The entire football world will be glued to their screens on Saturday, May 28 2022 as the curtain raises on the UEFA Champions League final.
This year’s final will be contested by two of the best teams in the world as Liverpool and Real Madrid lock horns. This would be the third time both teams would meet in the UCL final after the 1981 final where Liverpool won 1-0 and the 2018 final where Real Madrid won 3-1.
For Liverpool, it’s been a smooth ride to the final. After a flawless group campaign, winning all 6 games and then a comfortable knockout stage where they pushed all three of Inter Milan, Benfica and Villareal to the side, the English side look ready for another go at club football’s most coveted trophy.
However, for Real Madrid, it’s been a journey filled with ups and downs. From losing to Moldovan football club, Sheriff Tiraspol in the group stage to coming up on top against PSG, Chelsea and Manchester City in the knockout rounds. Two of those ties requiring a miraculous second leg effort to get the Spanish champions through.
However, a champions league final is a clean slate. All that’s happened in the past doesn’t matter anymore, it’s all about what happens tomorrow night.
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In the 2018 final, Liverpool lost star forward Mohammed Salah to injury after the Egyptian dislocated his shoulder following a tussle with then Real Madrid captain, Sergio Ramos. That moment looked at as one of the defining moments in the game. A petition calling on UEFA and FIFA to punish Ramos for the challenge received 400,000 signatures within two days.
Liverpool would go on to lose the game 3-1 following two howlers from former Liverpool goalkeeper Loris Karius. That title was Madrid’s 13th (a Champions League record) and their fourth in five years. So for the team from Merseyside, this feels like a revenge game.
So what do the stats say?
In UEFA Champions League history, both teams have faced each other a total of 8 times with Madrid winning 4 and Liverpool winning 3, there’s only been 1 draw between both teams. Real Madrid have scored 10 goals against them while Liverpool have 8 goals against the team from Spain in those games so a scoreless affair can be ruled out in this tie.
In this season’s competition, Liverpool and Real Madrid have scored a similar amount of goals. With 30 goals for the English side and 28 goals for the Spanish giants. Meanwhile, the Reds have conceded 13 goals to Real Madrid’s 14.
Clearly the statistics haven’t made it any easier in predicting who might win this final. It has however given us a final to look forward to.
The UEFA Champions League final will hold at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, France. Kick off time is 8:00 pm.
