Real Madrid midfielder warns Liverpool over their next meeting after Champions League defeat

Real Madrid midfielder Dani Ceballos has promised Liverpool that they will face a far different side should they meet in the Champions League’s latter stages.

The Reds ran out 2-0 winners over the current champions and solidified their position at the top of the league table. In a stark contrast, Madrid sit 24th. Both sides had injuries, of course, but Madrid suffered more so, given they were missing David Alaba, Eder Militao, Dani Carvajal, Aurélien Tchouaméni, Rodrygo and Vinicius Junior, all of whom would have started if fit.

In comparison, the Reds were missing Alisson Becker, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Diogo Jota. Los Blancos are certainly not clicking on the pitch as star signing Kylian Mbappe looks completely devoid of confidence and form while the rhythm of the side was completely off. Liverpool, on the other hand, find themselves in an entirely opposite place in terms of their fortunes and they showcased their quality in a dominating win.

Nevertheless, Ceballos still found it within himself to throw down the gauntlet to Liverpool in an interview with TNT Sports Brazil after the game.

“It’s a very complicated stadium but I think we competed for a large part of the match,” said the Spain international. “The best version of Real Madrid is yet to come. Hopefully we will meet in February or March and it will be a different match for sure.” Liverpool are set to finish in the top eight which will ensure they head straight into the last 16. However, as it stands, Madrid are likely to head into the 9th-24th bracket which will mean playing an extra knockout game before making it into the final 16 sides.

Given how Madrid are set to welcome back the majority of those absentees before then, they will have time to fix their Mbappe problem and find the right system would should, eventually, turn into improved performances and results.

It will be interesting to see how a much improved Madrid side would fare against Liverpool come March, April or even May given Mbappe could have made the game level if he hadn’t had missed his penalty. As with most sports, it isn’t about how you start, it’s about how you end - and the Liverpool/Madrid story is closed - for now.