Two of the most successful teams in the history of the Champions League will meet again this weekend for the third time in a final of the prestigious tournament.
13-time winners Real Madrid will take on six-time Champions Liverpool at the Stade de France in Paris on Saturday night hoping to claim the biggest prize in club football and to declare themselves Champions of Europe once again.
Real last achieved the feat back in 2018, when they took on Liverpool in Kyiv and emerged as 3-1 victors. That was Loris Karius’ last game for the Reds as the German goalkeeper committed two huge mistakes, handing two goals to the Spanish side, alongside a spectacular Gareth Bale overhead kick and a Sadio Mane consolation for the Reds to hand them the win.
A year later, Liverpool were back in the final where they faced Tottenham in Madrid and emerged with a 2-0 win thanks to a penalty from Mo Salah and a late strike from Divock Origi.
However, Liverpool and Real Madrid’s first clash in this competition came back in 1981 in the final of what was then the European Cup. That game too was played in Paris, this time at the Parc des Princes stadium and it was Alan Kennedy who gave Liverpool the 1-0 win as he scored a late goal to win the game.
It promises to be a hugely exciting game between the two teams on Saturday and once again bet365 Sport has a massive range of markets available to bet on both pre-game and also when it is in progress through the site’s excellent In Play betting service.
Liverpool V Real Madrid – Head To Head History
- May 1981 – Champions League Final – Liverpool 1-0 Real Madrid
- Feb 2009 – Champions League R16 – Real Madrid 0-1 Liverpool
- Mar 2009 – Champions League R16 – Liverpool 4-0 Real Madrid
- Oct 2014 – Champions League Grp – Liverpool 0-3 Real Madrid
- Nov 2014 – Champions League Grp – Real Madrid 1-0 Liverpool
- May 2018 – Champions League Final – Liverpool 1-3 Real Madrid
- Apr 2021 – Champions League QF – Real Madrid 3-1 Liverpool
- Apr 2021 – Champions League QF – Liverpool 0-0 Real Madrid
The first three games between these two teams saw Liverpool win all three without conceding a goal, but then Real won the next four, including a quarterfinal tie in this competition last year when they knocked the Reds out following a 3-1 win at home and then a 0-0 draw at Anfield.
That goalless draw was the last game between the two teams, all of which have taken place in the Champions League, however it should be noted that Liverpool were without their three first choice centre backs for that tie between the teams last season.
Champions League Honours
Real Madrid are the most successful team in the Champions League history. They have won the trophy on 13 occasions (1956 to 1960, 1966, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018) and finished as a runner up in three other finals (1962, 1964, 1981).
Liverpool have won the final six times (1977, 1978, 1981, 1984, 2005, 2019) and been beaten finalists on three occasions (1985, 2007 and 2018). This ranks them joint third in terms of tournament wins behind Real, AC Milan (7 wins) and level with Bayern Munich on 6 wins apiece.
Links Between The Clubs
There are a number of links between the two clubs including players and managers that have been at both clubs.
Rafa Benitez has managed both clubs in his career, while John Toshack was a player at Liverpool and then went on to a successful managerial career in Spain where he also managed Real Madrid.
Fabinho was at Real Madrid early in his career, although he barely played for the first team before moving to AS Monaco from where he moved on to Liverpool.
Other stars to have played for both teams include Jerzy Dudek, Xabi Alonso, Michael Owen, Fernando Morientes, Alvaro Arbeloa, Steve McManaman, Nicolas Anelka, Nuri Sahin and Antonio Nunez.
Latest Team News
Liverpool
Jurgen Klopp has injury concerns over two key midfielders for Saturday’s game with Fabinho recovering from a hamstring injury and Thiago also recovering from a lower foot injury sustained in the final game of the season against Wolves.
Fabinho is expected to be fit, but Thiago’s chances are rated at around 50/50 for the game, with the Spaniard undergoing intensive treatment in the days leading up to the game to try and get him fit.
Divock Origi will be absent due to a hamstring injury and while Liverpool’s back five and front three look set, it will be the three in midfield that Jurgen Klopp will be most anxious about heading towards Saturday’s game.
If Thiago and Fabinho are fully recovered, both will likely start, but it is not in Klopp’s nature to play two players with fitness worries, in which case one, or both, may only be fit enough to play from the bench.
However, both Mo Salah and Virgil Van Dijk should be fit after knocks sustained in the FA Cup Final.
Predicted Liverpool Team – (4-3-3) – Allison, Alexander-Arnold, Robertson, Van Dijk, Matip, Fabinho, Henderson, Keita, Diaz, Mane, Salah.
Real Madrid
Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti has a relatively full-strength squad to pick from for the game, with his only injury concern, David Alaba, expected to be declared fit for the game.
Alaba limped out of the semi-final first leg tie with Manchester City at half time with an adductor injury and has not played since, but he is expected to return to full training this week ahead of the game.
The other key selection area for Madrid looks to be in attack with a spot in the side alongside Benzema and Vinicius Junior up for grabs.
Ancelotti has alternated between Valverde and Rodrygo for this role in recent times but reports from Spain suggest that Belgium international Eden Hazard could be in line for a shock recall to the team after impressing in the last game against Cadiz and in training.
That however, may just be a smokescreen and I believe Hazard will likely start from the bench.
Other than that, this very settled Real Madrid team likely picks itself for the final.
Predicted Real Madrid Team – (4-3-3) – Courtois, Carvajal, Mendy, Eder Militao, Alaba, Casemiro, Kroos, Modric, Benzema, Vinicius Jr., Valverde
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What Are Our Tips For The Champions League Final?
So how do we see the game going on Saturday? Well, there’s no doubt that Real Madrid have had luck on their side in all three of their knockout games so far, so much so you do wonder if their name is not already on the trophy.
However, I do feel Liverpool are the better team and while I would be more confident if Thiago was fully fit, I still feel the Reds have too much for Real to cope with, especially in a one-off game.
The Spanish champions have shown real fragility in games at times and have relied on stunning comebacks, Benzema’s brilliance and opponents unravelling to get through, and I don’t know how many times you can go to the well and roll the dice and keep coming up trumps like that.
So for me, Liverpool win this and at even money for the win, they look a solid bet. I’d go for a 2-0 Liverpool win, which is a 10-1 shot and Sadio Mane to score at any time at 7/4.
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