They've gone and done it again. Real Madrid, the team that looked grandfathered in during the Group Stage and lost twice to Ukraine's mighty Shakhtar Donetsk, then got enough lucky breaks against Atalanta that talks of conspiracy ran rife online, put on an excellent performance against Liverpool last week and now look like they could actually go and win the Champions League.

They won 3-1 against Liverpool in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals and the most remarkable thing isn't the scoreline itself – after all, Liverpool are nowhere near full strength – it's the way the win was achieved.

They outplayed Liverpool going forward in terms of passing, with Toni Kroos regularly alternating the kind of service he was providing from deep, and also physically. The front three of Vinicius Jr., Karim Benzema and Marco Asensio were all unplayable in different ways: Vinicius was too fast, Benzema is on a hot streak and Asensio knew how to find the gaps.

Then, at the back, they neutralized Liverpool at every step. Mo Salah's goal came early in the second half before Real had a chance to settle. After that, the archaic nature of Liverpool's attack worked against them – and it was all done with an injured Sergio Ramos watching from the sidelines.

The proof that Real got good at the right time is that this past weekend, they handily beat Barcelona 2-1 in El Clasico. The first goal, which came from Benzema, was a cheeky back heel that reflects just how confident and swaggering this side is right now.

It speaks volumes about Liverpool's European lineage that tonight's game at Anfield isn't a foregone conclusion.

They beat Aston Villa 2-1 at home this past weekend, snapping a record six-game losing streak at Anfield. It was 1-1 until the 90+1st minute when Trent Alexander-Arnold made a breakthrough and won the match. At that moment, Liverpool fans worldwide breathed a sigh of relief; normal service had resumed.