David Hytner’s match report has arrived from Paris - the technology these days - so I’m going to wrap this blog up. Thanks for your company and emails throughout. Commiserations to Liverpool, but huge congraulations to Real Madrid and the adorable Carlo Ancelotti, the Jeffrey Lebowski of football management.
For the second time in a month he has made history, and his team have just completed the greatest European Cup campaign of all time, ever. Goodnight!
Updated
Courtois made nine saves in total. Two stand out: in the first half he pushed Sadio Mane’s fierce shot onto the post, and in the second he made a stunning reaction save - I think with his bicep - to deny Mo Salah.
Thibaut Courtois with an outrageous save to deny Sadio Mané! 🤯#UCLfinal pic.twitter.com/RjMFEVyra9
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) May 28, 2022
Stop it, Thibaut Courtois! 🥵
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) May 28, 2022
Joke of a save! #UCLfinal pic.twitter.com/3KunsBBN9G
Updated
The champagne moment
It's a habit 🏆
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) May 28, 2022
FOURTEEN times they've lifted this trophy! Insane! 👏#UCLfinal pic.twitter.com/GwSROB6RS7
Eight months is a long time in football
Real Madrid have now won the Champions League 14 times. That’s the same as England, two more than Italy and six more than Germany.
- Spain 19
- England 14
- Italy 12
- Germany 8
- Netherlands 6
- Portugal 4
- France, Scotland, Romania, Yugoslavia 1
“Strangely,” writes J.A. Hopkin, “Liverpool have failed to score in each of their three finals this season.”
“Sorry, Rob strongly disagree,” says Robert Yeoman. “Real were the better team tonight. That was an exemplary European final performance. Ancelotti masterminded a brilliant tactical plan that stopped Liverpool playing the final in the way that suited them best, Yes, Courtois was amazing but keepers aren’t magic. They’re part of a team’s tactics as is the 10 players in front of them then that reduce ‘the better team’ to attempting to score in a way that the keeper can handle. Liverpool were beaten tonight because they had no answer to how Real set themselves up to win this game. Hats off to them!”
Not sure I agree with much of that, but I do take your point. And Real’s oft-maligned defence was excellent, Carvajal and Militao in particular.
The player of the match is Thibaut Courtois. The player of the tournament, though there isn’t an official award, is Karim Benzema. He scored 15 goals, including hat-tricks against PSG and Chelsea and winners against Chelsea (in the second leg) and Manchester City. He probably should have had one tonight as well, but thankfully we won’t be talking about that.
One thing we will be talking about for a while is the scenes outside the ground before the game.
Real have formed a guard of honour for the Liverpool players, who are collecting their medals. Mo Salah is particularly glassy-eyed. It’s still been an incredible season for Liverpool, but it’ll take a few weeks before they see it like that.
Updated
Here’s Carlo Ancelotti’s reaction (eyebrow status: jaunty)
“I can’t believe. I cannot believe. We are really happy. [Spreads arms wide] What can I say? I cannot say more.
“I am a record man! I had the luck to come here last year and we’ve had a fantastic season. I found a squad, as usual, with a lot of quality and a lot of mental character.
“We passed through some really difficult games. The supporters helped us a lot. Tonight, I’m really happy that they are happy.
“[What about Courtois?] Unbelievable. I tell you, I cannot believe!”
And with that, he strolls off into the night. There’s a cigar with his name on it, and a trophy with Madrid’s.
Updated
Thibaut Courtois’s reaction
“Thank you very much. I said at the press conference yesterday that when Madrid play in finals, they win. I saw a lot of tweets saying I would get humbled. It was the other way round. Today I needed to win a final - for my career, for all the hard work, to put respect on my name because I don’t think I have enough respect, especiallyin England. I saw a lot of criticism that I was not good enough or whatever.
“I’m just really happy and proud of the performance of the team, and when I needed to be there I was there for the team. We have beaten the best clubs in the world, together with us. Liverpool were very strong today. I think I played a great game and that was the difference.”
Updated
It’s a sore one for Liverpool. Maybe the long season caught up with them, yet they were still the better team tonight: they had 23 attempts at goal to Real’s three. And they lost, because Real Madrid’s name was on the trophy all along.
Updated
A month ago, Carlo Ancelotti became the first coach to win the league in each of Europe’s five biggest leagues. Now he is the first coach to win four Champions Leagues. BUT WHAT DOES HE ACTUALLY DO?
Real have done it again, and this might be the best of the lot - they’ve beaten Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea, Manchester City and now Liverpool. They had two big heroes tonight: Vinicius Jr, who scored the winner in the second half, and the outstanding Thibaut Courtois.
Liverpool were the better team without ever really being at their pulsating best, but Courtois made two exceptional saves and a number of good ones.
REAL MADRID WIN THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FOR THE 14th TIME!
Full time: Liverpool 0-1 Real Madrid
It’s Real Madrid’s continent, we just live in it.
Updated
90+5 min Fabinho crosses too close to Courtois, and that might be Liverpool’s last chance.
90+3 min Mane’s cross is headed away well by Eder Militao, an often erratic defender who has been almost faultless tonight.
90+3 min: Real substitution Rodrygo replaces the goalscorer Vincius Jr.
90+2 min Camavinga shoots over from 20 yards.
90+1 min Benzema flips a lovely pass to put Dani Ceballos through on goal, but he takes too long and is tackled by Robertson. Real eventually win a corner, over which Kroos takes an age.
90+1 min There will be five minutes of added time.
Updated
90 min: Real substitution Dani Ceballos comes on for Luka Modric.
88 min Alexander-Arnold curls it deep, and Courtois comes through the crowd to claim with authority. He has been immense.
Updated
88 min Mane, back on the left now, runs Camavinga to win a corner...
87 min Alexander-Anrold makes an important tackle on Benzema, who tried to twist away from him in the area.
85 min: Real substitution Eduardo Camavinga replaces Fede Valverde, who made the goal and ran his branded socks off.
84 min Like the man said.
83 min Real break dangerously, three on three, only for Benzema to slightly overhit a through pass to Vinicius.
82 min: Magnificent save from Courtois! Salah kills a crossfield pass, scoots past Mendy in the area and pings a right-footed shot that is diverted just wide of the far post by Courtois! That is a wonderful reaction save.
Updated
81 min Mane plays in the underlapping Firmino, whose cutback evades everyone at the near post. The ball runs to Keita on the edge of the area, and he wafts it high and wide. That was another decent chance.
Firmino has made a difference since coming on.
Updated
80 min: Good save from Courtois! Make that 20 attempts at goal: Salah’s shot is redirected by Jota, arriving late in the area, and Courtois changes direction to push it behind for a corner.
Updated
80 min Liverpool have had 19 attempts at goal to Real Madrid’s two.
79 min Liverpool are now playing with Mane and Firmino up front, Salah to the right and Jota to the left.
78 min Alexander-Arnold’s cross is crucially intercepted by Militao. He might have gone for goal as well.
77 min: Double substitution for Liverpool Roberto Firmino and Naby Keita replace Thiago Alcantara and Jordan Henderson, which means a switch to 4-2-4.
Updated
76 min Kroos’s long free-kick finds Casemiro in space on the left side of the area. He should go for goal but instead tries to cushion a volley back across the penalty area, and makes a mess of that as well.
Updated
74 min Alexander-Arnold whistles a cross shot well wide. The stretching Jota got a slight touch, but not enough to divert it towards goal. Liverpool’s response to the goal has been decent, if slightly impatient at times.
Updated
73 min Mendy wins the ball fairly off Alexander-Arnold, who gets up and points angrily at him. Not sure what that was about.
72 min “I wouldn’t be too harsh on Alexander-Arnold,” says Kári Tulinius. “That Valverde assist was both incredibly precise in terms of placement and pace, but it came from a really unlikely source. I think this is only his second assist all season. But if you keep your powder dry, that’s the way to ignite it.”
71 min Modric releases Vinicius, one v one with Konate. Vinicius charges infield and seems to have beaten Konate, who then makes a brilliant recovery tackle on the edge of the area. He’s had a fine game.
Updated
69 min: Great save from Courtois! Henderson dumps a high, hanging cross beyond the far post, where Jota does well to loop a header back across goal. Salah scurries onto it, a couple of yards out, but Courtois charges back acrosss his line to block Salah’s shot.
Updated
69 min Jota wins two corners in quick succession down the left. The second, taken by Robertson, leads to a short game of head tennis before Alaba blooters the ball clear.
67 min Kroos buys a foul from Salah, which eats up another 20 seconds. Every little helps.
66 min “I am currently at a stadium concert in the centre of Istanbul (mor ve ötesi) which my partner has surprised me with tickets,” says Phil Reed. “I know one of their songs and do not speak Turkish... I am also trying to sneak a view of the score on mbm so thanks for your work Rob! You are saving my life (and relationship) here...”
65 min: Liverpool substition Diogo Jota replaces Luis Diaz, who was handled very well by Dani Carvajal. Mane moves left, Jota goes up front.
64 min Salah cuts inside from the right, 20 yards out, and shapes a curler that is pushed away by the diving Courtois. It was a camera-friendly save, fairly comfortable for a keeper of his class.
Updated
62 min Fabinho is booked for flattening Valverde.
61 min Vinicius got behind Alexander-Arnold, who will inevitably be criticised for his part in the goal. I’d like to see it a few more times to be sure. My first thought was that the angle of Valverde’s cross shot made it extremely difficult to defend, even if Alexander-Arnold was sleeping a bit.
Updated
60 min The goal stands!
Updated
Valverde was found in space on the right. He cut inside, unchallenged the whole way, and drove a low cross shot that was turned in from close range by Vincius Jr. It’s really close to offside, but I think he’s okay.
Updated
GOAL! Liverpool 0-1 Real Madrid (Vinicius Jr 59)
Out of nothing - and a VAR check for offside permitting - Real take the lead!
Updated
58 min Liverpool appeal for a penalty when Salah’s snapshot hits a Real defender in the area. Nothing to see here. It may have brushed Alaba’s fist, but it was tight to his body.
56 min There’s a break in play while Eder Militao receives treatment. Luis Diaz fell on him accidentally after they wrestled for a 50/50.
54 min Mane forces a pass out to Diaz on the left. He teases Carvajal and then gives the ball back to Mane, whose first-time from the edge of the area is blocked by Militao. Real may have had a goal disallowed in strange circumstances but there’s no doubt Liverpool have been the better team.
52 min It’s been a pretty slow start to the second half, same as the first. Thiago Alcantara still looks fine, and has arguably been the perkiest of Liverpool’s attacking players.
Updated
49 min “Not all MBM readers are in exotic places or camper vans,” says Colum Farrelly. “Some of us are in Stansted Airport (for the last 8 hours!) because of a delayed and now cancelled flight home. MBM saves sanity.”
47 min A wonderful first-time cross from Alexander-Arnold just evades Diaz, swooping at the far post. Carvajal did pretty well to put him under pressure from the wrong side, and the ball brushed one of their heads before drifting to safety.
46 min Peep peep! The second half ius under way. The consensus on the disallowed goal is non-existent.
On BT Sport, former referee Peter Walton says the goal could only have been given if Fabinho was deemed to have deliberately played the ball.
Apparently the Madrid goal was ruled out because the ball deflected off Fabinho, and therefore doesn’t count. I’m not making this up by the way; that’s the explanation that has been given.
Updated
Half time: Liverpool 0-0 Real Madrid
The kick-off was delayed, and the match still hasn’t really got going. Liverpool were the better team for most of a relatively low-key half. Thibaut Courtois did brilliantly to push Sadio Mane’s shot onto a post, and then Karim Benzema had a goal controversially ruled out for offside. See you in 15 minutes for the second half.
Updated
45+2 min There will be three minutes of added time, even though the VAR check took about half an hour.
NO GOAL! Liverpool 0-0 Real Madrid
Benzema was in an offside position when Valverde got a touch, though you could argue that it became a new phase of play after Konate pushed the ball off Fabinho and back towards the Liverpool goal. I thought Benzema’s goal should have been given, though I’ll be honest, I haven’t a clue about the offside law any more.
Updated
It’s still being checked...
Updated
It started when Benzema ran onto a long ball forward and turned inside Robertson near the six-yard box. Alisson blocked the goal so Benzema waited and then poked the ball tamely across the area. Alisson pushed it away and then there was a scramble, with Valverde, Konate and Fabinho all touching the ball (in that order, I think) before Benzema swept it into the net.
Updated
VAR check! Benzema was definitely offside, because he was in front of the goalkeeper Alisson, but the issue is whether the ball was played through by a Madrid player (Valverde) or a Liverpool defender (Fabinho). If it’s the latter, it’ll be a goal. I think this will be given.
Updated
43 min: Benzema has a goal disallowed for offside!
42 min “I think the 37th minute was your first mention of Modric,” says John Starbuck. “Hasn’t he been as usually effective yet?”
I find MBMs aren’t a great guide to individual performances, certainly not with subtler players like Modric or Xavi. But he has been pretty quiet.
41 min Robertson’s corner is headed away by Benzema to Henderson, 30 yards out, and he whistles a shot well wide. It was beautifully struck but nowhere near the target.
40 min Robertson plays a short pass into Mane in the area. He spins away from Militao, who tracks Mane well and blocks the resulting shot on the stretch. Corner to Liverpool. Mane looks really sharp by the way.
38 min After a very quiet start, Vinicius and Benzema are starting to make mischief on the left wing. It’s not an exciting game but it remains a thoroughly intriguing one.
37 min “It’s incredible to watch Thiago’s passing, really,” writes Shiladitya Pandit. “The range, the vision, the elegance on the ball, all while not being at 100%. Being the best playmaker on a pitch that also has Luka Modric on it, is a feat in itself, irrespective of what happens in the game at the end.”
36 min Vincius nutmegs Konate in the area and is about to shoot when Henderson appears on his blind side to poke the ball behind for a corner. Excellent covering.
Updated
34 min: Chance for Liverpool! Alexander-Arnold curls in a left-footed cross that is headed straight at Courtois by Salah, 12 yards out. That was a decent chance, though it was alarming how easily he lost Eder Militao. That’s Liverpool’s eighth attempt at goal and their fifth on target. Madrid? Nada. Zilch. Sweet bugger all.
34 min I told you right from the off this wouldn’t be a classic.
33 min Real are coming into the game a little more. Benzema drops off and tries to thread a pass through to Vincius Jr, but van Dijk steps across to do the necessary.
32 min Astonishingly, it seems people are still being teargassed outside the ground.
Fresh rounds of tear gas deployed by riot police from within side the stadium security perimeter to people outside even as the #UCLfinal is being played
— Rob Harris (@RobHarris) May 28, 2022
30 min Kroos’s dangerous long pass is crucially intercepted by the stretching Alexander-Arnold. Vinicius had got the wrong side of him and would have been through on goal.
30 min Here’s more on the problems outside the stadium that led to the kick off being delayed by 37 minutes.
29 min Carlo Ancelotti’s eyebrow is on the move. Status: mildly befuddled.
Updated
28 min “Strange to think of it this way,” says Hugh Molly, “but that Mane shot would have beaten any other human on the planet. Not Courtois.”
He’s definitely the unsung hero of this Real Madrid campaign – he has made an absurd number of saves throughout the competition. I think it’s something like 54 saves to Alisson’s 15. If Real win tonight, he should get a medal.
26 min Diaz has a run at Carvajal, who holds him up well and then wins a throw-in.
26 min Real enjoy their first extended, unmolested spell of possesion. Eventually Vinicius overhits a cross that is grabbed the backpedalling Alisson.
25 min “Is it me or is the camerawork a bit bizarre?” writes my colleague Tim de Lisle. “The view is so distant, except when it’s a tight close-up. It feels as if there are two directors and they’re not talking to each other.”
I think I saw that film at the Curzon Soho. I hadn’t really noticed the camerawork, though a few of you have mentioned it and I see what you mean now.
Updated
23 min Real can’t cope with Liverpool’s intensity. I suppose we said the same in the Chelsea and City ties, and look what happened there, but at the moment Liverpool are well on top.
Updated
21 min: Mane hits the post! Thiago slides a typical disguised pass into Mane on the edge of the area. He zips inside Eder Militao and whacks a shot that is pushed onto the inside of the post by the diving Courtois before rebounding to safety. That’s a marvellous save!
Updated
19 min Now Alexander-Arnold shoots over from the edge of the area after a layoff from Salah. Real haven’t got going at all.
18 min Mane lays the ball off nicely to Salah, whose rising half-volley from 18 yards is pushed down by Courtois and claimed at the second attempt. Liverpool are well on top now.
Updated
16 min: Good save from Courtois! A deep crossfield pass is headed back by Henderson to Alexander-Arnold on the right corner of the box. He wriggles away from Vinicius and Mendy before sliding a low cross that is turned towards goal by the off balance Salah, six yards out. Courtois gets down smartly to his left to save.
Liverpool keep the pressure on. Diaz has a shot blocked and then Thiago’s long-range curler is too close to Courtois.
Updated
15 min Vinicius has his first run at Konate, who calmly pokes the ball away and then muscles Vinicius away from the loose ball. Superb defending, exactly the kind of thing he was picked for.
13 min Still nothing to report. Liverpool have been the better side, though they are not playing with their usual intensity.
Updated
9 min Nothing much is happening. The atmosphere is subdued, the tempo fairly slow. It needs a chance at one end or another to get everyone going.
7 min Thiago looks okay, since you asked, but Sadio Mane is limping after a strong challenge by Casemiro.
5 min It’s been a fairly slow start. That might be down to the delayed kick-off, with both teams - Madrid especially - trying to find their bearings.
4 min “The legs in that Real midfield…” says Ruth Purdue. “It didn’t work against City so I worry for them. Need the excellent Camavinga in it. He changed the game.”
3 min An early free-kick for Liverpool on the left. Alexander-Arnold curls it in and Benzema clears. Liverpool have started on the front foot.
1 min Peep peep! At 9.37pm local time, Liverpool get the Champions League final under way.
The players are walking onto the field, so the game is about to start. Here’s a reminder of the teams.
Liverpool (4-3-3) Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, van Dijk, Robertson; Henderson, Fabinho, Thiago; Salah, Mane, Diaz.
Substitutes: Kelleher, Milner, Keita, Firmino, Gomez, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Jones, Minamino, Jota, Tsimikas, Matip, Elliott.
Real Madrid (4-3-3) Courtois; Carvajal, Eder Militao, Alaba, Mendy; Kroos, Casemiro, Modric; Valverde, Benzema, Vinicius Jr.
Substitutes: Lunin, Hazard, Nacho, Asensio, Marcelo, Lucas Vazquez, Bale, Dani Ceballos, Rodrygo, Camavinga, Isco, Mariano.
Referee Clement Turpin (France).
Updated
Thiago starts for Liverpool. His injury scare feels an age ago. Now, sorry to say, there’s a far bigger story emerging.
Just watched police charge and tear gas parents with kids at Gate Z
— Carrie Brown 💙 (@CarrieBrownTV) May 28, 2022
Thanks for all your emails. I’m trying to read as many as possible, though there’s all sorts going on.
The kick-off has been delayed again. I know this because it’s 8.30pm, and there are no footballers on the field. I think it’s going to start in the next few minutes, even though it sounds like there are still thousands of fans outside the ground.
Updated
“I’m watching it in a very quiet neighbourhood bistro in Paris,” writes Helena Horton, “mainly full of nice local couples having steak frites and little plates of dried sausage save for a deliriously drunk group of about eight Liverpool supporters all hugging each other and shouting ‘go on boys’ at various intervals - and I think so pleasantly pissed they don’t realise how at odds they are with the atmosphere. However the people here are looking on with fond amusement! It’s being shown on a small screen near the bar. I’m sat nearby eating a giant profiterole.”
Meanwhile, in the year 2022
Fans queuing outside with tickets for a gate that’s been shut for no reason just been tear gassed. Throughly unpleasant experience and so dangerous. This isn’t how fans should be treated in a civilised society. Unacceptable
— Andy Kelly (@AndyK_LivNews) May 28, 2022
“After a poor night’s sleep I still got up at 6.45am ready to watch game in cold Christchurch NZ,” writes Emma Daly. “My first thought was I could have had an extra half hour in bed. But now I am increasingly worried for the Liverpool fans outside the stadium. This is not okay. No kick off until all those fans are safe please.”
Uefa couldn’t give a solitary toss. The European Championship final last summer started on time despite a complete free-for-all inside and outside the stadium.
This is scandalous. Meanwhile, the opening ceremony is taking place on thep itch as if nothing has happened. This is all a bit surreal, and I can’t believe the game is about to start with so many fans still stuck outside.
Pepper spraying fans outside stadium in Paris pic.twitter.com/drgzEpR9gD
— Mark Ogden (@MarkOgden_) May 28, 2022
There are still thousands of empty seats in the Liverpool end, and we’re only 11 minutes away from the planned kick-off.
Updated
“A Champions League final at 3am is already a tall order,” says Conor Gannon. “3:30 is a low blow.”
I had no idea you lived in Arizona.
Updated
Updated
The misinformation has already started
Bullshit. This footage is of fans climbing on to the ramp that leads up to the stadium concourse, where the gates are. https://t.co/M7JpJ3hMg6
— Andy Hunter (@AHunterGuardian) May 28, 2022
“Made it,” says Steve Horne (19:53). “It has four screens. Only problem is likely to be the cost of my wife’s mojitos.”
Pretty good of them to put on free beer for the Champions League final.
Kick off delayed by a further 15 minutes
The match will now begin, all being well, at 9.30pm local time, 8.30pm BST. Uefa are now saying the delay is for “security reasons” rather than blaming it on the supporters as they did when the first delay was announced.
There’s been zero communication with fans btw. No announcement about why we’re still here. Why we’ve been tear gassed or even that the kickoff has been delayed. As abject an event as I’ve ever attended.
— Andy Kelly (@AndyK_LivNews) May 28, 2022
Updated
“I’ve just arrived at Lake Atitlan in Guatemala for a weekend break,” writes Tobias Peggs. “The whole journey here from Guatemala City was through myriad towns and villages with seemingly everyone wearing Real Madrid or Liverpool shirts. The whole country seems obsessed. And my hotel… which we’ve just arrived at… doesn’t have a TV! So here’s my view while I’m trying to get a dodgy live stream on the internet. Hard to complain.”
I can’t upload Tobias’s picture, for reasons too boring to explain, but I can confirm that his view is a whole lot better than mine. And yours.
The Liverpool players are coming out to warm up again. Spoiler alert: this isn’t kicking off at 8.15pm.
Updated
The Europa League in Seville was a shambles as well with the stadium running out of water in 30+ degrees. It's as though the pandemic had led Uefa to forget how to run these events.
— Jonathan Wilson (@jonawils) May 28, 2022
“Well,” muses our resident Liverpool supporter Matt Dony. “This is it. The end of a ridiculous season. No matter what happens, it’s been a ride. I’m not generally a confident person when it comes to big games. And this is pretty much as big as it gets. (Last week wasn’t ever really on. Wasn’t that big a game really…)
“This Liverpool is a better team than This Madrid. But This Madrid have had an equally ridiculous march through the knockout games. They’ve been the best team for about 30 minutes across six matches. But it was the right 30 minutes. Almost feels like they’re fated to win. Almost. But not quite. I’m not confident. But, anything can happen. And this Liverpool team are amazing. There is very little they can’t do. Hoping for a good game. But I’d also take a rubbish game and a Liverpool win. My nerves are in shreds. Argh, and there’s a delay!! That’s not helping!!”
In the nicest possible way, you’re all over the show aren’t you?
That 8.15pm BST kick off is looking very optimistic. There’s a serious issue brewing here - BT Sport are reporting that Liverpool fans have been teargassed outside the stadium. Dear me, what a mess.
Gate Z@RorySmith @henrywinter @JamesPearceLFC @tariqpanja @ptgorst pic.twitter.com/vWlNMeqbEt
— Paul Senior🥤 (@PaulSenior1) May 28, 2022
Updated
It sounds like there are big issues outside the ground: gates closed, fans unable to get in, other supporters entering without tickets. It doesn’t help that Uefa are blaming it on fans arriving late, which has gone down as well as you’d expect.
UEFA spreading lies with official announcements inside the Stade de France that "due to the late arrival of fans at the stadium" the match is delayed.
— This Is Anfield (@thisisanfield) May 28, 2022
Absolute disgrace.
We're delayed 15 minutes. The shambles outside the stadium is no surprise. Could see it building from 2pm. This is not good at all
— Barney Ronay (@barneyronay) May 28, 2022
Updated
“I’m in a campervan in a car park in Bremen and can barely contain my excitement,” says Steve Horne. “Waiting for the rain to ease so I can make a dash to the only bar within striking distance. Hopefully it’s showing the game.”
You didn’t think to check earlier?! Good luck, hope they have it on. You have an extra 15 minutes now for the rain to stop.
“Jurgen Klopp talked about the newly laid pitch at the Stade de France,” says Peter Oh, “but to be honest the surfaces I’m most worried about are the outside of Luka Modric’s right boot and the top of Karim Benzema’s forehead.”
As the kick-off has been delayed, why not calm the nerves by listening to this old charmer.
Kick off delayed by 15 minutes
It sounds like there is chaos outside the ground, and the match will now begin at 9.15pm local time. Here’s more from the news wires.
A lack of organisation meant there were shambolic scenes outside the Stade de France.
Long queues formed and the Liverpool end was noticeably patchy less than half an hour before kick-off as supporters struggled to get in.
A few ticketless fans were seen trying to gain access to the Stade de France, despite a permanent fence being in place around the perimeter.
Huge queues of Liverpool fans have formed outside the Stade de France in Paris ahead of the Champions League final.
Long queues began to form due to delays in searches at the gates, with many supporters likely to miss kick off.
Thiago has just had a long chat with Naby Keita. At first I assumed Thiago was pulling out through injury, but now it seems more likely that he was telling Keita to be ready to come on as a substitute from the first whistle.
This season, the football world has woken up to what the people of Madrid realised years ago: that Karim Benzema is a genius.
“If I’m doing my maths (as you might say) right, it will be 1am in Bangladesh and Kyrgyzstan at kickoff,” says Joe Pearson. “You’re welcome.”
Yes, but I don’t think there’s a Coen brothers film called Raising Dhaka.
Don McRae interviewing Trent Alexander-Arnold was always going to be great. If you only have time to read one preview piece, make it this one. The bits about Alexander-Arnold’s role are especially fascinating, and his lack of false modesty rather refreshing.
Meet the Madrid cavalry
Another plug for Jonathan Wilson’s tactical preview
Jurgen Klopp speaks
“It’s the comeback kings against the mentality monsters – nice headline.
“The pitch is … okay. It’s not a great pitch but it’s absolutely okay.
“We expect a very strong side: vary calm, very experienced, very cool, but we’ll try to give them a bit of pain.
Liverpool and Real met in the 2018 final in Kyiv, when Gareth Bale (and poor Lorus Karius) gave Real a 3-1 win. Both teams have evolved since then, and Liverpool have five changes from the XI that started that game.
Out Karius, Dejan Lovren, Gini Wijnaldum, James Milner, Roberto Firmino.
In Alisson, Ibrahima Konate, Thiago Alcantara, Fabinho, Luis Diaz.
Liverpool v Real Madrid: a brief history
Thiago, who was injured before the Carabao Cup final, may be heading for more heartbreak. He is jogging on his own, with Naby Keita warming up with the rest of the starting XI. It’ll be desperately cruel if Thiago misses out again.
“I know you were joking,” says Joe Pearson, “but your readers should know that it will be noon in Arizona at kickoff. Just trying to be helpful.”
I actually wasn’t joking, I just had the first of tonight’s myriad brainfades. 1am?!
Updated
“If Carlo Ancelotti’s eyebrow is going to go arch-shaped today, I can’t think of a better place than the city known for the Arc de ... No, please, not another Real Madrid Triomphe!” weeps Peter Oh. “May the merengues be forever stuck at unlucky number 13! YNWA!”
Another plug for Barney Ronay’s preview
“Thanks, Michael Smith,” writes Simon McMahon. “I kept Peter Cormack off my list because I though he was too niche, forgetting of course that this is the MBM. He led Cowdenbeath to promotion as manager in his only season in charge of the Blue Brazil, so I’m pretty sure this is the only email that will mention both 1978 Anglo-Scottish Cup winners Bristol City and the now Scottish Lowland League side in a Champions League final live blog.”
A grown man
Real Madrid fans are taking it well then... 😂#UCLfinal pic.twitter.com/r1zVbSmIHO
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) May 28, 2022
If Real win tonight, Carlo Ancelotti will become the first manager in history to win four Champions Leagues. But what does he actually do, eh.
The starting XIs
Liverpool (4-3-3) Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, van Dijk, Robertson; Henderson, Fabinho, Thiago; Salah, Mane, Diaz.
Substitutes: Kelleher, Milner, Keita, Firmino, Gomez, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Jones, Minamino, Jota, Tsimikas, Matip, Elliott.
Real Madrid (4-3-3) Courtois; Carvajal, Eder Militao, Alaba, Mendy; Kroos, Casemiro, Modric; Valverde, Benzema, Vinicius Jr.
Substitutes: Lunin, Hazard, Nacho, Asensio, Marcelo, Lucas Vazquez, Bale, Dani Ceballos, Rodrygo, Camavinga, Isco, Mariano.
Referee Clement Turpin (France).
Updated
“This is a tricky game for the neutrals,” says Kári Tulinius. “Usually there’s an underdog to root for, or a team that plays especially entertainingly, or some notorious sh1thouses to sway undecided hearts. But here are two giant clubs, who play fun football, with nary a sh1thouse in sight. I guess I’ll just let the narrative of the match pull my affections to and fro. Enjoy the match!”
Nostalgia corner
What’s [Gerd] Müller doing? Nothing. What’s Müller doing? Still nothing. Müller? Nothing. Wait. Where’s he gone?
One-nil.
Updated
Liverpool team news: Thiago and Konate start
Thiago Alcantara is fit to start for Liverpool. Well, he starts. Fabinho has also made it, and Ibrahima Konate is preferred to Joel Matip as the right-sided centre-back.
Liverpool (4-3-3) Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, van Dijk, Robertson; Henderson, Fabinho, Thiago; Salah, Mane, Diaz.
Substitutes: Kelleher, Milner, Keita, Firmino, Gomez, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Jones, Minamino, Jota, Tsimikas, Matip, Elliott.
Here's how we line up for the #UCLfinal
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) May 28, 2022
👊🔴
Updated
“Always put one in the brain, indeed; sage advice from the Coens’ Miller’s Crossing,” says Charles Antaki of the gratuitous Johnny Caspar reference in the preamble. “But perhaps there are one or two other apt titles tonight: The Man Who Wasn’t There (if Thiago doesn’t make it), No Country for Old Men (if Kroos’ and Modric’s age catches up with them) and of course True Grit (and possibly Intolerable Cruelty) if it goes to extra-time and penalties.”
Don’t forget Raising Arizona: I think it kicks off at 1am there.
My favourite thing that I learnt this week: that Luis Diaz’s dog is called Toni Kroos.
— Sid Lowe (@sidlowe) May 28, 2022
Decent turn out 🔴 pic.twitter.com/rhfqOU1WQj
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) May 28, 2022
You can’t be no one else
“Look,” says Michael Smith, “I’m neither Scottish nor a Liverpool fan but I have to add the forgotten man Peter Cormack to Simon McMahon’s list (18:16). Yes they all won lots of stuff but only Peter added the Anglo-Scottish Cup to his honours (with my team Bristol City since you ask). Beat that Dalglish!”
Forty-one years ago yesterday
Updated
“Like probably a lot of Scots tonight, I’ve got to admit to rooting for Liverpool,” says Simon McMahon. “Well why wouldn’t you, for a club that lists Shankly, Yeats, St. John, Hansen, Dalglish, Wark, Souness and Robertson among its greats, some of whom even played for Dundee United, conquerors of the five-time European champions in the 1984 … ah let’s not go there, eh? 5-4 after extra time couldn’t happen twice in one day, could it…”
No chance. 5-4 after 90 minutes, on the other hand.
More pre-match reading
Updated
Real Madrid team news: Valverde starts
They’ve announced their team early - no biggie - and it’s the XI we expected.
Real Madrid (4-3-3) Courtois; Carvajal, Eder Militao, Alaba, Mendy; Kroos, Casemiro, Modric; Valverde, Benzema, Vinicius Jr.
Substitutes: Lunin, Hazard, Nacho, Asensio, Marcelo, Lucas Vazquez, Bale, Dani Ceballos, Rodrygo, Camavinga, Isco, Mariano.
📋✅ Our #UCLfinal 𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗥𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗫𝗜! #APorLa14 pic.twitter.com/uj9fib8ZoZ
— Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) May 28, 2022
There are five survivors from the 2018 final: Carvajal, Benzema and, of course, the midfield three.
Updated
“My brother, Bert, is on a cruise of the British Isles,” writes Brian Cruickshank. “He sent this to me in Canada earlier today. Some way to watch the game: ‘Just announced over the p.a. that the ship has received confirmation that they can broadcast the game tonite at 7:30pm. We will be off the north coast of Scotland heading to Invergordon - it will be on the big screen under the stars, in the casino TVs and in our stateroom TVs as well. Think I’ll bundle up and watch it on deck on my favourite bar stool. Should be an experience!’”
“How much do you think missing out on the league title last weekend will affect Liverpool tonight?” wonders David Wall. “Given how poorly they started against Wolves (who could have been out of sight if they’d been able to finish their first-half chances) it seemed that Everton’s win the Thursday before, ruling out the quintuple (four trophies plus Everton being relegated), was playing on their minds. Now the quadruple is also ruled out, might that affect them too?”
I don’t see it having a negative impact, but I think it will have less of a positive impact, if that makes sense. If Liverpool were going for the Quadruple tonight, I think they’d be close to unstoppable.
Some games are bigger than others
Jonathan Wilson’s tactical preview
When you’ve gotta go, you’ve gotta go
Early team news
There are two big decisions for Jurgen Klopp - whether to risk Thiago in midfield (all reports suggests Fabinho will be okay to return) and whether to go with the pace of Ibrahima Konate or the nous and ball-playing ability of Joel Matip at centre-back. If Thiago doesn’t make it, James Milner, 36, looks a good bet to take on Madrid’s midfield geriatricos.
* If indeed it is - both teams can use five subs, so it doesn’t matter too much if Thiago’s achilles goes in the first five minutes.
Carlo Ancelotti’s team looks easy to predict. His only decision is on the right wing, where the industrious Fede Valverde is likely to be preferred to Rodrygo. Two reasons for that: Valverde gives extra protection in midfield - he’s very good in the Ray Parlour role, as it should be known - and Rodrygo has made a devastating impact from the bench in this season’s competition.
Possible XIs
Liverpool (4-3-3) Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, van Dijk, Robertson; Henderson, Fabinho, Thiago; Salah, Mane, Diaz.
Real Madrid (4-3-3) Courtois; Carvajal, Eder Militao, Alaba, Mendy; Kroos, Casemiro, Modric; Valverde, Benzema, Vinicius Jr.
Updated
Preamble
Hello and welcome to live coverage of Europe’s biggest custody battle. The identities of Liverpool and Real Madrid are inextricably linked to the Champions League, and both clubs feel a kind of moral ownership of that giant trophy. Tonight one of them will lift it again, and the other will be left to wrestle with a bit of the old cognitive dissonance as they walk straight past it on the podium.
Both clubs have an intimidating sense of destiny at the business end of the Champions League. This season it’s even more powerful: Real because of their form in this competition, Liverpool because of their form in every competition. Defeat in a Champions League final is always unthinkable for these two. In 2021-22, it’s a concept they barely understand.
Real, in particular, simply don’t lose Champions League finals: just three out of 16, the last in 1981, when they were beaten by… yep, Liverpool, in Paris. Liverpool’s most recent defeat in the final was also against tonight’s opponents, an emotional night in Kyiv four years ago that took out a lease in Mo Salah’s subconscious. Since Jurgen Klopp came to Anfield, Liverpool have only been knocked out of the Champions League by teams whose name ends in ‘Madrid’. I’m going to stick my neck out and say that will still be the case after this game.
That’s just about the only sure thing. Usually, we have a rough idea - or at least we think we do - of how a big game might pan out. Ahead of this game, there is nary a scooby. That’s mainly because of a Madrid side who have cheerily defenestrated logic all season. It’s only a slight exaggeration to say that Liverpool could feasibly win 5-0 or Real 7-3.
If Liverpool take control of this game, they need to remember Johnny Caspar’s advice: always put one in the brain (NB: link is from an 18-rated film). Madrid have come back from the dead in every round, culminating in their unfathomable defeat of Manchester City in the semi-finals. Liverpool, by contrast – and there are a lot of contrasts tonight – haven’t been behind in a knockout tie. The moral of this story will become apparent around 11pm when the victors start writing the history of the 2021-22 Champions League. If Madrid win, they can claim this as the greatest European campaign since GOATs began.
Three weeks ago, Liverpool were strongish favourites for this match, but their legs and muscles have started showing the strain of a uniquely demanding season. Real have had their feet up for the last 24 days. You can argue it either way: that Liverpool are too tired or that Madrid are too battle-softened.
Even the individual duel that everyone is talking about, Vinicius Jr v Trent Alexander-Arnold, is more complicated than the usual story of attacker v defender or midfielder v midfielder. Vinicius could be the matchwinner, as he was when Real beat Liverpool in the quarter-final last year. But then so could Alexander-Arnold, who plays like no right-back in football history.
There are a gazillion points of interest, but in the name of brevity we’ll settle for a few. Whether Real can do the same Hulk Hogan homage in the Stade de France as they have in the heady atmosphere of the Bernabeu; whether Thiago Alcantara is fit to start and, if not, whether Jurgen Klopp risks Naby Keita after his minor shocker against Madrid last season; how many times Luis Diaz and Karim Benzema will leave us agape; and the contrast in styles, between Carlo Ancelotti’s free jazz and Jurgen Klopp’s heavy metal.
Madrid are chasing a record-extending 14th Champions League. Never mind other clubs: no country other than Spain (duh) has won more than that. For Liverpool it would be No7, moving them joint second with AC Milan and – this stuff matters, let’s not pretend it doesn’t – four clear of Manchester United. Oh, and seven clear of Manchester City. It would also complete a deluxe version of the treble they did under Gerard Houllier in 2000-01.
The modern Champions League is as good as football gets, maybe as good it has ever gotten, but in recent years the greatest drama has been reserved for the quarters and semis. Most of the finals have been either a bit dull or a bit one-sided. This, please, is going to be different.
Kick off 8pm in Liverpool, 9pm in Paris and Madrid.
Updated
Updated
