The 2021/22 UEFA Champions League season ends this Saturday with Liverpool facing Real Madrid in Paris.
Venue: Stade de France (Paris – Saint-Denis)
Key Statistics
Liverpool are unbeaten in 18 competitive matches (15 wins and three draws).
Five of their last six fixtures featured both teams scoring.
They have five clean sheets from their last ten games.
The Reds have scored 2+ goals in 16 of their past 20 matches
Real Madrid have scored 2+ goals in seven of their last 10 away matches.
Madrid’s Karim Benzema has netted 15 UCL goals this term, including one after the 80th minute in each of his last three appearances, and needs two more to equal Cristiano Ronaldo’s record of 17 in 2013/14.
Head to head
Real Madrid have not lost to Liverpool since 2009, winning four of the five meetings between them since that time.
Latest performances in all competitions
Liverpool: W-W-W-W-D
Real Madrid: D-D-W-L-W
Liverpool
Liverpool will look to end what has been a historic season on a high note when they run out on the turf of the Stade de France this Saturday in the Champions League final.
The Reds who have become somewhat of a European force under Jurgen Klopp are playing their third UEFA Champions League final under Klopp and are also looking to win their seventh European title against a Madrid team that beat them in 2018.
But unlike the 2018 heartbreak in Kyiv, Jurgen Klopp’s men come into this fixture as a formidable force, having won two trophies already this season and narrowly missing the PL title by one point.
They are also unbeaten in their last 18 competitive games, winning 15 times in that period. And so, they will fancy their chances of winning this game and end a run of five games without a win against Madrid.
Klopp will also be boosted by the return to fitness of defender Virgil van Dijk and midfielder Fabinho. The imminent return of Thiago Alcântara will also be a boost for the German who had only an unfit Adam Lallana to call on when Mohamed Salah was injured in the 2018 final.
Possible Liverpool starting line-up
Alisson Becker; Trent Alexander-Arnold, Joel Matip, Virgil van Dijk, Andy Robertson; Thiago Alcantara, Fabinho, Jordan Henderson; Luis Diaz, Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane.
Injured: Divock Origi
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Real Madrid
Meanwhile, European record titleholders Real Madrid will look to win their 14th UEFA Champions League title when they face Liverpool on Saturday.
The Spanish giants are the undisputed heavyweights of Europe and also have among their rank a manager who has won the UCL title on three occasions. The Italian tactician Ancelotti is one of only three managers to have won the UEFA Champions League three times (twice with AC Milan and once with Real Madrid), and the first and only one to have managed teams in five finals.
He comes into this tie with a respectable record against Jurgen Klopp and will fancy his side’s chances in this game, especially when considering that they have enjoyed the most rest, having not played since Friday.
Los Blancos, who sealed the La Liga title almost a month ago, have been playing mostly with their second-stringed side in the league recently, resulting in them winning just one of their last four games.
But that will be of little importance for them as they have won all their important games this season, including beating Manchester City 6-5 on aggregate in the last round.
Possible Real Madrid starting line-up
Thibaut Courtois; Dani Carvajal, Eder Militao, David Alaba, Ferland Mendy; Luka Modric, Toni Kroos, Casemiro; Federico Valverde , Vinicius Junior, Karim Benzema.
Injured: None
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Prediction
Real Madrid 1-2 Liverpool
