Real Madrid vs Liverpool : UEFA Champions League Final

UEFA Champions League 2017/18 Final: Real Madrid vs Liverpool

Ukraine Prepare For The Big Night At The Kiev Olympic Stadium

The 2017/18 campaign of the UEFA Champions League was once again filled with action packed Football and provided entertainment at the highest level. Time and again, this competition proves its dominance in world football and helds its prestige at its peak.Every year, Europe's best football clubs take part in this competition and even this time, it didn't disappoint the footballing fans around the globe.

This campaign was filled with mesmerizing moments, a journey which makes this beautiful game a piece of art.This year, the Europe's premier club competition was a magical journey for both of these teams Real Madrid and Liverpool.The final will be held in Kyiv on Saturday May 26,2018 at 7pm BST.

History

Historic Real Madrid team of 1960s

                   
Real Madrid are undoubtedly the most successful club when it comes to European Football. They have won this competition an unprecedented 12 times, more than any club in the whole of Europe.
Their unrivalled success in Europe's elite club competition is the reason of the team's winning mentality and Galacticos. They have created a supremacy in both the incarnations in this competition, with 6 titles coming when it was known as European Cup and the other half dozen coming after UEFA rebranded it to Champions League. They have played in 15 finals previously and won 12 of them, which gives them tremendous experience and confidence. The current team is on the verge of claiming a 5th title in 4 years & 3rd consecutive title. The only longer run was 5 consecutive titles,set by their team of 1960s, which is still the benchmark of this competition's best.

Liverpool lifting the Champions League 2005/06

Liverpool, on the other hand are the most successful club in Britain for this competition. They have won this competition 5 times, including the famous victory over AC Milan through penalties in 2005. Steven Gerrard's side came from 3-0 down to 3-3 and lifted the trophy after winning the penalty shootout. They may not be as successful as their rivals in this competition, but they surely have the desire and can go for their 6th trophy and make history of their own. They have reached the final on 7 occasions previously and having won 5 of them will surely boost their confidence. Although, they have reached the final after a decade & are inexperienced than their rivals, they have shown in this season that they deserve to be in the final.

Team News, Tactical Strengths and Weaknesses

Predicted line-ups

Liverpool (4-3-3): Karius; Alexander-Arnold, Lovren, Van Dijk, Robertson; Milner, Henderson, Wijnaldum; Salah, Firmino, Mane

Real Madrid (4-3-3): Navas; Carvajal, Ramos, Varane, Marcelo; Kroos, Modric, Casemiro; Bale, Ronaldo, Benzema

What Liverpool need to do ?

Madrid push their fullbacks high and they almost play like wingers to provide width in the attack.

It leaves them exposed in the defense as there are big spaces left behind the Madrid fullbacks.

Liverpool usually defend in 4-4-2 with Mane dropping in the midfield while Salah and Firmino staying high up the pitch. Salah can exploit the space behind the defense which can really benefit Liverpool.

Madrid tries to create spaces for their maestros, Kroos & Modric, which are the brains of their attack and provide services to Ronaldo & other attackers. Liverpool should increase the distance between their defensive & midfield lines and push Kroos & Modric away from their dictating zone. That will limit Madrid's threat in front of goal.

What Real Madrid need to do ?

Liverpool has the deadliest attack in Europe this season, netting 29 times which is the record for most goals in a single season by the front three. Real Madrid need to neutralize this attacking flare in order to stop Liverpool. The solution for Madrid to reduce their attacking is by not allowing Casemiro to come high and hold his ground. This would give them  an extra man in defense which would be helpful.

Real Madrid have the style of hitting the teams on the counter. They are the best counter attacking team in the world. They need to hit Liverpool with pace as the Liverpool defence is not much experienced and likely to make mistakes. Bale has found goalscoring form just at the right time for Madrid, so giving him a start would leave Liverpool with nothing but dropping back, which allows more attack from Madrid.

Road to Glory

Both the teams have had different types of journey to reach to the final. Liverpool had slightly a longer run because they entered the competition through the play-offs. But since the start of the campaign, they have taken Europe by storm. They set many goalscoring records in their glorious path, that includes 46 goals in total, highest for any team in a single campaign, 29 goals shared between the front three, highest for a team in one campaign & many more. They have beaten Manchester City who were considered favourites, Roma who beat Messi's Barcelona & Porto. So they have surely proven why they deserve a place in the Final.

Real Madrid on the other hand have had many obstacles in their way right from the beginning of the campaign. They finished 2nd in the Group behind Tottenham. Even further, they came all the way by beating Neymar's PSG which were among the favourites, Italian champions Juventus and German champions Bayern. They surely did not have the same path but they had tremendous desire and experience to take them through to Kiev. Ronaldo is in scintillating form in this campaign, being the top scorer having already netted 15 times and also holds the record of the competition's top scorer in previous 5 consecutive seasons.

Previous Encounters

Both the teams are meeting for the sixth time in this competition. They previously met only once in the final in 1981, where Liverpool emerged victorious beating Madrid 1-0. In the last of their two meetings, Real Madrid have won both, claiming a 4-0 aggregate victory in the 2014/15 campaign.

Conclusion

The final will be a mouth-watering fixture and we will witness some excellent football. As both the teams are great attacking sides, the final would be a high-scoring one. This would also be one of the deciding factors for this year's Balon D'or which is the greatest individual price in football. Both Ronaldo & Salah would be eager to take their team through and make their case for the individual prize.