but they have generally eluded defeats with late goals and a bit of luck.

Defeat came in their following midweek Copa del Rey game against Real Union. Union managed to take the lead three times and walk away with a 3-2 victory in the very same game that showed horror pictures of De La Red’s collapse.

Back in the league, Madrid were held to a draw by Almeria. Captain Raul gave his side the lead but the players then, more or less, invited Union into the game and a late goal by Union’s Piatti saw the points shared between the two.

Defense stalwart Pepe walked out with an injury in the game against Almeria and his participation in Wednesday evening’s game still remains uncertain. Both Pepe and Diarra will undergo late fitness tests to determine their participation against Juventus.

Torres is back from his injury but De La Red is out as he is currently recuperating at home. He will not take part in any game until the reason for his feinting can be determined.

Real have shown poor form in the last couple of weeks and will be hoping to turn things around with a win against Juventus.

The support of their home crowd at the Bernabeu is a major advantage and one that could help Real keep their record against Juventus intact.

Starting XI: Casillas; Ramos, Cannavaro, Pepe/Heinze, Marcelo; Sneijder, Diarra/Gago, Guti; Robben, Raul, v. Nistelrooy

Juventus

The Turin club  started on their winning streak with the win against Real Madrid and has collected three straight wins in the league. The Bianconeri players seem to exude confidence coming into tommorow's game. Their recent run of good form has seen the club jump up to sixth place, just four points adrift of the top.

The win over Real Madrid was closely followed by another in the Turin derby where Amauri made the difference. In the following midweek clash against Bologna Nedved bagged a brace and put his side through to another win.

The game against Roma the past weekend showed a more convincing win from Ranieri’s men. The Giallorossi fought hard but Del Piero’s 30-yard free-kick stunner followed by Marchionni’s lob proved too much for Spalletti’s men, who struggled in the second half.

With half of the "old guard” on the sidelines, the other half has done enough to prompt talk of contract extension. Recent reports suggest that both Del Piero and Nedved are to be offered one year extensions to their contracts.

Juventus latest addition to the injury list is defender Knezevic. The defender had to undergo knee surgery and is ruled out for three months. Trezeguet, Andrade, Zanetti, Grygera, Poulsen, Marchisio and Buffon are still out of the action.

After collecting maximum points in their last four outings, Juventus will want to carry their winning ways as three points in the Spanish capital would more or less put the club through to the knock-out stages.

But will they be able to win at the Bernabeu stadium after 46 long years?

Starting XI: Manninger; Mellberg, Legrottaglie, Chiellini, Molinaro; Camoranesi/Marchionni, Tiago, Sissoko, Nedved; Amauri, Del Piero