The CL defending champions will get off to an interesting start, with a home game against Swiss side FC Basel at the Bernabeu on Tuesday night. Carlo Ancelotti will know that his men need to be on top-form to impress their home support aswell as the rest of Europe after lacklustre performances against Sociedad and rivals Atlético Madrid in recent weeks; they've been booed off the pitch and questions have been asked as to whether it was a smart decision tactics-wise to sell Angel di Maria to Manchester United for a British record transfer fee of £60million pounds.
Basel are no pushovers, and despite the lack of a real European pedigree in the Champions League they have impressed in recent seasons over in the sister-competition of the UEFA Europa League where they gave the likes of London rivals Chelsea and Tottenham a run for their money in the knock-out rounds.
Meanwhile Ancelotti said (after the defeat to Atlético): "I have a lot of experience in this - I am looking for balance with quality players, it's what makes the difference. There are times in football when things don't go well and we have to react quickly because we have another game (tomorrow).
I feel like a coach who has to fix things in the team, the same as happened last year. Luckily it's only the beginning; I am convinced that working together we will fix it with the necessary calm and self-criticism. This match comes at the right time as it is a chance to show a positive reaction and demonstrate the good things in the team."