Training on Thursday morning saw Real Madrid players' minds dominated by one game: Barcelona's comeback win over Paris Saint-Germain, and the officiating that aided it.
While Los Blancos' players were confident that their LaLiga rivals were now returned to the podium of genuine contenders for the crown, along with Juventus, Bayern Munich, and themselves, there was a worry that such incidents took place under the eye of an elite official.
Deniz Aytekin's showing seemed to Real to be the opposite of what UEFA had affirmed would be happening at the start of the season and is chiefly a worry going forward in the competition.
However, Barcelona's presence in the quarter-finals is expected to help drain the Catalans' batteries with the run-in hotting up and the capital side's confidence in Zinedine Zidane's rotation policy has them believing that they possess the edge in this regard.
On the other hand, there is the realisation that Luis Enrique has his charges firing on all cylinders and that their form in LaLiga could mirror the immeasurable comeback witnessed on Wednesday night.
What's for certain is that the last-eight Champions League fixtures will coincide with a tough run of games for Real; the first leg is due just days after they host Atletico Madrid and the deciding Clasico of the campaign will occur on the other side of the return leg.
