Eder Militao is concerned Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino could inspire Liverpool to a famous comeback on Wednesday night.
Real Madrid go into the second leg of their last-16 Champions League with a commanding 5-2 lead after demolishing Jurgen Klopp's side at Anfield last month. The holders seem destined to progress to the quarter-finals, but Militao is not taking anything for granted.
Liverpool are a club known for their comebacks. They recovered from three goals down to beat AC Milan in the 2005 Champions League final and did the same during the second leg of their semi-final against Barcelona in 2019. Militao is fully aware of these results.
"The night in Liverpool was one of the most historic in my sporting life - to win 5-2 there and score is a unique moment for any footballer," Militao told reporters after scoring in Real's 3-1 victory against Espanyol at the Bernabeu on Saturday night.
As quoted by the Liverpool ECHO, he added, "But Liverpool have a super squad and now we do not want to be surprised at home. Mo Salah has come into a good moment in attack.
"He is always dangerous and against us he is hyper-motivated, and also Roberto Firmino is scoring goals again. So until the end of this match, nothing has been decided."
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Liverpool have endured an indifferent spell since that defeat. They failed to beat Crystal Palace and Bournemouth, but they picked up wins against Wolves and Manchester United. The latter was their best result, as they hammered Erik ten Hag's side 7-0.
Real have also struggled since their 5-2 win. They have won just one of their last four games in all competitions - failing to beat neighbours Atletico Madrid at the Bernabeu in LaLiga and suffered a 1-0 home defeat to bitter rivals Barcelona in the Copa del Rey.
Militao is predicting Wednesday night's game to be a classic. He added, "Some people believe this tie is already finished but I am expecting a big night between two of the clubs with the biggest histories in world football. It’s certain that Real Madrid have a very big advantage but still, we must wait another 90 minutes and the round is not closed.
"In previous editions of the Champions League, we have experienced situations that have been right on the limit and we know they were lessons for us. Liverpool improved in the last matches and we saw the game against Manchester United - they were spectacular.
"We expect a different Liverpool in Madrid than the one we faced at Anfield because they need to take risks to score goals, but our challenge is to play such a match that no one remembers our 5-2 win at Anfield.
"The fact the second leg is in front of our supporters is favourable for us. Liverpool will feel enormous pressure and each minute that passes with a goal for them is a success for us. Real have suffered problems with winning and scoring goals since our win in Liverpool but I am totally convinced this will change this week at the Santiago Bernabeu."
