The 2021/22 Champions League Final gets underway later this month with European heavyweights Liverpool and Real Madrid doing battle at the Stage de France on 28th May.
Europe’s premier club competition is now approaching its climax with Liverpool aiming to avenge their 3-1 defeat to Real Madrid in Kyiv back in 2018. These two sides are the most successful in European competition, the Reds having won the Champions League six times and Real Madrid lifting the trophy no less than thirteen times. Given the massive global popularity of both sides, this match could well prove to be the most watched Champions League Final ever and the bookmakers are pulling out all the stops to bring punters some great free bets and other exclusive promotions on this clash.
Road to the Final
Liverpool
Jurgen Klopp’s men enjoyed an excellent Group B campaign whereupon they finished in pole position with wins in each of their six group outings and an excellent goal difference of +11. The Reds left FC Porto, AC Milan and Atletico Madrid in their wake as they secured for themselves a fifth successive appearance in the knockout stages of the tournament.
In the last-sixteen round, Liverpool edged past Atletico Madrid 2-1 on aggregate to set themselves up with a quarter-final meeting with Benfica, Jurgen Klopp’s men winning the first leg 3-1 before sharing the spoils in a six-goal thriller at Anfield.
Champions League surprise package Villarreal were next in Liverpool’s sights and Klopp’s men enjoyed a deserved 2-0 win at Anfield before finishing the job with a 3-2 win at the Estadio de la Ceramica. Liverpool are now in their third Champions League Final in five seasons and you can keep up-to-date on all the latest live football scores for this eagerly-awaited clash.
Real Madrid
Real Madrid dominated in Group D and finished this stage of the competition in pole position, five points separating them from second-placed Inter Milan. Los Blancos won five of their six group games but a shock 2-1 defeat at home to minnows Sheriff in their second outing will have left a bitter taste in the Spanish giants’ months.
Real’s first knockout stage encounter was against Paris Saint-Germain with Carlo Ancelotti’s men heading into this clash as outsiders. A last-gasp winner for Kylian Mbappe suggested that Real’s European campaign might be about to fizzle out, however this last-sixteen tie took a sensational turn at the Bernabeu with Mbappe doubling PSG’s aggregate lead prior to the break before Champions League top-scorer Karim Benzema scored a hat-trick, thus sending his side into the last eight and setting up a meeting with defending champions Chelsea.
In this one, Benzema carried on where he left off by firing Los Blancos into the lead and he went on to bag another hat-trick in the 3-1 win at Stamford Bridge. The Blues mounted a comeback in the second leg to win 3-1 in regulation time, however Benzema once again soaked up the limelight by scoring the winner in extra time to make it 5-4 on aggregate to Real.
In the semi-final against Manchester City, Real succumbed to a 4-3 defeat but in reality it could have been far heavier. These wasted scoring opportunities came back to hit the Citizens in the second leg when a 1-0 lead going into stoppage time was squandered and Real pulled the tie level to force extra-time, whereupon Benzema converted a penalty to send his men into the final.
Champions League Final Preview
Liverpool
This Champions League Final could well prove to be a history-defining game for Jurgen Klopp’s men. The Reds secured the League Cup earlier in the season and having reached the final of the FA Cup they remain on course to secure an unprecedented treble. Nevertheless in the Premier League, two dropped points against Tottenham Hotspur at the weekend have dented Liverpool’s chances of overtaking rivals Man City in the race for the title and as such, each of the Reds’ remaining league outings are very much ‘make or break’ affairs. These could either build or crush Liverpool’s confidence ahead of their Champions league Final showdown.
Liverpool have been exceptional on all fronts this term although while the quadruple is still a possibility, the chances of Jurgen Klopp’s men achieving this mammoth feat are looking slimmer.
Real Madrid
Real Madrid have been utterly dominant in this season’s La Liga campaign and have dethroned their city rivals Atletico with four matches to spare. Having cruised to a 35th league title, Los Blancos now have time to rest and fully prepare for this showdown with Liverpool later this month. Indeed while many believed that Real’s ageing stars such as Toni Kroos, Luka Modric and Karim Benzema would likely run out of steam in the latter stages of the campaign, nothing has been further from the truth and these doubters have been well and truly silenced.
The record-holding European champions have suffered defeat in just three of their Champions League finals and it would certainly be unwise to write them off on May 28th.
Best Betting Odds
Understandably, Liverpool come into this one as big favourites with some bookies going as low as 19/20 on the Reds to win in 90 minutes. Real Madrid are priced at a general 5/2 to claim the prize in normal time while most top betting sites go 27/10 on this clash ending all-square at the final whistle and going into extra-time.
90 Minutes
19/20 – Liverpool
5/2 – Real Madrid
27/10 – Draw
Similarly the Reds are also favourites in the ‘Lift Trophy’ market with most bookmakers going 4/7 on Jurgen Klopp’s men, while Real Madrid are up for grabs at a healthy 13/8 to become European champions for the fourteenth time.
To Lift Trophy
4/7 – Liverpool
13/8 – Real Madrid
Both sides have been amongst the goals in both domestic and European competition and most bookies predict that this will be the case when the sides meet in the French capital later this month.
Under/Over 2.5 Goals
8/11 – Over 2.5
11/10 – Under 2.5
Liverpool were involved in a five-goal thriller against Villarreal in the semi-final second leg while Real Madrid put six against Man City across the two legs of their semi-final, therefore we envisage that we will see a goal fest at the Stage de France in the final of the competition.
Over/Under 3.5 Goals
2/5 – Under 3.5
15/8 – Over 3.5
The last two Champions League finals have each been won by just a solitary goal, however on this occasion we expect to see a more goal-laden encounter.
Correct Score
6/1 – 1-1 Draw
8/1 – 1-0 Liverpool
8/1 – 2-1 Liverpool
10/1 – 2-0 Liverpool
14/1 – 3-1 Liverpool
14/1 – 2-2 Draw
14/1 – 0-0 Draw
14/1 – 2-1 Real Madrid
14/1 – 1-0 Real Madrid
Both Liverpool and Real Madrid possess a wealth of attacking talent and goals could come from many directions, however Karim Benzema has been sublime for Los Blancos this season and we envisage him playing a pivotal part in this encounter. Similarly Mohamed Salah has been on top form for Liverpool this term and he will pose a threat for the Spanish side.
First Goalscorer
4/1 – Mohamed Salah
23/5 – Karim Benzema
27/5 – Diogo Jota
6/1 – Sadio Mane
13/2 – Roberto Firmino
13/2 – Divock Origi
7/1 – Luis Diaz
15/2 – Takumi Minamino
17/2 – Luka Jovic
9/1 – Vinicius Junior
10/1 – Gareth Bale
10/1 – Marco Asensio
Our Prediction
There’s a piece of history up for grabs here as Jurgen Klopp’s men will look to finish what has been an exceptional season on a high. They are still in the running for the Premier League title despite dropping points at the weekend and as favourites to win the FA Cup and Champions League, victory in this huge European final would be the icing on the cake.
Nevertheless we’ll be siding with Karim Benzema and his comrades to throw a massive spanner in the works here. Los Blancos are by far the most successful side at the top level of the European game and having lost just three of their sixteen Champions League finals, we’ll be backing them to take home some more European silverware in less than three weeks time.
Why not take advantage of all the excellent free bets and other promotions on this season’s Champions League Final, available from the best UK and Irish betting sites.
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