It is remontada or bust for reigning Champions League champions Real Madrid on Wednesday night, where Carlo Ancelotti's men must pull off the most sensational comeback against Arsenal in the second leg of their quarter-final to keep their dream of a sweet 16 alive.
The 15-time European Cup holders were slaughtered 3-0 at the Emirates in last week's first leg, but Los Blancos now have the famed Bernabeu factor on their side.
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Match preview
As Real's shiny new toy Kylian Mbappe waits patiently for his first-ever goal from a direct free kick, Arsenal's £105m man Declan Rice offered the World Cup winner some set-piece pointers in North London, firing in two unbelievable dead-ball strikes in the space of 12 minutes.
Even ex-Madrid left-back and free-kick icon Roberto Carlos - in attendance at the Emirates - should have been able to force a smile when Rice firstly bent an incredible effort around the wall before a postage-stamp second, which preceded emergency number nine Mikel Merino also having his say with a brilliant first-time finish.
As a euphoric Emirates crowd celebrated the most famous night in the stadium's memory, Real Madrid - who deserved nothing and got nothing in North London - lost a first leg of a Champions League/European Cup knockout tie by three or more goals for just the fifth time in their history.
Los Blancos ended up being eliminated on four of those previous five occasions, but the one outlier did come against an English side in the shape of Derby County, whom they lost 4-1 against in the first leg of the 1975-76 last 16 before a 5-1 turnaround in the second.
As Manchester City and Chelsea can attest to, Champions League nights at the Bernabeu are anything but a foregone conclusion, although that 5-1 vs. Derby marks just one of two occasions where Real have beaten an English side by at least four goals in the competition - the other was a 4-0 quarter-final battering of Tottenham Hotspur in 2011.
However, the holders could only manage the one goal in the weekend's La Liga battle with Alaves, where Eduardo Camavinga struck the winner before Mbappe's sending-off, but not since December 2018 - against CSKA Moscow - have they failed to score at home in the Champions League.
On the flip side, Real Madrid have also conceded at least one goal in each of their last 10 European contests at the Bernabeu, music to the ears of an Arsenal side who may not be able to solely rely on their staunch defending to finish the quarter-final job.
Having defied the absences of Kai Havertz, Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Magalhaes to rip Real Madrid to shreds in the English capital, Mikel Arteta's men would be more than worthy semi-finalists, a stage they have only ever reached twice before and not since 2009.
Perhaps the Gunners' only regret from the first leg was that they did not build a more commanding lead, having had 11 shots on target on the night - the joint-most of any team against Real Madrid in a UCL knockout game - and they returned to their wasteful ways at the weekend.
A rotated side were forced to settle for a point in a 1-1 London derby draw with Brentford, one that has Liverpool within just two wins of sealing the Premier League title, and Arsenal's chances could even be officially over this weekend if they suffer a surprise loss to Ipswich Town.
Nevertheless, that home stalemate at least extended Arsenal's unbeaten sequence in all competitions to nine matches, and the Gunners have found the back of the net in each of their last eight contests, offering genuine hope of a masterful Madrid repeat.
It has been 19 years since a trademark Thierry Henry solo run propelled Arsenal to a 1-0 Bernabeu win in 2006, and the North London giants are yet to lose to Real Madrid in a competitive match, but they can afford to have that sequence snapped and still celebrate dumping out the holders on their own patch.
Team News
Mbappe's sending-off against Alaves has no impact on his European participation, but the weekend's match-winner Camavinga will sit on the naughty step on Wednesday, having been sent off in the first leg for kicking the ball away while already on a yellow card - one that would have ruled him out of the second leg anyway.
The Frenchman is one of three guaranteed absentees for Los Blancos this week alongside long-term knee victims Eder Militao and Dani Carvajal, while Ferland Mendy (muscle) and Andriy Lunin (calf) are both major doubts after failing to make the squad on Sunday.
However, Aurelien Tchouameni is now eligible again following a first-leg ban and is a straight swap for Camavinga in the middle, while Jude Bellingham and Vinicius Junior should have relatively fresh legs after only making substitute appearances vs. Alaves.
As far as Arsenal are concerned, coming through their clash with Brentford without any new fitness issues would have been the overriding priority, but their prayers went unanswered as Jorginho and Thomas Partey both sustained problems in the second half.
The former has now been ruled out with a chest injury and could end up missing a few weeks, but Partey has been given the all-clear, as has Ben White following his own knock.
A well-rested Jurrien Timber will return to the XI regardless of White's fitness levels, though, while Myles Lewis-Skelly, Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard and Merino - whose four goals against Real is his best record against a single opponent - are also primed to come back in.
Jesus (knee), Gabriel (hamstring), Havertz (hamstring) and Takehiro Tomiyasu (knee) are still sidelined, and Riccardo Calafiori's own knee concern is not expected to settle down in time for him to be involved either.
Real Madrid possible starting lineup:
Courtois; Valverde, Asencio, Rudiger, Alaba; Tchouameni, Modric; Rodrygo, Bellingham, Vinicius Jr; Mbappe
Arsenal possible starting lineup:
Raya; Timber, Saliba, Kiwior, Lewis-Skelly; Odegaard, Partey, Rice; Saka, Merino, Martinelli
We say: Real Madrid 2-1 Arsenal (Arsenal win 4-2 on aggregate)
If Arsenal can keep their clean sheet intact in the first 10 minutes - when the Bernabeu crowd is at its most boisterous - that should be a surefire recipe for success, although Real Madrid may have thought the same at the Emirates before the Gunners' second-half show.
Arteta's defence is stingy enough to avoid conceding the four goals that Real require to win in normal or extra time, though, and as Los Blancos are vulnerable at the back, one lucky Gunner can have their Henry moment to calm any nerves and send the holders packing, after which Paris Saint-Germain or Aston Villa will stand in their way of Munich.
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