Tottenham Hotspur vs Liverpool

UEFA Champions League Final – Madrid

Saturday 1st June – 20:00 UK Time

It’s the second all-English European final of the week as Tottenham take on Liverpool in the UEFA Champions League Final at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid.

Tottenham – Route to the Final

Tottenham’s Champions League campaign got off to the worst possible start, with defeats to Inter and Barcelona in their first two matches.

They stopped the rot with a draw away to PSV, before beating the Dutch side to record their first win of the competition. That was followed by what proved to be a crucial 1-0 home victory over Inter, as the sides finished level on eight points at the end of the group stage and head to head records would decide who got the runner up position.

A clean sheet in that second win meant that Spurs went through on away goals, having lost 2-1 away to the Italian side.

A routine 4-0 aggregate victory over Borussia Dortmund set up an all-English Quarter Final against Manchester City. The side from Manchester went into the tie as favourites, but Tottenham picked up a vital 1-0 home win before losing 4-3 away. That again meant the London side would advance thanks to the away goal rule.

It was away goals that saw them into the Final as well, after a miraculous second leg comeback against Ajax in the Semi Final. Having lost 1-0 at home in the first leg, Tottenham were trailing 2-0 after just 35 minutes of the return. That meant a 3-0 aggregate deficit. But, Spurs weren’t to be denied and a 96th minute winner secured Lucas Moura’s hat-trick and a 3-2 victory on the night.

Liverpool – Route to the Final

Whatever happens in this tournament finale, Liverpool’s 2018/19 Champions League campaign will be remembered for what is perhaps the greatest comeback in the history of the competition.

Having lost 3-0 away to Barcelona in the first leg of the Semi Final, the English side knew they had a mountain to climb in the return match. But, overcome that mountain is exactly what they did. A brace apiece from Divock Origi and Georginio Wijnaldum gave Liverpool a 4-0 victory to make it through to the final.

Before that epic last four encounter, Liverpool had needed luck to even get through the group stage. Having lost all three of their away games they found themselves level on nine points with Napoli at the climax of the group stage. With the head to head scores level on 1-1, it went down to overall group goals scored and Liverpool went through thanks to a 9-7 advantage.

They picked up their first away win of the tournament in the second leg of the last 16 at Bayern Munich, with a 3-1 victory putting them through after a 0-0 home draw in the first leg. A 6-1 aggregate victory over Porto followed, to set up that epic Semi Final match with Barcelona.

Head to Head

Liverpool have a clear advantage with regards head to head statistics, having won nine of the last fourteen meetings including the last two this season. Tottenham’s only win in that time came at home in October 2017.

The only previous meeting in European competition came all the way back in April 1973, when Liverpool won the UEFA Cup Semi Final on away goals after a 1-0 home win and 2-1 away defeat.

Team News

Tottenham have been boosted by the news that top scorer Harry Kane has declared himself fit to play some part in the final, having missed the last nine games of the season through injury. A lack of match fitness may prevent the England striker starting the match, but he should at least make the bench.

Jan Vertonghen has also confirmed he will be fit, having left the stadium on crutches following the Semi Final second leg, and Dele Alli will also be fit to play.

Naby Keita is Liverpool’s only absentee of note, after the midfielder failed to recover from a muscle strain picked up in the first leg of the Semi Final.

But, if Keita’s absence is a blow, Liverpool will be boosted by the return of Roberto Firminho. The Brazilian forward has missed the last four matches following a groin injury but has come through several training sessions unscathed and will be available for selection.

Betting Odds

Liverpool are the obvious favourites for this match. They have the better head to head record, finished higher than Tottenham in the Premier League, and knocked out the mighty Barcelona in the previous round.

Betfair have Liverpool priced at 10/11 to win the match after 90 minutes, and 8/15 to lift the trophy. Tottenham are priced at 10/3 to win and 6/4 to lift the trophy, while the draw is priced at 13/5.

Both teams have scored in the last four meetings, and seven of the last eight meetings, so there’s a strong possibility both sides find the net here. Both Teams to Score is priced at 8/11.

There have also been seventeen goals scored in the last meetings, so Over 2.5 Goals could be a good bet at odds of 9/10.