Real Madrid face newcomers Union Berlin in their first game of the Champions League campaign.
This is Real Madrid’s 27th consecutive season in the Champions League, having won the competition for a record 14 times ( the most of any team).
Union Berlin are the fifth side to face Real in their first-ever Champions League match, with each of the previous four losing (Internazionale 1998, Roma 2001, BATE Borisov 2008 and Zürich 2009).
Union will also be the 15th different German side to feature in the Champions League, the most from any nation.
Only three of the 14 previous Bundesliga teams to play in the competition have won their first-ever game (four draws and seven losses), with Bayer Leverkusen (1997), Kaiserslautern (1998) and Wolfsburg (2009) doing so.
Team News
Éder Militão and Thibaut Courtois are ruled out until next year after both sustained respective ACL injuries.
Vinícius Júnior (thigh) and Arda Güler (meniscus injury) are also ruled out while Dani Ceballos and Ferland Mendy will be assessed.
No fewer than five players are missing for Union Berlin heading into their Champions League debut.
Sheraldo Becker (hip), Laurenz Dehl (Achilles tendon), András Schäfer (foot), Rani Khedira (calf) and Lucas Tousart (thigh) sit in the physio room.
Janik Haberer is suspended, while Leonardo Bonucci is expected to have to make do with a place on the bench once more.
Head-to-Head
This will be the first-ever competitive meeting between Real Madrid and Union Berlin, with the German side set to become Real’s 150th different opponent in all European competition.
