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Real Madrid vs Liverpool |
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2018 UEFA Champions League final, May 27 |
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Olimpiyskiy National Sports Complex, Kiev, Ukraine | ||
Real Madrid | Liverpool | |
3 | SCORE | 1 |
0 | First half | 0 |
3 | Second half | 1 |
Real Madrid will look to make history by winning a third straight Champions League crown as they take on Liverpool in Kiev. Join The Roar for live scores and coverage from 4:45am (AEST).
Real have beaten Atletico Madrid and Juventus in the last two finals of the famous tournament – beating the Italian giants 4-1 last year.
Now, their attention turns to the English surprise packet in Kiev. The Champions League has the potential to save a somewhat frustrating season for the Spanish giants, who finished third in La Liga, behind their fierce rivals Barcelona and Atletico.
While they were far from a distant third, Real struggled to get the job done throughout the season. They only lost six games, but ten draws across their 38 meant they were no chance of competing with Barcelona.
The Spanish giants will be glad they are at full strength for the final, with superstar Cristiano Ronaldo recovering from a slight niggle he picked up in training. Nonetheless, manager Zinedine Zidane has stated his star forward will be at ‘150 per cent’ for the final, putting fans minds at ease.
Of course, Ronaldo was the key man for Real Madrid during La Liga, scoring 26 times, with Karim Benzema his main help, ending the season with ten assists.
Real’s defence was a worry at times though and if Liverpool are to win, there will be a heap of reliance on Egyptian striker Mohamed Salah. He carried Liverpool during the English Premier League season, scoring on 32 occasions and making defences look silly.
To go with his goals, he also had ten assists, meaning he was involved in 42 of Liverpool’s 84 goals for the season – exactly half.
There is no disputing his value to Liverpool, but with the club winning just 21 of their 38 EPL games and finishing the season with draws against the likes of West Brom and Stoke, as well as a loss to Chelsea, it’s no small surprise they come into the final against Real as the underdogs.
Liverpool got the better of Roma in the semi-finals of the Champions League, running up seven goals across the two legs to win 7-6, while Real beat Bayern Munich 4-3 on aggregate.
Prediction
Real Madrid are favourites and with good reason. While Salah could come to the rescue for Liverpool, whether he gets any quality ball up front is another question altogether.
Real Madrid 2 – Liverpool 1.
Be sure to join The Roar for live coverage of the Champions League final from 4:45am (AEST) and don’t forget to add a comment in the section below.