For the first time since 2008, the Uefa Champions League final will be contested by two English teams as Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur clash at the Wanda Metropolitano in Madrid.
Ahead of Saturday's final in the Spanish capital, Richard Jolly looks at six factors that could prove decisive.
The Harry Kane factor
Harry Kane is the personification of Mauricio Pochettino's Tottenham, a relative unknown who has blossomed under the Argentinian to score 159 goals in five seasons and win the World Cup's Golden Boot. But Kane has not played for almost two months and, while he has pronounced himself fit to start after an ankle injury, he is a lesser player when he lacks sharpness.
If Pochettino's decision is partly pragmatic, it is also an issue of man-management: Kane deserves to play for his efforts over five seasons, but Son Heung-Min was the quarter-final hero and Lucas Moura the architect of a sensational semi-final comeback. One of that trio will probably have to be a substitute. If Spurs lose, Pochettino will be damned for whichever decision he takes.
Four or five at the back for Pochettino?
Pochettino has spent the season alternating between four and five at the back. Sometimes his choices have been enforced by injuries, particularly in midfield, and he has often named three centre-backs against the better teams of late. That backfired in the home game against Ajax.
Following the same approach carries risks against Liverpool, of leaving a trio isolated against their formidable front three. Pochettino ought to instead use a narrow quartet to try and limit the space for Liverpool’s forward trio. But that contains potential problems on Spurs’ right …
Mane v Trippier
Sadio Mane scored in last season’s Champions League final. He has reached new heights since then; indeed, in the last 16 months, only Cristiano Ronaldo has scored more goals in the competition’s knockout stages. If Kieran Trippier also had achievements to savour in the summer of 2018, when he was the outstanding right-back in the World Cup, he has regressed since then.
He has had a difficult season defensively, struggling in both the quarter-final and semi-final and losing his place in the England squad. For Liverpool, the combination of Mane and an overlapping Andrew Robertson against Trippier represents a potential advantage.
The men in the middle
Tottenham’s concerns relate not to one Harry, but two. Harry Winks has also been out since April 9. Winks and Moussa Sissoko have been the best of Spurs’ central midfielders in a difficult year for both Eric Dier and Victor Wanyama.
If one question for Pochettino is whether he begins without a specialist nullifier to prefer the duo who have impressed most often, another is how he configures his midfield: a 4-2-3-1 formation, or a diamond that could give Liverpool’s raiding full-backs too much room.
Jurgen Klopp’s faces his own dilemma: Georginio Wijnaldum, his best midfielder this season, scored twice as a substitute against Barcelona but the fact he was on the bench was because Jordan Henderson, James Milner and Fabinho began. Each of the quartet merits a place. Only three can begin the match.
Mohamed Salah's form
Perhaps Mohamed Salah’s greatest goal came against Tottenham last season. He may approach a reunion with different concerns. “I hope I can play the full game this time,” he said this week.
His participation was cruelly curtailed by Sergio Ramos and a dislocated shoulder last year when he was in the form of his life. If he feels he has a point to prove, Salah can sometimes shoot too much when he is too eager to impress.
Keep on running
Liverpool and Spurs scripted two of the Champions League’s greatest ever comebacks in successive nights in the semi-finals. They are reasons why no one should turn off the television or leave the stadium before the final whistle. They also reflect the belief both sides have and their running power that means they can keep on going. It may be a question if one can overpower the other.
Both meetings this season have featured an injury-time strike: a consolation for Erik Lamela at Wembley and an own goal from Toby Alderweireld that gave Liverpool victory at Anfield. One way or another, there is potential for more late drama.
