Pre-game news & notes: Real Madrid vs Tottenham, 2017 Champions League

It’s nice to have Champions League football back after a three-week hiatus. It’s also nice, that we’re treated to a marquee match-up against Tottenham in what hopes to be a tasty matchup for Real Madrid fans, Spurs fans, and neutrals alike.

We’ve accumulated everything you need to know about this match in this article to make it easy for you / tide you over until kick-off.

One can guess the line-up, but without getting carried away and pin-pointing the exact scheme, I’ll play it safe and say “I’d imagine Ronaldo, Benzema, and Isco will all start, alongside, of course, the players rested against Getafe: Varane, Casemiro, and Modric”. Lucas will post the official lineups on Managing Madrid shortly after they’re announced (or maybe even before, given his ninja skills).

For what it’s worth, here’s Marca’s starting XI:

The only thing they may have gotten wrong, is not having Ben Davies in the lineup. It was expected he wouldn’t recover from his illness in time, but the latest reports state he’ll start, which is a massive boost for Tottenham.

Assorted:

Hugo Lloris says Cristiano Ronaldo is an ‘inspiration’:

"He is an inspiration for the new generation, a machine of success with individual trophies and collective success," Lloris said of Cristiano Ronaldo.

"He is a great leader and a great personality too. He has made a great impact on Real Madrid and the success of Real Madrid.

"To have the opportunity to play for the best club in the world gives you the opportunity to play against the best players in the world."

Mauricio Pochettino has high praise for Isco:

"I think that he is one of the best and he is proving it," Pochettino said pre-game.

"I have been lucky to have seen him playing for different clubs and he has always been a player with a capacity and creativity above average.

"He has reached his full potential at Real, and we will take that into account.

"We know all about his magic."

Not that anyone really cares about this, but Harry Redknapp says there’s no need for Kane to leave Tottenham for Real Madrid:

"He is a long way past that [interest from Real Madrid], of course he is a target," Redknapp told Omnisport.

"But I think if Tottenham give him the money he wants and pay him like they should do, why would you want to go anywhere?

"He is playing with some good young players but the only problem is now the way the game has gone you need to be earning the big money.

"He should be on what Lukaku is on and [Manchester City forward] Aguero is on and all the best players in the world because he is up there with them."

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Pre-game links:

• How to watch
• Three keys to victory
• Tottenham squad
• Q&A with Tottenham fan and Spanish football writer Andrew Gaffney of Yahoo Sports
• Match preview