Real Madrid aiming for third straight triumph
Liverpool are top scorers with a record 46 goals
Zidane: "Pressure is life, it makes it better"
Klopp: "We are Liverpool and this is in our DNA"
Game is at same venue as UEFA EURO 2012 final
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Possible line-ups
Real Madrid: Navas; Carvajal, Varane, Ramos, Marcelo; Casemiro, Kroos, Modrić, Isco; Ronaldo, Bale
Out: none
Doubtful: none
Liverpool: Karius; Alexander-Arnold, Van Dijk, Lovren, Robertson; Henderson, Milner, Wijnaldum; Mané, Firmino, Salah
Out: Oxlade-Chamberlain (knee ligaments), Gomez (ankle), Matip (thigh)
Doubtful: Emre Can (back)
Reporters' views
Joe Walker, Real Madrid (@UEFAcomJoeW)
Well, once again Madrid are here. The UEFA Champions League final is a date they have circled in the diary every year and once more they may believe it is their destiny to lift the trophy, this year for an unprecedented 13th time. Zinédine Zidane has a selection dilemma up top – Gareth Bale or Karim Benzema? – but whoever isn't given the nod isn't a bad option to bring on, either.
Matthew Howarth, Liverpool (@UEFAcomMattH)
Jürgen Klopp's troops have no reason to fear Real Madrid. The Merengues may have big-game experience on their side, but Liverpool's irrepressible front three are capable of inflicting serious damage on the holders. If the Reds can show the defensive steel that served them so well over two legs against Manchester City in the quarters, they might just crown this remarkable campaign with a sixth European Cup.
What the coaches say
Zinédine Zidane, Real Madrid coach
Football is simple. There are two teams and you need to understand the opponent can hurt you and control that. Then when you have the ball you need to try to do them harm with your style of play. We're not favourites, nor are they. It's 50-50 as finals always are. We're happy to be here and play another final. We'll never live this again. We'll live other moments but we'll never have today and tomorrow again. We need to take advantage. If there's pressure, well, that's life. It makes it better.
Jürgen Klopp, Liverpool manager
We had an agreement when we started working together that I'm responsible for any defeats, the boys are responsible for when we win. So they have nothing to lose. Experience is very important and I'm pretty sure a second before the game Madrid will be more confident than us. But it doesn't matter because the game doesn't stop there, it only starts. They've not played us and we are Liverpool – not only a good football team, but we have in our DNA to go for big things.
Where to watch
Fans can find their local UEFA Champions League broadcast partner(s) here
Fantasy Football top points-scorers
Real Madrid: Cristiano Ronaldo, forward (88 points, €12.9m)
Liverpool: Roberto Firmino, forward (86 points, €9.7m)
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Form guide
Most recent game
19/05: Villarreal 2-2 Real Madrid (Martínez 70, Castillejo 85; Bale 11, Ronaldo 32)
13/05: Liverpool 4-0 Brighton (Salah 26, Lovren 40, Solanke 53, Robertson 85)
Last ten games (most recent first)
Madrid: DWLDDWWDWL
Liverpool: WLLDWDWWDW
Did you know?
Ronaldo could become the first player to win this competition five times in the UEFA Champions League era.
Klopp has lost his last five major finals as a manager.
Sergio Ramos helped Spain win UEFA EURO 2012 at this same stadium.
For more like this, check out our extensive match background.
What are they saying?
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has said his team will be "on fire" for the final:
"We were in a League Cup final and didn't win it. People don't tell me in the street since then: 'Thank you for bringing us to the final'. We were in the Europa League final too. Nobody tells me thank you.
"I see no trophies after these games. They don't hang silver medals at Melwood. That's a pity, but that's the game. There's still a job to do.
"You cannot be more experienced in this competition than Real Madrid.
"I think 80 per cent of their team played all these finals. They are four times in the last five years and still together. They are experienced, we are not, but we will be really on fire."
Liverpool vs Real Madrid: Head-to-head Road to the final
Zinedine Zidane's side won their first two games but a home draw with Tottenham followed by a loss at Wembley meant they finished second in their group. Despite failing behind to Paris St Germain at the Bernabeu, they won 5-2 on aggregate in the last 16 then overcame an almighty scare against Juventus, advancing thanks to Cristiano Ronaldo's last-gasp penalty despite a 3-1 home loss. A semi-final first leg victory in Munich proved pivotal as a 2-2 draw with Bayern in Spain got them over the line.
Liverpool had to come through a qualifying round against Hoffenheim and then drew the opening two games in their group. They also threw away a three-goal lead against Sevilla in a 3-3 draw but thumped both Maribor and Spartak Moscow to finish top of Group E. They beat Porto 5-0 in the first leg of their last-16 tie, won both legs in the all-English clash with Manchester City and then saw off Roma 7-6 on aggregate following a 5-2 first-leg win at Anfield.
Liverpool take on the mighty Real Madrid in this weekend’s Champions League final, with both sides highly unlikely to deviate from the aggressive, attacking style of play that has taken them this far. Expect fireworks.
Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane has some big decisions to make about who to pick in Kiev, with Gareth Bale, Lucas Vázquezand Isco all in contention to start alongside Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema.
However, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has a settled starting XI and far less of a tactical headache. The Reds have only one gear – full throttle – and he knows that his best chance of a world famous victory will be through outscoring their illustrious opponents.
He could yet spring a surprise in the middle of the park, while an untimely injury may well force his hand. But The Independent understands Klopp is already settled on his Champions League XI.
Liverpool's projected Champions League final XI
12 show all Liverpool's projected Champions League final XI
1/12 Liverpool's projected Champions League final XI We take a look at how the Reds are likely to line up in their eagerly anticipated Champions League final against defending champions Real Madrid. AFP/Getty Images
2/12 GK: Loris Karius Getty Images
3/12 DR: Trent Alexander-Arnold Getty Images
4/12 DC: Virgil van Dijk Getty Images,
5/12 DC: Dejan Lovren Getty Images,
6/12 DL: Andy Robertson Getty Images
7/12 MF: James Milner Getty Images,
8/12 MF: Jordan Henderson Getty Images
9/12 MF: Georginio Wijnaldum Getty
10/12 FW: Sadio Mane Getty Images
11/12 FW: Roberto Firmino Getty Images,
12/12 FW: Mohamed Salah Getty
Check the above gallery to see how Liverpool are expected to line up in Kiev. And click here to see the Real Madrid team we expect Zidane to name.
Follow the Independent Sport on Instagram here, for all of the best images, videos and stories from around the sporting world.
Hundreds of Liverpool fans are seeking alternative routes to reach Kiev for Saturday’s Champions League Final, after several charter flights from Merseyside to the Ukrainian capital were cancelled. But how did it all go wrong?
21 September 2016: Uefa announces that the Olympic Stadium in Kiev will host the 2017-18 Champions League Final. Ukraine’s capital is the first Eastern European city to host the event since the Moscow final between Manchester United and Chelsea in 2008.
1 May 2018: Real Madrid qualify for their third successive final with a 2-2 draw at home against Bayern Munich, winning 4-3 on aggregate. Their fans book key connecting flights via Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Istanbul, Prague and Vienna to Kiev.
2 May: Roma beat Liverpool 4-2 in their semi-final second leg, but the Merseyside team win 7-6 on aggregate. Liverpool fans find that many air fares have increased above £1,000 return due to the surge in demand from Real supporters.
Agents start arranging charter flights on carriers including Windrose Airlines of Ukraine, the Spanish airline Vueling and Ethiopian Airlines – the leading carrier of Africa.
17 May: Ethiopian Airlines agrees to put on two flights from Liverpool and one from Manchester to Kiev on behalf of Worldchoice Sport.
The carrier contacts Boryspil airport in the Ukrainian capital to request slots, and also reserves slots at Heathrow, Frankfurt and Paris for the “positioning” flights necessary for the charters. With no immediate response from Kiev, Ethiopian asks its ground handler at Borispyl, EuroJet, to contact the airport and reserve the required slots.
21 May: “All stakeholders were advised by EuroJet that they were not able to get the required slots due to slot congestion at the airport,” says Ethiopian. “The organisers then asked us to secure a slot to Lviv which we did the same day.” Lviv is six hours’ drive from Kiev.
23 May: Ethiopian deploys flight crews at European airports to fly the contracted routes. But rumours start spreading on social media that all is not well with the flights.
24 May: “The organisers decided not to follow through with the Lviv plan and tried to get authorities to support the application for Kiev airport,” says Ethiopian.
At 3.30pm Worldchoice Sport announces all operations are cancelled, saying: “We have applied for slots in the correct manner and timeframe with the authorities.
“We feel terribly let down by Kiev airport.”
Passengers are told to expect full refunds within a week. It is said that dozens of private jets have been granted permission to use Boryspil airport.
After the announcement, Liverpool mayor Joe Anderson contacts Vitaly Klitschko, the former world heavyweight boxing champion-turned-politician, who is now mayor of Kiev.
After some robust discussion, two pairs of slots at Boryspil are assigned for the Ethiopian Airlines flights. But the inbound flight for one of the slot pairs requires a three-night stay in Ukraine.
Worldchoice Sport decides not to proceed with that pair of flights, saying: “With no accommodation in Kiev being available it was decided that in such a short space of time it would not be possible to utilise this slot and risk the safety of our customers.”
25 May: One Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 787 flies out to Kiev, along with jets from several other airlines.
