UEFA Champions League: Liverpool face Real Madrid as Trent Alexander-Arnold returns to Anfield on Matchday 4
by Devesh Jaganath | by Devesh Jaganath
Liverpool eye repeat of 2024-25 UCL heroics
The headline fixture on Matchday 4 of the UEFA Champions League will see Liverpool lock horns with Real Madrid at Anfield, where the spotlight will be shining on one Trent Alexander-Arnold, who returns to his old stomping ground.
The England international confirmed one of English football’s worst-kept secrets in the summer by leaving the club that he spent 20 years with to join the La Liga giants on a free transfer.
Liverpool and Real Madrid have met on 12 previous occasions in European competition, and this is the eighth time that these two famous clubs will cross paths in the Champions League since the start of the 2017-18 campaign.
The Reds have only beaten this opponent once in the UCL, with that victory coming last season on Matchday 5 when Alexis Mac Allister and Cody Gakpo found the net for the Premier League champions, while Mohamed Salah and Kylian Mbappe both missed penalties.
Our Champions League experts are expecting a free-flowing and entertaining matchup, according to our Liverpool vs Real Madrid prediction, with Kylian Mbappe being picked out as one to watch in this clash.
Liverpool Key Facts:
- Liverpool have only lost two of their last 15 UCL group-stage games against Spanish teams (W7 D6 L2)
- Liverpool finished first in last season’s UCL League Phase
- Liverpool have won 14 of their last 16 UCL group-stage matches
- Liverpool have won their last 15 UCL group-stage matches at Anfield
Real Madrid aim to maintain perfect start to UCL campaign
While Liverpool ended last season’s League Phase of the Champions League in top spot, this year, it is Real Madrid that has produced a perfect start to the competition with three wins on the bounce, and they will be looking to extend that record at Anfield tonight.
Xabi Alonso, who, like Trent, will be returning to the home of his former employers, has enjoyed an incredible start to his tenure at the Santiago Bernabeu, with his side five points clear of arch-rivals Barcelona in La Liga after 11 games.
Just one day shy of a full year, the Spaniard is set to arrive on Merseyside for a second season in succession, though the last time was with his former club Bayer Leverkusen, with whom he was subjected to a 4-0 thumping by Arne Slot’s men.
Now leading Los Blancos, Alonso will be hoping to get his revenge, but his team do not have the best record against English opposition, having only won two of their last nine matches against teams from the Premier League (W2 D3 L4).
The match kicks off at 20:00 (GMT) at Anfield, and you can keep up with every moment of the action by using our Champions League livescore tool right here on SportyTrader!
Real Madrid Key Facts:
- Real Madrid have won two of their last nine matches against English teams (W2 D3 L4)
- Real Madrid finished 11th in last season’s UCL League Phase
- Real Madrid have qualified for the Champions League knockout rounds in each of the last 29 campaigns
- Real Madrid are one of only five teams to have won their first three League Phase games this season
