Real Madrid and Liverpool, two legends of European football, face each other again in a Champions League final, the third between the two in the history of the largest continental club tournament. Never before have the same teams crossed paths three times in a final, and this Champions League final will untie the balance between the two, with a victory for the English in 1981 and that of the Spanish in 2018.
The two teams will put talented players on the pitch in Paris. But, Which one is better in the individual confrontation, position by position? With the possible starting elevens on the table, and from a selection of key game variables at each position on the pitch, we can compare the respective goalkeepers, defenders, midfielders and forwards of Carlo Ancelotti and Jürgen Klopp, with statistics that take into account the performance of each player in this Champions League season.
‘Spoiler’ alert: although the stars of Real Madrid and Liverpool shine with their own light, there is a lot of equality on paper in this final. Later, the football they display will dictate sentence.
Courtois / Alisson
The figures are eloquent. No goalkeeper in this Champions League has had to make more saves (50) nor has he been more efficient (77.8%) than Thibaut Courtois. Foundation and barrier of his team when he has needed him most. Opposite, a much less demanded goalkeeper, Alisson, who has conceded one less goal than the Belgian.
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Carvajal / Alexander-Arnold
Despite an irregular season due to injuries, Dani Carvajal arrives at this final like a shot. His contribution in attack and his experience in defense will be key. On the right side of Liverpool, a player with similar defensive performances and with a lot of participation in the attack (he has scored two goals in previous games). Young but very experienced, at 23, Trent Alexander-Arnold, a phenomenon in his position, could play his third Champions League final.
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Militao / Konaté
Real Madrid will need the best Militao, a player who recovers many balls but who must be vigilant to avoid being overtaken. With fewer minutes in tow and two goals in his bag, Konaté, another young center-back in the ‘red’ defense, has similar numbers in his duels and the quality of his passes.
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Alaba / Van Dijk
Virgil van Dijk is one of the best centre-backs in the world. He is Liverpool’s main defensive argument, an insurance shot. He’s almost unassailable over the top and very hard to beat one-on-one. Despite his height, he does not stand out as a header scorer. In front, Alaba, a versatile player used this season basically as a central defender, has worse numbers as a defender, but in return he can add to the attack and has a goal: this year, against Sheriff Tiraspol in the group stage.
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Mendy / Robertson
Maximum equality in the figures of the presumed headlines of the left side. Two fast players who assist to score (three assists each). Although the Scotsman Robertson has put four times more crosses than Mendy, the Frenchman secures more passes. In the defensive section, the madridista has seen more yellow cards.
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Casemiro / Fabinho
Brazilian duel in the machine room of Real Madrid and Liverpool. Casemiro, starter for all his coaches, has been substituted in half the games. For his part, Fabinho has accelerated to recover from a muscle injury and opt for the usual ownership. Two born recoverers, they are the ones who make the most entries in their teams. Of the two, Fabinho has intervened more in attack, and has scored a goal, the one that annulled Villarreal’s comeback in the semi-final.
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Kroos / Henderson
Toni Kroos is called to be the metronome of Madrid’s offensive game. Whether the Englishman Jordan Henderson starts or Naby Keïta finally starts for Liverpool, the German surpasses both in the facets of organizational and attacking play: more success in passing, both as a team and in the opposite field, greater proportion of duels won and generates more scoring chances.
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Modric / Thiago
Duel of artists in midfield, if Thiago Alcántara’s injury a few days ago allows him to be on the pitch in the final. The most important opportunities can come from the feet of Luka Modric and the Spanish player. Modric has played many more minutes and has generated a torrent of chances and up to four goal assists. A prodigal player in flashes, the commitment of the Spanish international from Liverpool cannot be left aside, who adds more recoveries than the Croatian with less playing time.
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Benzema / Salah
Major words in the scorers. Karim Benzema has scored 15 goals this season in the Champions League, two shy of his former teammate Cristiano Ronaldo’s record in a single season. Key in all the comebacks that have taken Real Madrid to the final (he has scored 15 goals, well above the expected goals due to the conditions in which he shot on goal), he was the one who opened the scoring in the previous final against Liverpool, in 2018. The one who shoots the most, the one who finishes the most and the one who scores the most, a decisive player.
Opposite, Mohamed Salah, with more extreme characteristics, is Liverpool’s top scorer in the Champions League and Klopp’s main ally in this section. Not only for being the top scorer ‘red’ this year in the Champions League, but because he has scored 33 goals in this tournament since the German coach trained him, in addition to giving 11 assists to his teammates.
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Vinicius / Luis Diaz
Two extremely talented wingers on the left, the duel between the two is clearly in favor of Vinícius. The young Brazilian from Real Madrid is the one who tries the most dribbles, and the one who has given the most assists. He has generated more than 30 occasions, many of them after crossing the field at full speed and the ball stuck to his foot. He asks for them all and his association with Benzema is already a classic this season. But also beware of the effectiveness of Liverpool’s brand new signing, the Colombian Luis Díaz, who runs and dribbles less but with more success.
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Rodrygo / Mané
In the false nine position, Sadio Mané has been a transcendental player this season for Liverpool. Author of five goals in the Champions League, he has generated 14 chances and is very dangerous in the shot. He will almost certainly start, a position that Rodrygo is not guaranteed at Real Madrid. But the Brazilian winger has emerged as a decisive scorer coming off the bench in the qualifiers and his relative numbers, above expectations in goals and assists, are on a par with those of the African champion striker.
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Beyond the starting eleven: other duels in the final
The development of the Champions League final will give rise to the intervention of other players, more duels from the bench that the coaches will move in search of the ‘Orejona’. The truth is that Klopp has distributed more game and minutes in his squad and has obtained more fruits: up to 11 Liverpool players have scored goals in this Champions League, for only six scorers in Real Madrid. But the revulsive power of Ancelotti’s team’s bench is beyond doubt.
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Valverde / Keita
Two players quite similar in their numbers, players who are both anchor and battering ram, with the Uruguayan from Real Madrid more effective in duels and a danger due to his speed, and the Guinean from Liverpool with more offensive repercussion (one goal, an assist and more actions in the opposite field compared to the minutes played).
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Camavinga / Oxlade-Chamberlain
The absolute figures leave Eduardo Camavinga and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain very even, with Liverpool’s better data in the proportion of duels won, in recoveries and in passes in the last third of the field. But the young Frenchman arrives in a great moment of form and confidence, the result of his intervention from the bench in Real Madrid’s comebacks. Substitute insurance in Paris, his entry could shake the game if the result is against and Ancelotti puts him on stage.
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Asensio / Diogo Jota
Marco Asensio has not enjoyed many minutes in this Champions League, and yet he has scored a goal and two assists. If he has occasion to shoot, he finds the door with ease. For his part, the Portuguese Diogo Jota, very fast, creates chances and imbalances, although with less goalscoring performance than expected.
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Nacho / Matip
Alternatives from the bench also in defense for Real Madrid and Liverpool, with Nacho and Matip, respectively. With a fairly similar performance this season, the Cameroonian has had fewer problems (he has won more duels, he has only been dribbled once) and has recovered more balls than the Spanish centre-back.
In short, who has the best team for the Champions League final? Participate in our survey.
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