According to reports, whispers of a comeback against Arsenal are heard in the corridors of Valdebebas—currently subdued but growing. Those near the players’ and coaching staff’s dressing rooms recall recent experiences at Santiago Bernabéu.

One doesn’t need to look far back to remember what happened at Real Madrid’s stadium. If we go back, it clearly traces to eleven months ago, when Joselu appeared to eliminate Bayern. But what no one forgets and considers the starting point is Sunday’s match against Alavés.

The message from the club and coaching staff to the players is: “There is no comeback without defeating Alavés.” This match is seen as the starting point for considering a potential comeback against Arsenal. These two matches are unrelated, but the morale needed for big tasks like defeating this English team depends entirely on staying alive in La Liga.

Carlo Ancelotti and his team, after analyzing the defeat at Emirates and acknowledging many mistakes—along with some bad luck (which favored Arsenal)—errors and carelessness that led to Arsenal’s first two goals, have regained confidence.

On Wednesday, Valdebebas was practically a graveyard, but now morale is returning to the team. Ancelotti’s work in Thursday and Friday’s training sessions has focused on making every player aware of what’s at stake against Alavés. Losing La Liga is not an option in Real Madrid’s mindset.

Florentino Perez, as usual every Friday, usually comes to Valdebebas for Real Madrid’s committee meeting. He often takes this opportunity to meet with Carlo Ancelotti, but this time, according to reports, he also visited the players. In this belief of a comeback, the players under the Italian coach’s guidance play a crucial role.

In similar situations, it’s often said that “Bernabéu must score first,” but this time, that motivation must come in Sunday’s match in the form of a victory against Alavés. After the match in Vitoria, the club’s messages to boost morale and turn Bernabéu into what it was against Paris Saint-Germain, City, or Bayern will be sent.

From Tuesday, videos, reminders, superstitions, Ancelotti’s woolen jacket, some teammates’ words, and most importantly, instilling sporting fear into all Arsenal players set to step onto Bernabéu’s grass will arrive. But for all this to make sense, the starting point is defeating Alavés, who are fighting for survival in La Liga and looking to take points from Real Madrid.