3 In Defense: Can Atletico continue dominant run against Real?

The Champions League is finally back, and theScore’s trio of footy editors debate the key topics ahead of Tuesday’s quarterfinal ties. You better believe the takes are going to be hot.

Has Real Madrid righted the ship since their 4-0 humbling at the hands of Atletico in February?

Gordon Brunt: A repeat of February’s result would be a shock considering the upgrades to Real Madrid’s back line with keys figures returning to fitness in the months since Atletico Madrid’s win. While Real suffered an injury crisis during the last meeting, the additions of Marcelo, Pepe and Sergio Ramos will prevent another lopsided scoreline. The defensive deficiencies exposed will have surely been heavily examined and corrected in time for Tuesday’s showdown at the scene of the February massacre, the Vicente Calderon.

Carlo Campo: Tuesday's Derbi madrileno will mark the seventh meeting between Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid this season, of which Carlo Ancelotti's haven't won a single match. While Real Madrid appear to have emerged from their recent slump and are back to full strength following a handful of injuries, Atleti have proved time and time again that they know to contain their rival's fluidity in attack, and just because they've righted the ship doesn't mean that they'll emerge with a result at the Vicente Calderon.

Gianluca Nesci: Four wins in their last five matches - with the only loss coming at the hands of the attacking Goliath that is Barcelona - suggests that Los Blancos have put their rough patch firmly behind them. More importantly, since that contest February, Real Madrid have gotten healthy. Sergio Ramos, Pepe, Marcelo, Luka Modric and James Rodriguez all missed the aforementioned meeting with various injuries. They're all back, and that should make all the difference.

Cristiano Ronaldo has found his scoring boots of late, and will get much of the attention during the contest, but can Gareth Bale reassert himself and put in a performance that will, at least temporarily, silence his many critics in the Spanish capital?

Brunt: Atletico’s defensive plan couldn’t have gone better after limiting Real to just one shot on target and virtually shutting down Cristiano Ronaldo. More shocking, however, was their ability to make Gareth Bale a non-factor as well with their suffocating defensive pressure. Lightning probably won’t strike twice for the defending La Liga champs. Bale is finally over his scoring drought and shutting down the Welsh international will be next to impossible, especially with the threat of James Rodriguez, who missed the last game through injury. A scenario where Atletico contains all three players, as well as Karim Benzema and others, just doesn’t seem likely.

Campo: Gareth Bale has been in fine form ever since he notched a brace in Wales' 3-0 win over Israel in Euro 2016 qualifying. His first match back from the international break saw him register one goal and two assists in Real Madrid's 9-1 trashing of Granada, and he followed up that match with a solid performance in a 2-0 victory at Rayo Vallecano. Those sides might not possess the defensive capabilities of a club like Atletico Madrid, but those who believe Bale is out of form are sorely mistaken.

Nesci: He's certainly capable. The Welshman is enjoying his best run of form in quite some time, notching three goals and adding a pair of assists in his last four matches. The critics will note that scoring in a 9-1 win over a hapless Granada side is infinitely different than performing in the Champions League, in the cauldron that is the Vicente Calderon, and they would be right. They'll bark about that until Bale has a marvelous outing in a crucial moment such as this. I expect him to hush them on Tuesday.

Will Juventus fall victim to the blistering Monaco counter-attack that shredded Arsenal in the opening leg of that Round of 16 tie?

Brunt: There won’t be a repeat of AS Monaco’s surprisingly effective counter-attack this time around. Juventus shouldn’t suffer the same attacking woes that cost Arsenal its place in the tournament. The Serie A leaders have a capable unit in front of goal who can devastate defences if they’re given similar chances to the ones Monaco afforded a lackluster Arsenal side. The Monaco counter will be non-existent if Juve finds the back of the net early and avoids veering into any type of desperation mindset. 

Campo: Almost certainly not. A disciplined club like Juventus won't commit suicide by throwing all their players into the attack. Arsenal essentially lost their round-of-16 tie versus Monaco in the first leg, when they bizarrely felt the need to press unbelievably high and exposed themselves to two well-executed counterattacks at an unnecessary time. With Juventus, we're talking about a side that have mastered the art of balancing attack and defense.

Nesci: In a word, no. Arsenal, while being a more dynamic attacking unit than Juventus, was comically open in the first leg of their tie against Monaco, leaving ample space on the break - which was ultimately their downfall. Giorgio Chiellini, despite some struggles this season, along with Leonardo Bonucci, won't get caught wildly out of position like Per Mertesacker did in that fateful contest at the Emirates.