It is the English league against the Spanish one as the European Championship begins this week.
In England's corner are the domestic title rivals of both Manchester City and Liverpool.
Will we see another English final? Can the team upset the odds? Is Carlo Ancelotti going to win his fourth European Cup? The final four of Europe's premier club competition are the subject of major narratives.
The top two teams in the league have dominated this season and are going toe-to-toe for every trophy.
The English teams are favorites to win their respective semi-finals and continue their dominance of the European competition.
The last five seasons have seen the Premier League provide five of the past eight finalist, with two of the past three being all English affairs.
This is familiar territory for the city. They lost to Real Madrid in the last game of the season, before beating Spurs to win the trophy a year later.
They are hoping that the league will be part of a historic quadruple. They have the Carabao Cup in their possession, are through to the FA Cup final, and trail City by a single point with five games remaining.
City are hoping to follow in the footsteps of the Reds in Europe as they attempt to make up for their heartbreaking loss to the Blues in last year's final.
They have been wildly successful domestically, but the obsession of big-spending City has become something of an obsession under their boss, who has won it twice before.
| Total | Country | Clubs |
| 59 | Spain | Real Madrid 31, Barcelona 16, Atletico Madrid 6, Valencia 2, Villarreal 2, Deportivo La Coruna 1, Real Sociedad 1 |
| 46 | England | Liverpool 12, Man Utd 12, Chelsea 8, Leeds 3, Man City 3, Arsenal 2, Nottingham Forest 2, Tottenham 2, Aston Villa 1, Derby 1 |
| 35 | Italy | Juventus 12, AC Milan 12, Inter Milan 8, Roma 2, Fiorentina 1 |
You might wonder what all the fuss was about if you didn't know anything about Unai Emery's disappointing spell as the boss of the Gunners or his struggles in Europe prior to that.
The 50-year-old has a reputation in his native Spain for his work with Valencia, Sevilla and now Villarreal.
He earned the title of cup king after the second of those three, leading them to three successive Europa League titles. He added a fourth victory in the competition with his current club last season.
The right man is doing a great job, according to Kristof Terreur. He builds teams, so you won't name star players.
People laugh at him because of what happens at the two teams, but maybe he didn't get enough time. He is a great coach.
The Yellow Submarine have been responsible for sinking two of Europe's giants this season, beating two-time European champion Juventus in the last 16 and six-time winners Bayern in the quarter-finals.
The latest European giant to be looked at isLiverpool.
Villarreal are from a village of 50,000 people and have the fourth biggest wage in Spain. They are succeeding.
You don't get there by chance. Yes, there is a chance.
Real Madrid were unbeatable in Europe between the years of 2015-16 and 2017-18, with a squad full of players at the top of their game.
The current side, managed by Carlo Ancelotti, are not of the same caliber, but do still have some of the stars of that era and know how to win games of football.
In the past two rounds, Real have looked down and out only for one of their superstars to summon something from nowhere and turn their fortunes around.
In the last 16 it was Benzema who scored three times in the second half to turn a 2-0 deficit into a 3-2 win. Luka Modric set up Rodrygo to level in the last 10 minutes of the tie, before Benzema got the winner in the extra time.
| Season | Stage reached |
| 2013-14 | Final (beat Atletico Madrid 4-1) |
| 2014-15 | Semi-finals (lost 3-2 on agg to Juventus) |
| 2021-22 | Semi-finals (playing Manchester City) |
The jury is still out on the degree of positive influence that Carlo Ancelotti has had on Real Madrid's run to the last four.
If you keep talking about magic nights, miracles, and huge turnarounds, it is because your gameplan didn't work.
Real Madrid perform miracles because they have a lot of quality. It is.
One of only three managers to have won the European Cup/Champions League three times, and one of only two to have won 75% of their games in charge of Real Madrid, Carlo Ancelotti is the best win percentage of any manager with at least 20 games for a single club.
This will be the club's 31st semi-final in the European competition, and they are going for a 17th victory.
Mina Rzouki, an Italian football journalist, said she doesn't think you can reach the semi-finals so many times.
Madrid are a team that knows how to win. Everyone who wins deserves to win.
Tactical adjustments were made when they were dead in the water. It isn't despite the man. The difference between this year and last is the man.
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