Real Madrid may have been pitted against arguably the weakest of the remaining seven sides in the draw, but that doesn’t mean this will be a walk in the park for los Blancos.

Galatasaray are hungry for success and let’s not forget they have a true goal machine in their ranks and I am not referring to Didier Drogba.

This has been a testing season for Real Madrid, as they were out of the La Liga title race midway through the league campaign and were forced to turn their attention to other competitions.

Los Blancos looked to be heading for yet another disappointment as they were on the verge of Copa del Rey exit following a 1-1 draw at home against Barcelona, but they impressed to win the return leg 3-1 and thus kick-started their season.

Jose Mourinho’s men have been pretty impressive ever since, even if they needed help from the referees to eliminate Manchester United from the Champions League Last 16 stage.

They were then handed a pretty favourable draw, having been pitted against Galatasaray, so no wonder los Merengues are just 1.20 (1/5) at Paddy Power to win the first leg.

After he scored in his fourth successive match for Real Madrid, Cristiano Ronaldo is 2.88 (17/9) at Stan James to score the first goal against Galatasaray.

Fabio Coentrao and Raphael Varane are set to start after recovering from injury, while Diego Lopez looks set to be preferred to Iker Casillas.

Probable starting line-up (4-2-3-1): Lopez – Arbeloa, Ramos, Varane, Coentrao – Xabi Alonso, Khedira – Di Maria, Ozil, Ronaldo – Benzema.

After spending the first decade of the 21st century watching their arch rivals Fenerbahce impress in Europe, Galatasaray chiefs decided enough was enough and launched an ambitious project designed to help the club return to old glory days.

The first steps were more than positive as the team climbed to the top of Turkish Super Lig and got past the Champions League group stage, but that was just for starters.

Having recognized an excellent opportunity to achieve some success in Europe, the club added the likes of Didier Drogba and Wesley Sneijder to their ranks in January, and their arrival proved to be a huge boost for Cimbom.

As a result, Galatasaray managed to eliminate Schalke to earn a place in the quarter-finals and they now face the ultimate test against Real Madrid.

Even if they are considered major underdogs, there will be quite a few of their supporters backing odds of 7.50 (13/2) offered at bet365 on Galata to qualify.

Champions League top scorer Burak Yilmaz proved his excellent form by bagging a brace at the weekend, and he is 5.00 (4/1) at BetFred to continue his scoring run at Santiago Bernabeu.

With Tomas Ujfalusi the only absentee at the moment, Fatih Terim looks set to field the same side that started the weekend’s match against Istanbul BB.

Probable starting line-up (4-4-2): Muslera – Eboue, Nounkeu, Kaya, Balta – Altintop, Melo, Selcuk Inan, Sneijder – Drogba, Yilmaz.

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