With the UEFA Champions League Final just around the corner, there’s been a lot of tension in the build-up. For Liverpool, the long wait feels like it could slow down the incredible momentum built-up in recent months. It also won’t help that Tottenham Hotspur, their opponents, have had more than enough time to get key players back fit. Will that tell in the end for the biggest game in the recent history of either club?
Spurs Team News
Tottenham are definitely the happier of the two sides with the long break until the final. They look set to only be short Ben Davies. They can welcome back a whole host of players, including Jan Vertonghen, Davinson Sanchez, Harry Winks, Harry Kane, and Victor Wanyama. Given how key some of those players are, it can only be a good thing for Spurs.
While not all of them will be 100% fit, it’s the biggest game of all of their careers. Finding energy reserves to fight through the pain barrier shouldn’t be so tough for these Spurs players.
Therefore, it’s easy to see how Spurs can come into the tie feeling like the team with momentum and positive ascendancy. However, as has happened before, fitness gambles could lead to more problems than solutions on the day.
Liverpool News
Liverpool and Jurgen Klopp, meanwhile, have little issues to worry about in terms of fitness. Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah both have passed fit by all accounts, with only Naby Keita being ruled out definitively. While injuries can re-occur from a fitness perspective, the Reds are in a fine position just as the season comes to an end.
Last year, fitness and form of key players – including Salah and then goalkeeper Loris Karius, cost the Reds on the big stage. This year, they look to be primed to handle the pace and intensity of the match. Unlike last year, though, they are the favourites. Can a Klopp side be at its best when it has to handle being the ‘big’ team on such an occasion?
Liverpool, though, look in excellent form with regards to their injury list. While Keita is a big loss given his exquisite form in the end of the season run-up, the fitness of so many other key players – especially Firmino – will take a huge amount of weight off of the shoulders of Klopp.
As the old saying goes “You wait ages for a bus – and then two come along at the same time!” . That’s surely how most fans of the England football team have felt about them for what must be 20 or 30 years now. For the longest time they just never quite had it, whatever ‘it’ is. Inconsistent play, no killer instinct, not even ‘nearly men’ standard, just bowing out at the first even half competitive challenge they faced. Then all of a sudden, seemingly overnight, there was a real shift in mood and now we’re putting goals away like you wouldn’t believe. Going from a lack of anyone to ignite passion and determination in the team, to having a plethora of young talent and a cool, calm and collected manage to boot.
The England squad appear to have moved past the challenges of old and have found themselves in what could be seen as the beginning of a new golden era of international football. The team have a World Cup semi final behind them (albeit with not the most challenging of draws), a semi final against The Netherlands in the UEFA Nations League lined up for June, and now a storming start to their Euro 2020 qualifying campaign to draw motivation from. We were of course expected to win against Czech Republic (5-0) and Montenegro (5-1) but the margin certainly has impressed. Ten goals in two games, a goal scoring frenzy!
So what impact was England’s winning streak had on their Euro 2020 betting odds for may be asking? Well, they are currently second Favourite at 6-1 to win the tournament with some bookmakers, with France at 7/2, Spain 7-1 and former foes Belgium 17/2. We’re fairly short in the betting odds, but based on our performances so far I’d say that makes sense really. Why not combine a free bet offer with the likes of 10bet or 888 sports to maximise your betting bank!England next play a Euros qualifier on 7th September against Bulgaria, followed by Kosovo on 10th of the month. The Netherlands Nations League game occurs previous to both of these, with England at betting odds of 6/5 to win with bookmakers.
The likes of Kane and Sterling are experiencing a rich vein of form right now and there’s a very positive mood in the camp. There are of course bumps in the road on the way to any success, and the booing of black players by portions of the Montenegrin crowd during that game was disappointing to see. It looks like they will be facing the consequences of their actions though. It will take more than that to stop what looks to be leaps and bounds of progress from this talented and youthful team though.
After a surprise win at their new stadium, Tottenham Hotspur come into their 2019 UEFA Champions League quarter final with a chance at going through. When the draw was made, many assumed that Spurs would simply be fodder for Manchester City. A well-deserved 1-0 win in the first leg, though, sets up the return match to be an absolute cracker.
Manchester City News
In terms of injuries, only Fernandinho is missing for City. Claudio Bravo won’t make it, as he is still out long-term. However, his season-ending injury has more or less meant little to City, as Ederson has stayed fit all season.
City will be looking to make the most of a fully fit squad and use their fitness to push Spurs back. With Tottenham in need of some creative squad management themselves, it will be interesting to see how City approach this. If they go for it from the first minute, they could very easily come out the other side with a massive win.
Tottenham Hotspur NewsotspuHot
Spurs, though, are no layabouts. They are a quality side; the main doubt comes from squad depth. With Harry Kane, Erik Lamela, Serge Aurier, Eric Dier, Dele Alli and Fernando Llorente all more than likely out, Spurs are very thin in terms of players.
This could be their downfall in what will surely be a long evening. As the game goes on, Mauricio Pochettino has less players than he usually would to call upon. In such a tight match, that – rather than any tactical issues – will likely be their biggest obstacle to going through.
Verdict
City to go through. Spurs will score, but we can see City getting the three they need. The carrot of a tie against (most likely) Juventus in the semi-finals should spur City on to victory.
The stage has been set. When Liverpool kept returning to the South Coast to buy the likes of Adam Lallana, Sadio Mane and Virgil van Dijk, they were mocked for buying players without a long-term return in investment. Now, the latter duo are absolutely essential in what has been one of the most genuine title challenges put in by Liverpool in nearly 30 years. Could the scene of where many of their star players have come from, though, be the location where Liverpool see their title tilt come to an end?
Southampton News
Buoyed by some good wins recently, the Saints have come into this one in a relatively good run of form. Wins against Tottenham Hotspur and Brighton and Hove Albion were preceded by wins against Fulham and losses to Manchester United (3-2) and Arsenal (2-0).
They come into this with some of their younger players, James Ward-Prowse in particular, in fine form. Good at attacking their opponents and pressing high under Ralph Hassenhuttl, this will be a fine test of their progress under the Austrian.
Liverpool News
Not much to worry about in terms of fitness: it’s the long-term return of the likes of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, another former Saint, that has some fans edgy. This could be a good game to see him come back into the fold in some form, alongside other midfielders such as Naby Keita. Expect Liverpool to go for solidity first and foremost, using the forward quality they have – especially the in-form Mane and Roberto Firmino – to try punish Saints on the break.
Joe Gomez, too, could be back in and around the squad for this one. For Liverpool, the injuries are returning at just the right time.
Verdict
A tight, very stodgy Liverpool win. The Reds have been poor on the road in 2019 (performance wise), but know they need three points to keep things moving forward. They’ve struggled in games like this recently but have been finding late grit to win the 3 points. If they can do so again here, it’ll only further put pressure on Manchester City. We back them to do so – but not without a tense, tight Friday night affair.