Ancelotti, Bellingham counting on Bernabeu magic
Carlo Ancelotti and Jude Bellingham are hoping for another special night at the Santiago Bernabeu as Real Madrid aims to overhaul Arsenal.
Madrid is 3-0 down from the first leg, which Arsenal won thanks to two stunning Declan Rice free-kicks and Mikel Merino's goal at Emirates Stadium.
Los Blancos, the 15-time European champion, have become famed for their Champions League comebacks, though.
In recent years, they have pulled off similar fight-backs against Bayern Munich, Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea and Manchester City.
The Bernabeu has been host to plenty of memorable European nights, and Ancelotti is hoping there is another to come on Thursday.
"The Bernabeu has magic, everyone knows it's a special atmosphere," Ancelotti said. "We need a bit of everything, quality and a complete game in terms of physicality and collective attitude. Not one of these things can go wrong.
"Madrid have the resources to turn this tie around. We have the quality, the commitment, the experience, the fans. The resources are there and now it's time to make the best of it.
"[Games at the Bernabeu] are very important because the boost from the fans has helped us a lot.
"[On Wednesday] it will be the same, we need to play at our maximum level to try to change the tie. It's very complicated at the moment, but tomorrow we'll try to change that."
It was a sentiment echoed by midfield talisman Bellingham, who is no stranger to coming up big in key moments for club and country.
"I think there's an expectation of Real Madrid that when we get in these holes we can come back," he said.
"In England it's not as common but it does happen. The club have done it so many times, so the expectations are huge. I've heard it a million times since last week, I've seen a million videos – it's really motivating stuff.
"It's a night that's made for Real Madrid. A night that would go down in history but also something that people are familiar with around this part of this world.
"Hopefully we can add another special night. There's not a lot you can do for Real Madrid in the Champions League that hasn't already been done, so this is an opportunity for us to do something for the first time."
Madrid's defeat at the Emirates was the fifth time it has lost the first leg of a knockout stage tie in the European Cup/Champions League by 3+ goals, while it has been eliminated in the second leg in three of the previous four occasions (the exception being against Derby County in 1975-76, winning 6-5 on aggregate after a 1-4 defeat in the first leg).
"There wasn't one aspect of our game in the first leg that was up to the standard we expect of ourselves," Bellingham said.
"We know we can play a lot better and that's what we want to show tomorrow. It’s one thing to lose, but it's another thing not to learn."
However, it fancies the Gunners to reach the semi-finals, handing them a 92 percent chance of doing so.
Across the 53 games that Madrid has played against English sides in the European Cup/Champions League, it has managed to win by more than three goals on just two previous occasions: 5-1 v Derby in 1975-1976 (last 16) and 4-0 v Tottenham in 2010-2011 (quarter-final).
