Will Real Madrid And Ronaldo Make It Three Out Of Three In The Champions League Final Against Liverpool?

Will Real Madrid And Ronaldo Make It Three Out Of Three In The Champions League Final Against Liverpool?
16:31, 26 May 2018

Cancelled flights, inflated hotel prices, awkward travel arrangements, and returned tickets. The Champions League final between Real Madrid and Liverpool has got off to a troublesome start, but with kick-off drawing ever closer the fans of both sides will be determined to enjoy the game, wherever they end up watching it.

Though these unsavoury experiences around travel, tickets, and accommodation are far from ideal, and is something UEFA may need to look at ahead of future finals, much of this will become part of the stories fans tell to future generations or, for the lucky ones who made it to the Ukrainian capital, a story to tell when they return home.

Even though it shouldn’t be as difficult, or as expensive as it evidently is, the journey will become part of this football match, and for many the game began when they left their homes and headed east.

For Liverpool the journey began in May 2017, when a win at home to Middlesbrough which secured fourth place in the Premier League in the final game of the 2016/17 season. Georginio Wijnaldum scored in first half injury time, before strikes from Philippe Coutinho and Adam Lallana eased the nerves.

Hoffenheim were a tough draw in the qualifying playoff, but Liverpool dispatched them with apparent ease. Three goals in ten second-leg minutes would set the tone for their Champions League campaign, and there were similar goal rushes as they approached the latter stages of the campaign against Manchester City and Roma.

Real Madrid should pose a much tougher test, with the experience of Sergio Ramos in defence, the cat-like reflexes of Keylor Navas between the posts, and the more press-resistant midfield play of Luca Modric, Toni Kroos, and Isco.

Their journey was much more straightforward, qualifying directly for the group stages having won La Liga the previous season.

The Spaniards boast a team of stars, and though they do have some weaknesses at the back they are usually good at hiding them, but if there is a team who can expose them, it’s Liverpool.

For Zinedine Zidane’s side, a Champions League final is business as usual. Los Blancos players probably take a look at the list of venues for future finals to see where they will be playing their final game each season, such is their recent dominance on the continent.

Real Madrid missed out on La Liga and Spanish Cup titles this time around, and though their name has been etched on a World Club Cup and a couple of Supercups, the campaign will feel like a disappointment if they don’t lift Ol' Big Ears in Kyiv.

And they will be expecting to. When they take to the pitch late on Saturday night, Real will have appeared in four of the past five finals. They won the three others they were involved in, with a break in 2015 when Barcelona took the title, but a win this year will make it three in a row. The last club to win three consecutive European Cups were Bayern Munich between 1974 and 1976, and no side has done so in the Champions League era.

Liverpool, on the other hand, have reached two finals in two European campaigns under Jurgen Klopp, losing the Europa League final to Seville in 2016. They will be looking to go one better in the premier competition played on a much bigger stage.

Manager musings

Zinedine Zidane

"People can say what they like, but we are not favourites, nor are Liverpool. As always in a final it is 50-50. We need to play very well to win the game and inside the dressing room we know we are not favourites.

“We’re so delighted to be here for another CL final. We’re not going to live this moment again. It’ll stay in the past. Tomorrow will never be repeated so we have to make the most of it. We might be a bit under pressure, but that’s life.

"[Ronaldo is] fine. If he is just 140 percent it's no problem," added Zidane when asked if Ronaldo was 150 percent fit.

"We'll have our final training session today and it is the last game of the season. You have to know something, he lives for games like this. We will see that tomorrow."

Jurgen Klopp

“Experience is very important, and I am pretty sure in the seconds before the game Real Madrid will be more confident than we are, but it’s not a problem because a game does not end in that second, it only starts.

“We have had two weeks to prepare. Everything is clear when you make the analysis and you see Real Madrid playing in different games against other teams and you think, ‘wow, they are really strong’, but they never played us. That’s another part of the truth.

“We are Liverpool, not only a really good football team, but we have evolved as well. This club has in its DNA that they can really go for the big things. Nobody expected us to be here. But we are here. Because we are Liverpool.

“Because we had the games we had in the Champions League, the most exceptional run to the final with the most goals. I cannot believe it is true, but it is. We scored the most goals, we had exceptional results away, and at home.

“We cannot try to fight on their level but tactics in football are there to bring a better opponent to your level, and when they’re there, then you can beat them. It’s hard to do but I think it’s worth a try.”

Predicted lineups

Real Madrid: Navas; Carvajal, Varane, Ramos, Marcelo; Casemiro; Kroos, Modric; Isco; Benzema, Ronaldo.

Liverpool: Karius; Alexander-Arnold, Lovren, Van Dijk, Robertson; Henderson, Milner, Wijnaldum; Salah, Firmino, Mane.

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