Real Madrid vs Arsenal – Preview, Predictions and Best Bets

Real Madrid host Arsenal on Wednesday in the Champions League. The Gunners hold an incredible 3-0 first-leg lead and Los Blancos need a miracle to progress (6.50 odds to qualify).

Match: Real Madrid vs Arsenal
When: Wednesday, 16 April 2025, 21:00
Where: Santiago Bernabeu

Real Madrid Form

Los Blancos are not at their best right now. In the last ten fixtures, they have lost four times and their hopes of silverware this term are fading. A 2-1 La Liga loss at Real Betis was followed by a 2-1 Champions League win over Atletico Madrid in the Champions League. A 2-1 win vs Real Vallecano 2-1 preceded a 1-0 loss to Atletico Madrid in the second leg, but they advanced on penalties.

After two league wins, they played out a 4-4 against Real Sociedad in the Copa del Rey to reach the final (5-4 aggregate). A late goal conceded saw them lose 2-1 at home to Valencia in La Liga before Arsenal smashed them 3-0 in the first leg. On Sunday, they won 1-0 at Deportivo Alaves with ten men.

Real Madrid Team News

Carlo Ancelotti remains without Dani Carvajal at right-back and Eder Militao in central defence. Ferland Mendy is nearing a return but this match may come too soon.

Dani Ceballos is available again and Aurelien Tchouameni returns from a first-leg suspension. Eduardo Camavinga was sent off in the first leg and will play no part.

Real Madrid Motivation

Real Madrid need a miracle to turn this tie around. They have pulled off great comebacks before and will focus on going into half-time with a lead.

Ancelotti is a pragmatic coach but his side has to attack in this match. A clean sheet is needed to ensure they aren’t required to score four or five goals.

Arsenal Form

The Gunners are having a difficult end to the league season and their title challenge has been over for a while. They’ve dropped points in five of their last seven EPL fixtures. A 2-2 draw at PSV with a second-string side ensured a 9-3 aggregate progression. Arsenal beat Chelsea 1-0 after that with just two shots on target.

Mikel Arteta’s side beat Fulham 2-1 in a league match but could only draw 1-1 draw at Everton having led 1-0. Two world-class Declan Rice free kicks yielded a 3-0 win over Real Madrid a week ago before their inconsistent league form saw a 1-1 home draw vs Brentford on Saturday.

Arsenal Team News

Arsenal’s attack is still shorn of Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz. Bukayo Saka had a partial rest vs Brentford and will be back in the XI for this one.

Takehiro Tomiyasu, Gabriel and Riccardo Calafiori are set to miss out in defence. Jakub Kiwior will start again but Jorginho is ruled out. Thomas Partey has shaken off a knock and will start in midfield.

Arsenal Motivation

Arteta’s side will be totally focused on progressing to the next round. A narrow loss would be acceptable but they won’t want to allow Real Madrid to close the gap on aggregate to one goal at any stage.

The Gunners won’t play an open game and will look to use fast counters. A low block is expected.

Key Stats

Real Madrid have lost 4 of their last 10 matches

Real Madrid’s Mbappe has scored 23 goals in his last 29 matches

Arsenal have drawn 5 of their last 9 matches

Arsenal’s last 10 UCL away matches have seen just 1 clean sheet

Verdict

It’s hard to see this tie turning around. Real Madrid could win at home but still be eliminated. Kylian Mbappe is a good tip to score after a blank and a red card in his last two outings.

Featured Bet: Real Madrid win, Both teams to score and Mbappe anytime goalscorer at 4.20
Alternate Bet: Real Madrid win (90 mins) at 1.85
Goalscorer Tip: Kylian Mbappe to score first at 4.33 or Mbappe to score 2 or more goals at 6.00