Real Madrid vs Liverpool - Champions League Final - 26th May 2018

GLaDOS

This is why you don't open match threads 3 weeks in advance

Hopefully Real Madrid hammer Liverpool and put an end to the nightmare
A red card for Liverpool too for my amusement would be nice

OwaynOTT

GLaDOS wrote: »

This is why you don't open match threads 3 weeks in advance

LuckyLloyd

GLaDOS wrote: »

This is why you don't open match threads 3 weeks in advance

Well, after last night, it's the only important match remaining in the elite club season in terms of winning a major trophy. As such, it makes sense to have a thread open for it.

Royal Irish

M!Ck^ wrote: »

Hopefully Real Madrid hammer Liverpool and put an end to the nightmare
A red card for Liverpool too for my amusement would be nice

Even better would be 3-0 down at half time, and they bring it back to 3-2 in the second half.

They'll be thinking its Istanbul again lads, then Madrid kill the game off at 5-2.

Harry Palmr

We can do that thing about who has had the better season - Man Utd second and an FA Cup final or Liverpool 4th and the CL final. With a poll! No, I'm not going to start that thread!

yourdeadwright

Harry Palmr wrote: »

We can do that thing about who has had the better season - Man Utd second and an FA Cup final or Liverpool 4th and the CL final. With a poll! No, I'm not going to start that thread!

Depends who wins there final really ,
Finals should only be celebrated if won getting to the final counts for nothing if you lose it, and I'm a Liverpool fan

Liam McPoyle

Harry Palmr wrote: »

We can do that thing about who has had the better season - Man Utd second and an FA Cup final or Liverpool 4th and the CL final. With a poll! No, I'm not going to start that thread!

United have had a better league campaign as they finished ahead of Liverpool.

Liverpool have had a better cup campaign as the CL is a tougher tournament than the FA cup.

Over all if both teams win the cups then LFC have had the better season, likewise if both lose.

If United win and LFC lose then Uniteds season would be imo considered better, not by a huge amount mind.

9 days to go

Great to have this to look forward to

emo72

We all know Liverpool are going to be rampant. Every time we say, no this is one step too far, the opposition is too good this time. Well, we know what happens. Football Armageddon. The bigger the team the better for us.

5starpool

Business Cat wrote: »

United have had a better league campaign as they finished ahead of Liverpool.

Liverpool have had a better cup campaign as the CL is a tougher tournament than the FA cup.

Over all if both teams win the cups then LFC have had the better season, likewise if both lose.

If United win and LFC lose then Uniteds season would be imo considered better, not by a huge amount mind.

That's all accurate. Not really the right thread for this though (I know you didn't bring it up, I'm talking in general terms).

citytillidie

UEFA Facts and build up

Two of European club football's most famous names will meet at the NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium as Real Madrid CF look to lift the trophy for the 13th time – and the third season in a row – by overcoming a Liverpool FC side in a first final for 11 years and seeking their sixth European Cup overall.

• Victory in Kyiv would make Real Madrid the fourth team to claim three successive European crowns – and the first to do it twice, following their victories in the first five European Cup finals between 1956 and 1960. AFC Ajax (1971–73) and FC Bayern München (1974–76) are the only other clubs to have lifted the trophy three years running.

• Madrid's Zinédine Zidane could also become the first coach to win three European Cups in a row, having become the first to win the UEFA Champions League in consecutive seasons in 2017.

• Success in Kyiv would make it five UEFA Champions League triumphs for the competition's record goalscorer, Cristiano Ronaldo – another first. Ronaldo would become only the fifth player to appear in five European Cup final victories, and the first in the UEFA Champions League era, should he feature and Madrid triumph; the other four players are Madrid trio Paco Gento (the only player to appear in six final victories), Alfredo Di Stéfano and José María Zárraga, plus AC Milan's Paolo Maldini.

• The fixture is a repeat of the 1981 European Cup final, won 1-0 by Liverpool in Paris to give them a third triumph in the competition in five years. That was Madrid's last defeat in the final of this competition.

• That 1981 victory is also the only time an English club has prevailed against Spanish opposition in a European Cup final. Liga clubs have won the other three meetings, FC Barcelona beating Arsenal FC 2-1 in 2006 and Manchester United FC in both 2009 (2-0) and 2011 (3-1).

• This is the ninth time two clubs have met for a second time in the European Cup final – and the third season in a row, after Real Madrid's 2016 win against Club Atlético de Madrid, beaten by their neighbours in the 2014 final, and last year's defeat of Juventus, who had also succumbed to the Merengues in 1998. This is Madrid's fourth final rematch, and they have won all three previous such encounters; they also beat Stade de Reims in 1956 and 1959.

Previous meetings
• The sides have met on five previous occasions, all in the European Cup, with Liverpool winning three of those fixtures and Madrid two. The English club have scored six goals; Madrid have managed four.

• The teams last crossed paths in the 2014/15 group stage, Madrid winning both games with Karim Benzema scoring twice and Ronaldo once in the first, a 3-0 away win.

• The full line-ups at Anfield on 22 October 2014 were:
Liverpool: Mignolet, Johnson, Lovren, Škrtel, Moreno, Gerrard, Henderson (Can 67), Allen, Sterling, Coutinho (Marković 68), Balotelli (Lallana 46).
Real Madrid: Casillas, Arbeloa, Varane, Pepe, Marcelo (Nacho 85), Modrić, Kroos (Illarramendi 81), Isco, James Rodríguez, Benzema, Ronaldo (Khedira 75).

• Benzema got the only goal as Madrid won 1-0 in Spain two weeks later.

• At the Santiago Bernabéu on 4 November 2014, the sides were:
Real Madrid: Casillas, Arbeloa (Nacho 83), Varane, Ramos, Marcelo, Modrić, Kroos, Isco, James Rodríguez (Bale 62), Benzema (Hernández 87), Ronaldo.
Liverpool: Mignolet, Manquillo, Škrtel, Touré, Moreno, Lucas (Gerrard 69), Can (Coutinho 75), Allen, Lallana, Marković (Sterling 69), Borini.

• Liverpool beat Madrid 5-0 on aggregate in the 2008/09 round of 16. Rafael Benítez's Reds won the first leg 1-0 in Spain, Yossi Benayoun getting the only goal with eight minutes left.

• The line-ups at the Bernabéu on 25 February 2009 were:
Real Madrid: Casillas, Ramos, Pepe, Cannavaro, Heinze, Robben, Gago, Diarra, Marcelo (Guti 46), Higuaín, Raúl.
Liverpool: Reina, Arbeloa, Škrtel, Carragher, Fábio Aurélio, Benayoun, Alonso, Mascherano, Riera (Gerrard 88), Torres (Babel 62), Kuyt (Lucas 90).

• Liverpool completed a comfortable aggregate victory with a 4-0 success back on Merseyside – Madrid's biggest UEFA Champions League defeat – thanks to two Steven Gerrard goals (28pen, 47) and further strikes from Fernando Torres (16) and Andrea Dossena (88).

• The sides at Anfield on 10 March 2009 were:
Liverpool: Reina, Arbeloa, Škrtel, Carragher, Fábio Aurélio, Mascherano, Alonso (Lucas 60), Gerrard (Spearing 73), Babel, Kuyt, Torres (Dossena 84).
Real Madrid: Casillas, Ramos, Pepe, Cannavaro (Van der Vaart 64), Heinze, L Diarra, Gago (Guti 77), Sneijder, Robben (Marcelo 46), Raúl, Higuaín.

• Álvaro Arbeloa, part of Madrid's victorious squads in 2013/14 and 2015/16 although he did not appear in either final, and Xabi Alonso, who was in Madrid's squad in 2013/14 but also sat out the final, were in the Liverpool side for both matches.

• Bob Paisley's Liverpool also beat Madrid, coached by Vujadin Boškov, 1-0 in the 1981 European Champion Clubs' Cup final in Paris, Alan Kennedy scoring the only goal nine minutes from time.

• The teams on 27 May 1981 at the Parc des Princes were:
Liverpool: Clemence, Neal, Thompson, Hansen, A Kennedy, R Kennedy, Lee, McDermott, Souness, Johnson, Dalglish (Case 85).
Real Madrid: Agustín, García Cortés (Pineda 85), Camacho, Stielike, Sabido, Del Bosque, Juanito, Ángel, Santillana, García Navajas, Cunningham.

Final pedigree
Real Madrid
• Madrid have won a record 12 European Cups, and have triumphed in their last six finals. Overall their final record is W12 L3:
1955/56: Real Madrid 4-3 Stade de Reims Champagne
1956/57: Real Madrid 2-0 ACF Fiorentina
1957/58: Real Madrid 3-2 AC Milan (aet)
1958/59: Real Madrid 2-0 Stade de Reims Champagne
1959/60: Real Madrid 7-3 Eintracht Frankfurt
1961/62: SL Benfica 5-3 Real Madrid
1963/64: FC Internazionale Milano 3-1 Real Madrid
1965/66: Real Madrid 2-1 FK Partizan
1980/81: Liverpool FC 1-0 Real Madrid
1997/98: Real Madrid 1-0 Juventus
1999/00: Real Madrid 3-0 Valencia CF
2001/02: Real Madrid 2-1 Bayer 04 Leverkusen
2013/14: Real Madrid 4-1 Club Atlético Madrid (aet)
2015/16: Real Madrid 1-1 Club Atlético Madrid (aet; Real Madrid win 5-3 on penalties)
2016/17: Real Madrid 4-1 Juventus

• Last season, Madrid became the first side to make a successful UEFA Champions League title defence. They were the fifth reigning champions to return to the UEFA Champions League final the following season, and the first team to retain the European Cup since Milan (1989, 1990).

• Cristiano Ronaldo's two goals against Juventus made him the first player to score in three UEFA Champions League finals, following his goals in 2008, for Manchester United FC, and 2014.

• Sergio Ramos, who found the net against Atlético in both 2014 and 2016, could join Ronaldo in scoring in three finals. Ramos is one of five players to have scored in two finals, along with Raúl González (2000, 2002), Samuel Eto'o (2006, 2009), Lionel Messi (2009, 2011) and Mario Mandžukić (2013, 2017). Marcelo and Gareth Bale – who both netted in 2014 – and Marco Asensio and Casemiro, on target 12 months ago, could all join that list in Kyiv.

• Ramos, Ronaldo, Bale, Luka Modrić, Karim Benzema, Dani Carvajal, Marcelo and Isco could all appear in their fourth UEFA Champions League final victory for Madrid.

• In addition to those eight, Raphaël Varane appeared in the 2014 and 2017 finals while Keylor Navas, Toni Kroos and Casemiro all featured in 2016 and 2017. Lucas Vázquez came on as a substitute in 2016, as did Asensio last year; Kiko Casilla and Nacho have been unused replacements in each of the last two finals, with Mateo Kovačić on the bench in 2017.

• Madrid are the first team to reach three successive UEFA Champions League finals since Juventus between 1996 and 1998 – the Bianconeri won only one of those matches.

• Madrid's triumph in Cardiff in 2017 was the tenth UEFA Champions League win for a Spanish side – twice as many as the next highest-ranked nation, Italy. England are on four triumphs, with Germany on three the only other country to have recorded multiple victories.

• This is Madrid's 31st UEFA final. In addition to their 15 European Cup appearances, they were UEFA Cup winners in 1985 and 1986 and European Cup Winners' Cup runners-up in 1971 and 1983. They lifted the UEFA Super Cup in 2002, 2014, 2016 and 2017 having lost in 1998 and 2000, and won the European/South American Cup in 1960, 1998 and 2002, losing in 1966 and 2000.

Liverpool
• The Reds have won five of their seven previous European Cup finals:
1976/77: Liverpool 3-1 VfL Borussia Monchengladbach
1977/78: Liverpool 1-0 Club Brugge KV
1980/81: Liverpool 1-0 Real Madrid CF
1983/84: Liverpool 1-1 AS Roma (aet; Liverpool win 4-2 on penalties)
1984/85: Juventus 1-0 Liverpool
2004/05: Liverpool 3-3 AC Milan (aet; Liverpool win 3-2 on penalties)
2006/07: AC Milan 2-1 Liverpool

• This is Liverpool's 20th UEFA final. In addition to their seven European Cup appearances, they are three-time winners of the UEFA Cup/UEFA Europa League (1973, 1976, 2001), losing the 2016 final, and won the UEFA Super Cup in 1977, 2001 and 2005, losing in 1978 and 1984. They also lost in the 1965/66 European Cup Winners' Cup final, and the 1981 and 1984 European/South American Cup.

• No members of Liverpool's squad have previously played in a UEFA Champions League final.

• The Reds' last European final was a 3-1 loss against another Spanish side, Sevilla FC, in Basel in the 2015/16 UEFA Europa League. Simon Mignolet, Nathaniel Clyne, Dejan Lovren, Alberto Moreno, James Milner, Emre Can, Adam Lallana and Roberto Firmino all started that match at St. Jakob-Park; Jordan Henderson was an unused substitute.

• Liverpool's only other final against Spanish opposition was a 5-4 golden-goal success against Deportivo Alavés in the 2001 UEFA Cup in Dortmund. Their record in UEFA finals against Spanish opposition is therefore W2 L1.

Match background
Real Madrid
• Real Madrid's record in Kyiv is P4 W1 D2 L1 F6 A7, all four games coming in the UEFA Champions League against FC Dynamo Kyiv. Their last two trips both ended 2-2 in the group stage in November 2004 – a game in which Zidane played – and 2006. They lost 2-0 on their first visit in the 1998/99 quarter-finals, a young Andriy Shevchenko scoring both goals, before a 2-1 second group stage win the following season, Fernando Morientes and Raúl on target.

• Madrid's European season started with a victory against Premier League opposition, 2-1 against Manchester United FC in the UEFA Super Cup in Skopje on 8 August. They drew 1-1 at home to Tottenham Hotspur FC on matchday three, but a 12-match unbeaten run (W8 D4) against English opposition was ended by a 3-1 loss in the reverse fixture on 1 November. That was Madrid's first defeat against a team from England since their 4-0 loss at Liverpool in March 2009.

• Zidane's side have scored in their last 29 UEFA matches, their most recent blank coming against English opposition – a goalless draw against Manchester City FC in the 2015/16 UEFA Champions League semi-final first leg.

• The Spanish club's overall record against English sides is W15 D11 L11 F52 A43.

• Madrid's record in this season's competition is W8 D2 L2 F30 A15. They have kept three clean sheets in 12 matches, but have found the net in their last 27 UEFA Champions League outings.

• Zidane's charges finished second in Group H this season, collecting 13 points. They beat Paris Saint-Germain 5-2 on aggregate in the round of 16 (3-1 home, 2-1 away).

• Madrid reached the last four in dramatic circumstances, winning 3-0 in the quarter-final first leg at Juventus only to fall three goals behind in the Bernabéu return – before Ronaldo converted an added-time penalty to take them through. That 3-1 defeat at the Bernabéu ended Madrid's 18-match unbeaten home run in the UEFA Champions League (W15 D3).

• The Spanish side then ousted FC Bayern München in the semi-finals, winning 2-1 in Germany and progressing thanks to a 2-2 home draw.

• The 3-1 defeat at home to Juventus in the quarter-final second leg is only Madrid's third in their last 31 European fixtures, winning 21 and drawing seven. Those draws include the 2016 final against Atlético Madrid, which Madrid won on penalties in Milan.

• This season Ronaldo became the first player to score in all six group games, registering nine goals overall. He also struck in each leg of both the last 16 and the quarter-final, meaning he had scored in every game this season before drawing a blank in both legs of the semi-final; he is the competition's top scorer with 15 goals. The only player to have bettered that total is Ronaldo himself, with 17 goals in 2013/14 and 16 in 2015/16.

• Madrid's shoot-out record in European competition is W2 L2:
5-3 v Club Atlético de Madrid, 2015/16 UEFA Champions League final
1-3 v FC Bayern München, 2011/12 UEFA Champions League semi-final
3-1 v Juventus, 1986/87 European Cup second round
5-6 v FK Crvena zvezda, 1974/75 European Cup Winners' Cup quarter-final

Liverpool
• Liverpool's record in two visits to Kyiv is W1 D1 L0 F3 A2. Danny Murphy and Steven Gerrard struck as a Reds team coached by Phil Thompson, with manager Gérard Houllier absent for health reasons, won 2-1 against Dynamo at the Dynamo Stadium in the 2001/02 UEFA Champions League first group stage. Rafael Benítez's side then drew 1-1 with Maccabi Haifa FC at the same venue – by that time renamed the Valeriy Lobanovskiy Stadium – in the third quliafying round of the 2006/07 competition, Peter Crouch their scorer to complete a 3-2 aggregate triumph.

• The Reds have already faced Spanish opposition this season, drawing home (2-2) and away (3-3) with Sevilla FC, letting slip a 3-0 half-time lead in the second game in Spain.

• A 3-0 home win against Villarreal CF in the 2015/16 UEFA Europa League semi-final is Liverpool's only success in their last seven fixtures against Spanish clubs (D2 L4) – a sequence that includes that 2016 UEFA Europa League final loss to Sevilla.

• Overall, the Merseyside club's record against Spanish sides is W14 D12 L11 F46 A38. They have won only one of their last seven fixtures against Liga clubs outside England – that 2009 success at Real Madrid.

• Liverpool's unbeaten record in this season's competition was ended by the 4-2 defeat at AS Roma in the semi-final second leg, the Reds progressing 7-6 on aggregate. Their record since matchday one is now W7 D4 L1 F40 A13.

• Liverpool finished first in Group E this season with 12 points, beating NK Maribor 7-0 away and FC Spartak Moskva by the same scoreline at home. FC Porto were overcome 5-0 in the away first leg and on aggregate in the round of 16, before a 5-1 defeat of Manchester City over the two legs of the quarter-finals (3-0 home, 2-1 away).

• Including qualifying, Liverpool have scored 46 goals in 14 games this season, at an average of 3.29 goals per game – surpassing Barcelona's record of 45 from 1999/2000. Discounting the Reds' haul of six against TSG 1899 Hoffenheim in the play-offs they are on 40 goals and still third on the all-time list behind Barcelona's 1999/2000 tally of 45 goals and Madrid's 41 in 2013/14.

• Liverpool's record in four UEFA penalty shoot-outs is W3 L1:
4-5 v Beşiktaş JK, 2014/15 UEFA Europa League round of 32
4-1 v Chelsea FC, 2006/07 UEFA Champions League semi-final
3-2 v AC Milan, 2004/05 UEFA Champions League final
4-2 v AS Roma, 1983/84 European Champion Clubs' Cup final

Coach and player links
• Jürgen Klopp oversaw four games against Madrid as Borussia Dortmund coach in 2012/13. After a 2-1 win in Germany and 2-2 draw in Spain in the group stage, the teams met again in the semi-finals, Dortmund going through despite a 2-0 away second-leg defeat having won 4-1 at home, Robert Lewandowski scoring all four of the Bundesliga side's goals. Ronaldo, in the first leg, and Karim Benzema and Ramos, in the second, scored for Madrid.

• The following season Madrid ousted Klopp's Dortmund in the quarter-finals, goals from Bale, Isco and Ronaldo securing a 3-0 first-leg win at the Bernabéu. The Spanish side held on despite a 2-0 away loss in the return.

• Sergio Ramos has already won a major European trophy at the NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, having featured in Spain's UEFA EURO 2012 final win against Italy.

• Karim Benzema featured as France lost 2-0 to Sweden at the same venue earlier in the group stage of the same tournament, and also played in a 2-2 draw with Ukraine in UEFA EURO 2008 qualifying in 2007.

• Dejan Lovren and Luka Modrić played for Croatia in a 2-0 FIFA World Cup qualifying win against Ukraine at the NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium in October 2017.

• Toni Kroos scored his second international goal, and first from open play, in a 3-3 friendly draw against Ukraine at the NSC Olimpiyskiy in November 2011.

• Nacho and Isco started as Spain won 1-0 at the NSC Olimpiyskiy in an October 2015 European qualifier.

• Jordan Henderson came off the bench for England in a 0-0 draw with Italy in the UEFA EURO 2012 quarter-finals in Kyiv, his side losing 4-2 on penalties. Injured club-mate Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was an unused substitute.

• James Milner and Oxlade-Chamberlain had featured in a 3-2 group stage defeat of Sweden in Kyiv at the same tournament, with Henderson staying on the bench.

• Milner returned to play in England's 0-0 World Cup qualifying draw in Ukraine in September 2013.

• Mohamed Salah played at the NSC Olimpiyskiy for ACF Fiorentina while on loan from Chelsea FC in a 1-1 2014/15 UEFA Europa League quarter-final draw.

• Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice in nine appearances against Liverpool for Manchester United, winning five, losing three and drawing one.

• Modrić faced Liverpool eight times with Tottenham Hotspur FC (W5 D1 L2) and scored once, a penalty in a 2-0 victory at Anfield in May 2011.

• Gareth Bale's record against Liverpool with Tottenham was W4 D2 L3. His only goal in nine appearances came in a 2-1 home victory in November 2012.

• Moreno faced Real Madrid three times during his time at Sevilla (W1 L2).

• International team-mates:
Marcelo, Casemiro & Roberto Firmino (Brazil)
Luka Modrić, Mateo Kovaćić & Dejan Lovren (Croatia)
Sergio Ramos, Dani Carvajal, Nacho, Marco Asensio, Isco, Lucas Vázquez & Alberto Moreno (Spain)
Toni Kroos & Emre Can (Germany)
Gareth Bale & Ben Woodburn (Wales)

^

Nice post

Harry Palmr

Forget all that, this is all you need to know

Liverpool in red beat RM in white in '81 which if seen in a mirror is '18.

IncognitoMan

I think Liverpool will have to score early. Start well like they did against City and anything can happen. The Real defense is weak enough, Bayern created plenty against them and had a 35 year old Ribery looking world class again.

It'll be interesting to see how Zidane approaches the game because he will have to be very weary of Liverpool building momentum early on. If he keeps it tight and looks to control the midfield then Real have the experience advantage at this level.

My prediction is a Liverpool win. Think Real might just be at the end of a great team cycle and there's always a game that's a step too far for those great sides. Liverpool aren't amazing but they do have the attacking threat to cause damage in quick succession and I think they'll get those chances. I'm going to go with a scoreline of 3-2 Liverpool but it will be 3 goals scored early by pool and Real just unable to overturn it.

The Salah v Marcelo battle could be the difference and is one I'm very interested to see. I think Marcelo is a bit of a nutter and the defender closest to him in Ramos is much the same. Both capable of a man of the match performance or getting sent off.

Because of that I think we'll also see our first human winner of a ballon d'or in over a decade.

xtal191

Stolen from redcafe :eek:

2005:
A Prince got married
Manchester United 2-1 Liverpool (og for Liverpool)
United lose the 05 FA Cup final.
Liverpool win the CL

2018:
A Prince gets married
Manchester United 2-1 Liverpool (og for Liverpool)
United lose the FA Cup final
Liverpool in the CL final.....

Berserker

This should be a really interesting game. On CL form, you'd go for Liverpool but Real are the one team in Europe who has the ability to turn up next Saturday, put in a five star performance and win the trophy for a third season in a row. That'll also mean that the last five CLs will have been won by a Spanish side. On a side note, the venue must be a pain for fans travel wise, any idea what sort of numbers are going from Liverpool?

monkey9

xtal191 wrote: »

Stolen from redcafe :eek:

2005:
A Prince got married
Manchester United 2-1 Liverpool (og for Liverpool)
United lose the 05 FA Cup final.
Liverpool win the CL

2018:
A Prince gets married
Manchester United 2-1 Liverpool (og for Liverpool)
United lose the FA Cup final
Liverpool in the CL final.....

Ken Barlow better up his game and start an affair this week.

Harry Palmr

The Pope is not sleeping well I hear.

Agent Coulson

1981

A Prince gets married.

Man U 2 Liverpool 1

A Manchester team loses FA cup final

Liverpool win European Cup.


A new Doctor Who regenerates in 1981,2005,2018.

yourdeadwright

Agent Coulson wrote: »

1981

A Prince gets married.

Man U 2 Liverpool 1

A Manchester team loses FA cup final

Liverpool win European Cup.


A new Doctor Who regenerates in 1981,2005,2018.

even stranger
The same things happened in 2005 as well,
Prince gets married ( for the second time,)
United 2- Liverool 1
United lose to a London team Fa Cup final,
Liverpool win champions league ,

Ste-

Harry Palmr wrote: »

'81 which if seen in a mirror is '18.

Technically it'd be 18' not '18 in the mirror but y'know that's nitpicking.

:P

Guy:Incognito

yourdeadwright wrote: »

even stranger
The same things happened in 2005 as well,
Prince gets married ( for the second time,)
United 2- Liverool 1
United lose to a London team Fa Cup final,
Liverpool win champions league ,

Can't see Prince getting married this year

rob316

Last time Liverpool played a Spanish team in a European final going for 3 in a row, we lost

5starpool

rob316 wrote: »

Last time Liverpool played a Spanish team in a European final going for 3 in a row, we lost

The last time we played Madrid in a European final we won.

All of these stats and/or portents are equally as useful as each other for predicting how the game on Saturday will turn out. I really I'm probably falling into a trap here, but I have to say: what a load of utter crap.

ERG89

rob316 wrote:

Last time Liverpool played a Spanish team in a European final going for 3 in a row, we lost

I think I read recently the last time a Spanish team lost to a non Spanish side in a european final was 2001. When Valencia & Alaves lost to Bayern & Liverpool respectively.

Phoenix Wright

Is there a thread for those travelling to Kiev? The flights are extortionate, but I'm wondering if there's a cheaper way on such short notice

Marty Bird

Phoenix Wright wrote: »

Is there a thread for those travelling to Kiev? The flights are extortionate, but I'm wondering if there's a cheaper way on such short notice

Have you tried via Cologne?

Phoenix Wright

Marty Bird wrote: »

Have you tried via Cologne?

It looks pricey from what I can tell, still around €600 but it would be fantastic as I am familiar with the area. Is there someway of getting there cheaper from Cologne?

Kolido

Have you checked going through Poland, they usually have low cost flights.

Phoenix Wright

Kolido wrote: »

Have you checked going through Poland, they usually have low cost flights.

Warsaw was one option I was looking at, Moldova seems to be cheap too but I would hate for something to happen. Are Eastern European countries generally safe to travel to and from?

Kolido

Phoenix Wright wrote: »

Warsaw was one option I was looking at, Moldova seems to be cheap too but I would hate for something to happen. Are Eastern European countries generally safe to travel to and from?

I live in Eastern Slovakia, close to the Ukraine border. Can't say what its like further east but if you keep your wits about you you should be grand.

IncognitoMan

Phoenix Wright wrote: »

Warsaw was one option I was looking at, Moldova seems to be cheap too but I would hate for something to happen. Are Eastern European countries generally safe to travel to and from?

Poland is grand anyway. Never had any trouble there. Can't speak for the rest.

Muahahaha

Phoenix Wright wrote: »

Is there a thread for those travelling to Kiev? The flights are extortionate, but I'm wondering if there's a cheaper way on such short notice

Go over to irishkop.com there is a lot of info there in the European Away thread

Phoenix Wright wrote: »

Warsaw was one option I was looking at, Moldova seems to be cheap too but I would hate for something to happen. Are Eastern European countries generally safe to travel to and from?

I would not do it via Moldova but if you do make sure you do not need a visa because Moldova is not in the EU. If you do need a visa before arrival then it is going to be too late as they take a working week to process.

You might get lucky which some bizarre routing. I know some Scousers who flew to Turkey today on a cheapo one week package holiday. They then got cheap flights from there to Kiev for the match and back. Tbh though at this late stage I would say your best bet is via Warsaw and suck up the 10-12 hour journey to Kiev. I would be booking train tickets in advance though because lots of others will be using that route given flights to Kiev are now crazy money. I would expect all trains ex Warsaw to Kiev will be packed with fans from both sides.

Agent Coulson

Madrid handed back 2k tickets of there 16k allocation.

Fans finding it to hard and expensive to get to Kiev.

NIMAN

UEFA is a joke, giving it to places that cost the fans too much to get to and stay in.

Won't bother the suits though, and their entourages, getting all the best hotels, people carriers to and from the stadium....I've seen this first hand a few times.

Phoenix Wright

Muahahaha wrote: »

Go over to irishkop.com there is a lot of info there in the European Away thread



I would not do it via Moldova but if you do make sure you do not need a visa because Moldova is not in the EU. If you do need a visa before arrival then it is going to be too late as they take a working week to process.

You might get lucky which some bizarre routing. I know some Scousers who flew to Turkey today on a cheapo one week package holiday. They then got cheap flights from there to Kiev for the match and back. Tbh though at this late stage I would say your best bet is via Warsaw and suck up the 10-12 hour journey to Kiev. I would be booking train tickets in advance though because lots of others will be using that route given flights to Kiev are now crazy money. I would expect all trains ex Warsaw to Kiev will be packed with fans from both sides.

Thanks everyone for the responses so far! To make things worse, the crowd want me to decide by noon tomorrow. It's going to be a close call, I don't know if it's feasible to secure everything when I've got work at nine in the morning.

Madrid tickets going for half the price on touting sites too. I'd say there'll be tons of Liverpool fans in their end.

11,000 Liverpool fans didn't get tickets in the club ballot. The demand is huge.

16k per club is a dismal amount. Well in Madrid's case it's enough.

NIMAN

RoboKlopp wrote: »

Madrid tickets going for half the price on touting sites too. I'd say there'll be tons of Liverpool fans in their end.

11,000 Liverpool fans didn't get tickets in the club ballot. The demand is huge.

16k per club is a dismal amount. Well in Madrid's case it's enough.

Being at CL Finals isn't a rare thing for Madrid fans though, its not like they never get to them. Probably made it easier for a lot of them to say "bugger that, I ain't paying that sort of money to get to Kiev and stay there for 1 night".

Berserker

Phoenix Wright wrote: »

Is there a thread for those travelling to Kiev? The flights are extortionate, but I'm wondering if there's a cheaper way on such short notice

Have to thought about flying to a Poland and busing it? You can get a bus from Warsaw, for example to Kiev for buttons. It's a long trek but very cost effective and the buses are excellent. Not sure if the mods will approve of me posting links here to travel sites but you find them easily if you search for the route in google. I'll PM you about the flights.

Kolido wrote: »

Have you checked going through Poland, they usually have low cost flights.

Looks like the way to go alright. Need to be care in Poland though. You can't rent a car and drive it to Kiev, for example. 99% certain about that.

Agent Coulson

NIMAN wrote: »

Being at CL Finals isn't a rare thing for Madrid fans though, its not like they never get to them. Probably made it easier for a lot of them to say "bugger that, I ain't paying that sort of money to get to Kiev and stay there for 1 night".

This is Madrid's 5th Champions league final in the 21st Century.


It's Liverpool's 3rd not bad for a Liverpool team that has been in the doldrums for a decade.

NIMAN

NIMAN wrote: »

Being at CL Finals isn't a rare thing for Madrid fans though, its not like they never get to them. Probably made it easier for a lot of them to say "bugger that, I ain't paying that sort of money to get to Kiev and stay there for 1 night".

Aren't they supposed to be one of the biggest supported teams in the world?

Can't even fill 16k :rolleyes:

A lot of plastic fans me thinks

NIMAN

Agent Coulson wrote: »

This is Madrid's 5th Champions league final in the 21st Century.


It's Liverpool's 3rd not bad for a Liverpool that has been in the doldrums for a decade.

Yeah they have been at quite a few recently.

Berserker

Berserker wrote: »

Have to thought about flying to a Poland and busing it? You can get a bus from Warsaw, for example to Kiev for buttons. It's a long trek but very cost effective and the buses are excellent. Not sure if the mods will approve of me posting links here to travel sites but you find them easily if you search for the route in google. I'll PM you about the flights.



Looks like the way to go alright. Need to be care in Poland though. You can't rent a car and drive it to Kiev, for example. 99% certain about that.

Not true. I know people doing this.

A campervan perhaps, but not car.

Berserker

RoboKlopp wrote: »

Not true. I know people doing this.

A campervan perhaps, but not car.

Interesting, that must have changed over the past few years. Might be an option for that poster.

RoboKlopp wrote: »

Aren't they supposed to be one of the biggest supported teams in the world?

Can't even fill 16k :rolleyes:

A lot of plastic fans me thinks

Be fair. It's pretty much and annual outing for them at this stage and Kiev is a nightmare to get to.

Berserker

Berserker wrote: »

Be fair. It's pretty much and annual outing for them at this stage and Kiev is a nightmare to get to.

Ah still, with the amount of fans worldwide I'd have thought they'd easily sell their allocation.

It's not that bad to get to, it's just the most direct and cheapest routes have been snapped up a while now.

mikeym

Plastic Fans.

The final means more to Liverpool fans and if they win they will go at it awful and very hard

bucketybuck

RoboKlopp wrote: »

A lot of plastic fans me thinks

Is it not a bit sanctimonious to start calling out plastic fans considering the rumoured prices surrounding the game? I know I couldn't justify the hotel prices in Kiev that night never mind the cost of the ticket itself.

bucketybuck

bucketybuck wrote: »

Is it not a bit sanctimonious to start calling out plastic fans considering the rumoured prices surrounding the game? I know I couldn't justify the hotel prices in Kiev that night never mind the cost of the ticket itself.

Plenty of other ways. Stay eleswhere, fly out early the next day, no accomadation needed. Rent air bnb, know a few doing this for 100 a night. Not bad tbf. Loads of various ways Liverpool fans are getting around it, no reason Madrid can't couldn't either.

Anyway, my point was they are so well supported worldwide and couldn't fill their allocation. Liverpool could probably fill close to double theirs. Madrid had the advantage of being in the final first too so had a better choice of flights.

Muahahaha

Phoenix Wright wrote: »

Thanks everyone for the responses so far! To make things worse, the crowd want me to decide by noon tomorrow. It's going to be a close call, I don't know if it's feasible to secure everything when I've got work at nine in the morning.

Just go man and do it anyway you can- even if you cant find accomodation the pubs will be open all night and if we win that is where you will want to be anyway. It is not often we get to a European Cup final so if you can make it then I would say grab the opportunity. I went to the last final in Basel and even though the result wasnt good I still had a whale of a time and met some great supporters, a couple of whom are now my supplier for Kop tickets

RoboKlopp wrote: »

Ntot true. I know people doing this.

A campervan perhaps, but not car.

yeah but I would not fancy crossing the Polish-Ukrainian border in a car, I have done it before on foot and was held up on the Ukrainian side for almost 90 minutes. A car would be even worse, it gives the soldiers extra opportunity for lengthy searches and bribes. Tell your mates to allow plenty of time, especially if they are planning on crossing the border on the day of the actual match.