Having suffered a 6-1 first-leg defeat, FC Schalke 04 must follow Bayer 04 Leverkusen’s example and salvage some pride at Real Madrid CF according to Jens Keller.
Like domestic rivals Bayer 04 Leverkusen, FC Schalke 04 approach the second leg of their UEFA Champions League round of 16 tie heavily in arrears following a sizeable home defeat.

A 6-1 loss to Real Madrid CF last month means the Royal Blues are essentially playing for pride against a side 30 games unbeaten, so coach Jens Keller wants his team to show the same tenacity Leverkusen displayed in narrowly succumbing 2-1 to Paris Saint-Germain last week. Keller’s counterpart, Carlo Ancelotti, will make changes, but recognises the value of maintaining Madrid’s “good form” heading into this weekend’s showdown with FC Barcelona.

Madrid have lost only twice on the 25 occasions they have hosted German visitors in the Spanish capital, recording 19 wins and four draws.

Isco, Jesé, Álvaro Morata and Cristiano Ronaldo will all start against Schalke but Ancelotti says Karim Benzema is out with a thigh injury sustained at the weekend. He is confident the striker will return for Sunday’s Liga meeting with Barcelona.
Christian Fuchs underwent surgery on his right knee on 11 March, while Felipe Santana has not played since the first leg because of a thigh problem. Jefferson Farfán has missed the last two games with a knee injury.