Real Madrid vs. Stuttgart: Match Preview, Odds & Predictions

On Tuesday night, Real Madrid will take on Stuttgart in the opening encounter of the Champions League's new league phase.

Real Madrid holders will be seeking their 16th championship in their first-ever encounter with the opposing team. They will be hoping to get off to a flawless start.

Previous Matches and Head-to-head

Real Madrid, the record-setting 15-time champions of the Champions League, will kick off their new season at the Santiago Bernabeu three months after defeating another German team in the final.

After a 2-0 victory against Borussia Dortmund in June's final at Wembley, Carlo Ancelotti's Real Madrid team won its sixth title in ten years.

This season, Real will play Stuttgart in the first league match, making them the 16th different German team they have faced thus far.

On their way to London last season, Real encountered four German clubs: Union Berlin in the groups, RB Leipzig in the last 16, and the juggernauts Bayern Munich in the semi-finals.

Real Madrid has a fantastic Champions League record against German opponents, losing just once in their past 21 matches while winning fourteen. The home team will be pleased to play another game at this venue.

Although last year's cup final ended in a 2-0 scoreline, Ancelotti's squad is riding high after a 2-0 win over Real Sociedad on the road. Despite being four points behind Barcelona in La Liga, they have gone six games without a loss this season across all competitions.

According to the UEFA coefficient, Real received one of the more lenient league phase draws; however, Stuttgart seems to be one of the competition's most formidable pot four teams.

In addition to hosting Dortmund at the Bernabeu for a rematch of last year's final, the holders will also have to travel to play Liverpool and Atalanta, the champions of the Europa League.

Unfortunately, Stuttgart's away match against Real Madrid to kick off their season makes it one of the most difficult draws.

Stuttgart head coach Sebastian Hoeness, speaking on August 25, 2024, about his team's first 2024–2025 Bundesliga match versus Freiburg

The Swabians will face Atalanta, Paris Saint-Germain, and Juventus in their first Champions League campaign in fifteen years.

In their six encounters against Spanish teams in the UCL, Stuttgart has failed to secure a victory, drawing twice and losing four times. Their most recent encounter was in March 2010, when they were eliminated from the tournament in the round of 16 by Barcelona's 4-0 thrashing.

Even though they later participated in the Europa League, this is the second-place finisher from last season's Bundesliga, playing in European competition for the first time since 2013—when they lost a qualifier to Rijeka.

However, the visitors will confidently enter the game after Sebastian Hoeness's men's 3-1 victory against Borussia Monchengladbach last weekend, which helped them recover from a lackluster start.

They now sit in mid-table with four points, having lost at Freiburg on opening day and drew at home to Mainz; it was their first league victory.

Real Madrid x Stuttgart Team News

Kylian Mbappe will make his Real Madrid Champions League debut here. He has played in 73 games for PSG and Monaco and scored 48 goals.

However, Real is short-handed around the Frenchman heading into this matchup. Several important first-team players have been sidelined with injuries, making it difficult for Real to have a full bench in recent weeks.

The most noteworthy is Jude Bellingham, who has been out for the last month; however, he and Aurelien Tchouameni are also back in training after missing the most recent international break.

Brahim Diaz will miss around eight weeks of action due to a hamstring injury, which sidelined him early in the weekend. Eduardo Camavinga and Dani Ceballos are expected to return at the end of the month.

While Ameen Al Dakhil is nursing an injury he sustained while playing for Burnley, Leonidas Stergiou, another Stuttgart defender, is nearing a recovery from a back problem. Neither player has made the team's debut just yet.

After injuring his shoulder while playing for the B team, teenager Justin Diehl will be out for an extended period compared to Nikolas Nartey and Frans Kratzig, who are expected to return in October.

Stuttgart's offensive players are crucial to their chances of winning, and Ermedin Demirovic is a man on fire. He scored twice last weekend and five goals for club and country this season.

At Gladbach, Deniz Undav scored his first league goal of the season after his impressive performance for Germany against Holland during the international break.

Our Predictions

Real Madrid will win and over 2.5 goals @ 1.60 on Sky247.ng

Real Madrid will be an overwhelming favorite to win this season opener as the defending champions. Even with potential midfielder absences, they should continue their undefeated start with a win.

Stuttgart needs an offensive surge if they want a shot at Real, but it seems implausible, considering the home team's strength. The last time Real failed to score in 74 consecutive home Champions League meetings was six years ago against CSKA Moscow.

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