Real Madrid this season will never be the same as Real Madrid a few seasons ago. Real Madrid's strength and long history in the Champions League will not always be able to make other players' mental collapse, in fact they no longer have players who are as scary as before.
I don't know which player is most respected by his opponents in the Real Madrid squad apart from Modric and Toni Kroos at the moment. Almost all the other players are young players, they are unstable even though so far the team's overall performance has been good. Without Kroos and Modric, I think Real Madrid is no longer a scary team even though they have a long history in the Champions League.
I agree with you, even though Real Madrid has a good history in the EPL competition, that doesn't mean they another club need to be afraid, because we know that ups and downs in performance will definitely happen to a club, including Madrid. Modric and Kroos are two veteran names who maintain the transition between ages in the Madrid squad, both of whom are symbols of Madrid's success in previous seasons. However, they are no longer young, Madrid still needs both of them because of their experience and leadership on and off the field. For playing minutes, both of them have received a reduced share from Ancelotti this season.
It is very appropriate that Real Madrid is the team that its opponents in the UCL league must avoid and are the ones that are most feared, the reason is that as everyone knows, Real Madrid is the king of Europe, especially in the UCL event. It is true that the influence of players also exists, but make no mistake, even though currently Real Madrid is filled with young players, every time a player wears a Real Madrid jersey, their mentality will be formed by themselves because of the big name of a team like Real Madrid.
Despite the many facts and the fact that Real Madrid is too strong to beat in the UCL, on the other hand, Real Madrid never underestimates its opponents. This is what I saw at Real Madrid.
Talking about team mentality, there is no doubt when mentioning the name Real Madrid. A club that is one step closer to winning trophies in all the competitions it participates in, and this season as well. Even though Ancelotti squad is dominated by young players in almost every line, I don't think this will change Madrid status on the list of favorites this season.