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Menacing Madrid in fine fettle

Real Madrid CF have been in blistering form since the new year but their one setback - a 6-1 defeat by Real Zaragoza - gives inconsistent Arsenal FC hope.

Real Madrid CF approach their Round of 16 tie against Arsenal FC in blistering form after an emphatic weekend victory stretched their winning league run to six games. A 6-1 Copa del Rey defeat at Real Zaragoza gives some hope to the Premiership outfit, whose own inconsistent form has brought them a 7-0 win amidst a run of five defeats in nine games.

Real Madrid CF 3-0 Deportivo Alavés
After ending the group stage with a disappointing 2-1 defeat at Olympiacos CFP, Madrid ambled towards the winter break in Spain with just four points from games against Málaga CF, CA Osasuna and Real Zaragoza. A goalless draw in their return to Primera División action against Villarreal CF on 8 January did not bode well, but boosted by the January arrivals of Cicinho and Antonio Cassano, Juan Ramón López Caro's players have been in blistering form since.

Zinédine Zidane scored a hat-trick to inspire them to a 4-2 victory at home to Sevilla FC, sparking an as-yet-unbroken sequence of six consecutive Primera División victories. The likes of RCD Espanyol and Athletic Club Bilbao have discovered the team in irrepressible form as they closed the gap on faltering league leaders FC Barcelona. It looked like being a two-pronged domestic campaign as wins against Real Betis Balompié and Bilbao also took them into the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey, but their hopes were ended in comprehensive fashion against Zaragoza as Diego Milito helped himself to four goals in a 6-1 first-leg win.

Although they just came up short, Madrid did triumph 4-0 in the return and almost matched that score on Saturday as they swept aside Alavés. Guti, Robinho and Cicinho were all on target, the latter not long after he had come on as a substitute for David Beckham. Another replacement, Cassano, set him up for that goal but it was the 66th-minute appearance of captain Raúl González after three months out that brought the biggest cheer at the Santiago Bernabéu. López Caro, who rested Jonathan Woodgate, Zidane and Roberto Carlos, said: "I'm satisfied with the professionalism the players demonstrated tonight, and Raúl's return really gives us hope."

Players registered: Cicinho, Antonio Cassano, David Iglesias
Players out: Jordi Codina, David Barral, Álvaro Negredo

Arsenal FC
Arsenal have endured an uncharacteristically wretched time since Matchday 6, where a goalless draw against AFC Ajax rounded off their group stage campaign at Highbury. Manager Arsène Wenger could scarcely have imagined that by the time he led his side back into Europe against Madrid, the UEFA Champions League would be their only remaining hope of silverware this season.

A shortage of available defenders contributed to a string of defeats which left them out of both domestic cup competitions, the Premiership title race and looking doubtful qualifiers for next season's UEFA Champions League. Wenger described one particularly miserable sequence, where his team were defeated by Everton FC, Wigan Athletic FC, and Bolton Wanderers FC in rapid succession, as the "worst week" he had endured as Arsenal manager. That statement came before his side lost 3-2 at home to West Ham United FC in the next match in which key defender Sol Campbell was substituted at half-time and promptly left Highbury. The English international has not featured since and will miss the Madrid game with an ankle injury.

Occasional glimpses of a more vintage Arsenal were witnessed in 4-0 and 7-0 defeats of Portsmouth FC and Middlesbrough FC respectively, while the January signings of Vassiriki Diaby and Theo Walcott offer much promise for the future. However, of the 17 matches Arsenal played since that Ajax draw, only six resulted in victories and Wenger admitted: "At the moment we are struggling for confidence and that affects the senior players as well as the younger ones."

Players registered: Vassiriki Diaby, Theo Walcott
Players out: Ryan Garry, Patrick Cregg, Quincy Owusu-Abeyie