A look at the UEFA Champions League's full English finale
Josh McNally
["europe"]
In one of the biggest clashes between the red and the white, Liverpool FC are facing Tottenham Hotspur in Madrid, Spain at Atletico Madrid's home ground, the Wanda Metropolitano on Saturday. The Champions League final, the highlight of the club football season, is upon us once again, and this year it's a tie that has been broadcast globally twice this past season, once at Anfield, and once at Wembley, both ending 2-1 to the Redmen.
Intra-league finals in inter-league competitions can be difficult to be excited for. Unlike the usual spectacle of seeing two giants clash, these games are re-runs, over-hyped because of the occasion. However, this one is actually special due to the history, recent and ancient, of the two sides, as well as the larger context of the English Premier League (EPL) at the moment. With the exception of the reigning champions Manchester City, propped up more so by Sheik Mansoor's wealth than anything else, the (EPL) is a free-for-all and while that's left the league looking like a shambles of City and 19 bad teams, the shackles are genuinely off.
Returning Liverpool forward Roberto Firmino training before the UEFA Champions League final at the Wanda Metropolitano stadium in Madrid, Spain, May 31, 2019. /@LFC Photo

Returning Liverpool forward Roberto Firmino training before the UEFA Champions League final at the Wanda Metropolitano stadium in Madrid, Spain, May 31, 2019. /@LFC Photo

As recent as two or three years ago, the prospect of a Liverpool versus Tottenham Hotspur final would have been grim. Now, it's a herald of this new era where anything seems possible. With the exception of that night in Istanbul, Liverpool have bobbed along as Premier League has beens, living like lotus eaters in the increasingly distant pre-EPL glory days of the Football League while a conveyor belt of competent managers such as Gerard Houllier, Roy Hodgson, Brendan Rogers and "King" Kenny Dalgliesh kept the ship steady. Even the biggest Liverpool haters have to admit that the rejuvenation that has happened under Jurgen Klopp is a miracle. The combination of his high intensity gegenpress tactics and positive mindset have been irresistible, delighting fans and slaying giants along the way.
At least they have a history to be nostalgic about: Tottenham Hotspur are a never "was team" whose most famous lineage is that they had never finished above north London rival Arsenal during the Premier League era – until now. If Liverpool had a conveyor belt, Tottenham have had a revolving door, with 11 managers this century, almost all of whom could be referred to as caretakers. This changed when Mauricio Pochettino arrived on a five year contract; much like Klopp, he entirely rejigged the team to his standards and, in a rare move for an EPL side, favored English players who had been blooded through the team's academy and youth sides, creating a team that wants to prove itself whenever it can.
Returning Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane training for the UEFA Champions League final, May 31, 2019. /@SpursOfficial Photo

Returning Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane training for the UEFA Champions League final, May 31, 2019. /@SpursOfficial Photo

Going into the game, Liverpool have a decided advantage: Not only have they been the more dominant side all season, their team is already set. Besides for the returning Roberto Firmino, who is expected to start on the bench, every position is set; for Tottenham, Harry Kane's recovery from the ankle injury that took him out of the quarterfinals against Manchester City puts Pochettino in a bind. Kane is considered to be the team's superstar striker, yet if he returns, it means one of either Son Heung-min or Lucas Moura, the heroes of the quarter- and semi-finals respectively, will have to be sidelined for a player who hasn't took part in a full football match since the beginning of April.
Sporting predictions are difficult to make at the best of times, especially when its a game featuring two attacking teams that are playing for legacy as well as for themselves, but with both taking part in massive comebacks to get here – Liverpool defeated Barcelona 4-0 in an already legendary game and Tottenham beat favorites Ajax in the last minute - there is a sense that anything could happen.