Real Madrid: Manager Julen Lopetegui refused to confirm who would start in goal pre-match, with both Thibaut Courtois and Keylor Navas battling it out to be handed the gloves. The former Spain boss has no new injury concerns but could take the opportunity to recall Casemiro in place of former Real Betis man Dani Ceballos in midfield.
Roma: Argentine schemer Javier Pastore again misses out through injury with Bryan Cristante likely to deputise for him alongside Steven N'Zonzi and Daniele De Rossi in the middle of the park. Other than that the visitors have a fully-fit squad to chose from, with Eusebio Di Francesco now facing the tricky decision of whether to revert to five at the back or continue with the attacking trio of Edin Dzeko, Cengiz Under and Stephan El Shaarawy.
Real Madrid boss Julen Lopetegui:
"We’re excited going in to the Champions League and are ambitious. It makes me feel proud, responsible and very excited about a competition which I don’t need to explain what it means to us and what Real Madrid means to the Champions League. We’ll come up against a very difficult opponent.
"Last season Roma knocked Atlético out in the Group Stage, Barcelona in the quarter-finals and reached the semi-finals of the Champions League. They’re a side that has improved and the squad is more complete and has more depth. They also have the same coach and continue to consolidate the way they play.
"I expect a stronger opposition than last year and a tough game. They’ll make things difficult for us and force us to work hard to beat them. I expect an ambitious and aggressive team. They’re ready to play that way. They look after the ball well and are ambitious".
Roma boss Eusebio Di Francesco on Real Madrid:
“It's too early to get a clear idea of how different they are but I get the impression they're more of a team and put more pressure on opponents without Ronaldo. They slow the tempo down less and are more consistent throughout the game. They have just as much quality and can easily switch from 4-3-3 to 4-2-3-1.
“I'm not going to tell you how we'll play tomorrow, other than we must improve our shortcomings. I thought we were better going forward against Chievo and we played well for longer spells. Where we came up short was defensively because we weren't aggressive enough. We must defend better than we have done recently.
“We can't know now if Real are better or worse. All I will say is I like the look of them and I'm a big fan of Marco Asensio. I think he's the future of Real with the ability he has. He's a different player to Ronaldo but he works really hard for the team and gets involved in their play. Let's not forget that Real Madrid were Real Madrid long before they were 'Real Ronaldo' and I'm sure they'll enjoy just as much success in the future. Just not tomorrow, hopefully.”
Form:
Did you know?
Roma's last win over Real Madrid at the Bernabeu came back in 2008 as goals from Mirko Vucinic and Rodrigo Taddei secured a 2-1 win for the Italians and a place in the quarter-finals.
Roma have faced 'Los Blancos' five times at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu (W2, D1, L2).
Real Madrid are Roma's most common opponent in European competitions having faced them ten times in total. The Spaniards hold the bragging rights, having won six games to Roma's three, with one game ending in a draw.
Three of Roma's current squad have scored at the Bernabeu (Daniele De Rossi, Edin Dzeko and Aleksandar Kolarov), but only one has done it as a Roma player (De Rossi).
Real Madrid have won 34 of their last 42 Champions League home games, losing just twice as Schalke claimed a dramatic 4-3 win at the Bernabeu in the second leg of a last-16 clash back in 2015 and Juventus almost produced a stunning comeback in the second leg of their quarter-final tie last term (1-3).
Possible lineups:
Real Madrid: Courtois; Carvajal, Ramos, Varane, Marcelo; Casemiro, Kroos, Modric, Bale, Benzema, Asensio.
Roma: Olsen; Florenzi, Manolas, Jesus, Kolarov; De Rossi, N'Zonzi, Cristante; Under, Dzeko, El Shaarawy.