Stuttering Real Madrid remain menace in Champions League

REAL Madrid’s slump in form has alarms ringing in the Spanish capital, but pretenders to the champions’ European crown should beware – Real are often a different animal in the second half of the season.

A familiar foe in recent seasons, Borussia Dortmund, visit the Santiago Bernabeu for the fifth time in five years tonight.

However, for once there is little on the line, with the Germans already eliminated from the Champions League and Real Madrid certain to finish second in Group H – behind Tottenham Hotspur.

Two years ago, Madrid were in such mid-season crisis that manager Rafael Benitez was sacked in January.

Zinedine Zidane took over – and five months later won the Uefa Champions League.

Last season, Zidane’s men finished second in their group, but still qualified behind Dortmund and went on to retain their elite European title.

In home league crisis, a 0-0 draw at Athletic Bilbao on Saturday left Real eight points adrift of Barcelona at the top of La Liga, having failed to win six of 14 league games so far this season.

An unusual lack of firepower has hobbled the Spanish giants, with Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema scoring a meagre four La Liga goals combined and Gareth Bale sidelined for most of the season by injuries.

The Champions League has been a different story, though, as Ronaldo once again leads all scorers with eight goals in five games.

Throughout his nine seasons with Real, Benzema has also tended to save his best for the European stage, and he became the fifth-top scorer in the competition’s history with a double in a 6-0 rout of APOEL Nicosia two weeks ago.

Poor domestic form has historically only made Madrid stronger, come the business end of the Champions League.

Last season’s La Liga and Uefa Champions League double was a first for 59 years – with Real having won the European Cup, or Champions League, eight times in that span.

There is a feeling that this Madrid squad is not as strong as last season.

Ronaldo even admitted, following a first group stage defeat for five years, at Tottenham last month that the departures of Alvaro Morata, James Rodriguez and Pepe had left the squad lacking experience.

The squad has also lost depth, with Zidane yet to fully trust recent recruits Theo Hernandez, Dani Ceballos and Jesus Vallejo.

“I also think the Real Madrid squad is inferior, they have lost potential compared to last season,” Valencia coach Marcelino Garcia Toral, whose side lead Real Madrid by three points in La Liga, said on Sunday.

But Zidane insists the level of performance is the same and all that is missing is a killer touch in front of goal.