It’s been a long and thrilling 2017-18 soccer season both home and particularly on the European front! The best may still be yet to come with the FIFA World Cup kicking off next month, however, this weekend we wrap up the club competitions with the highly anticipated UEFA Champions League Final! See our preview and tips for Real Madrid vs Liverpool below!
2017-18 Champions League Final Betting Tips
Who: Real Madrid vs Liverpool
Where: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine
When: Sunday, 27th of May, 4.45am AEST
It’s been one of the more miraculous runs in Champions League history for English side Liverpool in the lead up to the final and they’ll be looking to continue their Cinderella story on Sunday morning. The Reds can win their sixth UCL title and move clear of Barcelona and Bayern Munich into clear third position in the winningest Champions League clubs. Their road to the final has been a tough one filled with talented opponents but they have hardly skipped a beat so far.
Liverpool road to the final:
Finished top of Group E (Sevilla, Spartak Moscow, NK Maribor)
dft. FC Porto 5-0 aggregate
dft. Manchester City 5-2 aggregate
dft. Roma 7-6 aggregate
Liverpool came into their Round of 16 matchup against English rivals Manchester City as firm underdogs, but after a 3-0 demolition job at home in the first leg, they never looked like losing the tie. Striker Mohamed Salah has been arguably the best player in their world throughout the 2017-18 season after breaking the EPL single season scoring record with a ridiculous 38 and adding 10 more in the UCL so far. He’ll be a key player for Liverpool, along with attacking teammates Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane, who have combined for 19 goals in the Champions League so far.
Real Madrid have won the Champions League title more than any other team in history. They can rack up their 13th all time win this weekend and become the first team since Ajax in the 70s to win three titles in a row. A win would also mark their fourth in five years, which is one of the most dominant performances in European football history.
They’ll have extra incentive to win here after they turned out a disappointing season in the Spanish domestic competition, finishing in third place behind rivals Barcelona and Atletico Madrid. Like Liverpool, they have barely put a foot wrong in the Champions League, and love to play a similar attacking style of football which should make this a thriller.
Real Madrid road to the final:
Finished second in Group H (Tottenham, Borussia Dortmund, Apoel Nicosia)
dft. PSG 5-2 aggregate
dft. Juventus 4-3 aggregate
dft. Bayern Munich 4-3 aggregate
When you talk about Real Madrid there is only one name you need to mention, and that is of course Cristiano Ronaldo, who despite a six-goal game from Salah or Firmino in the final, will rack up a record seventh UCL scoring title this season. He is the all time leading scorer in the Champions League with a ridiculous 120 through 152 games and is odds on to add to that tally in the final.
The two sides have played on just two occasions since the 2014 season, where they met in the group stage of the Champions League. Real Madrid won both the home and away legs in that matchup as Karim Benzema scored three goals over the two games. One thing that has changed for the Reds since that season is their new found attacking play style, which allowed them to score 84 goals in the EPL this season, more than any club not named Manchester City.
Even though it was a disappointing La Liga season for Madrid, they still plundered 94 goals, which was just 5 shy of Barcelona’s league best mark. Although it’s the final and tensions will be high, I still expect both teams to come out attacking here, and if there is an early goal, it should open up even more. Juventus were renowned as one of the most defensive teams in world football when they met Real Madrid in the final last year and there was still five goals scored in that game. Back the overs here.
TIP: Total goals OVER 3.5 - $2.10 at Sportsbet
Call me crazy, but if any team in the world is going to be able to keep up with Real Madrid in terms of attack, it’s going to be Liverpool. Unlike the previous rounds of the knockout stage, the final is just one game, and it only takes one moment of brilliance to turn a game on it's head. Real Madrid have Ronaldo but overall I think Liverpool possess more pure match winners that can perform above and beyond. Everything seems set up for them to continue their Cinderella story here, and I’m backing them to get the job done as underdogs either in regulation or after.
TIP: Liverpool to lift the cup - $2.31 at CrownBet
