So far, and with the Club World Cup looming, Real Madrid has already played 52 matches this season. However, with the comeback against Arsenal still fresh in their minds, tonight kicks off a decisive phase in their calendar where they’ll fight to survive in all three competitions (LaLiga, Copa del Rey, and Champions League) with six key matches in less than a month.

A Brutal Schedule for Real Madrid

The mountain Real Madrid must climb starts tonight with the second leg of the Champions League quarterfinals, where they need to score three goals to level the tie at the Santiago Bernabéu and try to reach the semifinals. This competitive standard has always been set by Carlo Ancelotti during both of his spells on the Real Madrid bench.

Without a doubt, what happens tonight will be a turning point in Real Madrid’s season. And with no time to recover, they’ll have to take on two of the toughest remaining fixtures in LaLiga. First, they’ll host Athletic Club at the Santiago Bernabéu, a team they couldn’t beat in the first half of the season, and then they’ll visit a gritty Getafe side that has already taken points off teams like FC Barcelona and Atlético de Madrid.

Flashbacks to the 2018/19 Season for Real Madrid

The match against Getafe has been moved forward a few days due to the Copa del Rey final against Barcelona on April 26. It’ll be their third showdown of the season… and Real Madrid was convincingly beaten in the previous two. So another loss could be devastating, especially considering they’ll visit Montjuïc two weeks later in a crucial clash that could decide the new LaLiga champion. Before that, though, they’ll host Celta at the Santiago Bernabéu.

The situation Real Madrid is facing in the coming weeks is strikingly similar to what they went through in the 2018/19 season, when within just two weeks they were knocked out of the Copa del Rey by Barcelona, eliminated from the Champions League by Ajax, and fell out of the title race in LaLiga—again, against Barcelona. Time will tell if history repeats itself. One thing’s for sure: it’s ‘all or nothing’ for Real Madrid.