‘Anybody else fall asleep during this boring final?’: Champions League finale disappoints as Liverpool and Tottenham look off the pace in Madrid
- After two superb semi-finals, hopes were high for a European final to remember
- When a penalty was awarded after just 21 seconds a thriller looked on the cards
- But the Champions League final turned out to be thoroughly forgettable
- Liverpool ultimately lifted the trophy but were nowhere near their fluid best
When referee Damir Skomina pointed to the spot to give Liverpool a penalty after just 21 seconds, another thrilling night of Champions League football looked to be on the cards.
After a season of truly jaw-dropping comebacks, it seemed the only logical conclusion. Both Liverpool and Tottenham were involved in two of the most extraordinary semi-finals the game has ever seen, both recovering from three-goals down to secure victories against Barcelona and Ajax respectively.
With that early penalty, it appeared certain that the Champions League final would deliver too and treat us all to another festival of football.
When Damir Skomina pointed to the spot after 21 seconds, a thrilling final looked on the cards
Mohamed Salah duly tucked the penalty away for Liverpool but thereafter it proved a dull affair
Both sides were off the pace in the first half but Tottenham raised their game after the break
But in the end, both sides played out a thoroughly forgettable finale in the pressing heat of Madrid.
The early goal was a cruel red herring. Jurgen Klopp’s rock’n’roll, pulse-smashing football was replaced by a pacemaker protection service, while Tottenham, whose coach Mauricio Pochettino had boasted about the fitness of his side before the game, laboured like a team who had taken to the field after a night-cap.
It was a point not lost on supporters and pundits alike.
‘I’ve never seen two Premier League sides make so many unforced errors,’ bemoaned BT Sport’s Glenn Hoddle.
Liverpool did not showcase their renowned, gegenpressing, high-octane football in Madrid
Jurgen Klopp was so perturbed by the drab performance that he made two early substitutions
‘It wasn’t the most entertaining game,’ added Rio Ferdinand. ‘We’ve all played in finals, it’s about getting over the line and getting the trophy.
‘The fans won’t care how they played today, they got the job done. This season (Liverpool) have been fantastic. If they’d finished the season without a trophy it would’ve been devastating for this football club.’
The Reds did manage to get the job done thanks to goals from Mohamed Salah and Divock Origi, but they played without the exuberance and flair that has characterised their campaign.
The Madrid heat certainly played its part, with temperatures pitch-side in excess of 30 degrees at kick off.
Concern was also raised beforehand about the match sharpness of both sides, with neither team having played a competitive fixture for three weeks.
Klopp and Pochettino were expected to organise behind-closed-doors fixtures to alleviate this potential problem, but on Saturday’s showing, it made little impact.
It followed the sluggishness of the Europa League final on Wednesday. Again an all-English affair, the Baku-based final saw Chelsea and Arsenal sleepwalk through the first half before the Blues took control.
The first half of the Champions League final was similarly worse than the second as neither side committed to seizing the game.
Any early momentum – hinted at by Liverpool’s extremely intense pre-match warm-up – was quickly nipped in the bud by the early penalty, which certainly altered the Reds’ approach to the match.
The second half was a slight improvement as Tottenham increased the pressure on the Premier League’s runners-up.
Klopp, noticing the lethargic nature of his side’s performance, uncharacteristically made two changes before the hour mark.
One of them ultimately paid off. As Spurs edged ever closer to Alisson’s goal, Origi delivered a sucker punch to ensure Liverpool would win their sixth Champions League title – albeit in underwhelming circumstances.
Ultimately, Liverpool were able to secure the win without having to play close to their best
It was disappointment for Tottenham who had appeared to inject more energy into the contest