The much-awaited UEFA Champions League final is finally around the corner with Spanish champions Real Madrid battling English runners-up Liverpool vying for Europe's biggest title. The Los Blancos had a relatively easy fight to the La Liga title, but Liverpool were embroiled in a tussle for the Premier League title till the last day, losing out on the coveted title by a single point.
With a treble on the line for Liverpool, their former goalkeeper David James has backed the Reds to oust their Spanish opponents and complete a treble of the Carabao Cup, FA Cup and Champions League. James believes that despite their setback on the final day of the season, the Reds have a lot to be proud of this season and can take this confidence into the Champions League final.
"They have to celebrate the fact that they have had another incredible season in the Premier League. Finishing second again on 90+ points, you cannot ask for any more than that really. Manchester City have been champions four times in five years. They have shown their dominance in the Premier League. So they will take the confidence," the former Kerala Blasters FC goalkeeper said during an interactive session ahead of their final encounter.
"They have had many positives. They have come to win four times out of the last five matches. The fact that they could have thrown that game away, not needing to win the game to finish second. And that Salah came on to score and win the Golden Boot along with Son (Heung Min). This shows their level of desire and commitment to this squad. They will go into this final with confidence. They know what the opposition is about. They know what the opposition has done in the Champions League this season. I don't think they will take their opponents lightly for one minute. This could still be a treble," he added.
Injuries should not affect Liverpool: David James
Ahead of their last match of the season against Wolverhampton Wanderers, Liverpool were hit by injuries to their star players Mohamed Salah, Fabinho and Virgil Van Dijk. Of the trio, only Van Dijk and Salah made it to the bench, and only Salah got onto the pitch as Liverpool came back from a goal down to beat their opponents 3-1. Salah also scored the goal that gave his team the lead in the second half, but in vain.
Sharing his thoughts on the injuries in the team, James opined, "I think the fact that he was on the bench suggests that he was fit enough to play. I don't know why Jurgen Klopp. When we look at yesterday's game for Liverpool, they needed to win to give them a chance of winning the title, but if it were desperate, then Van Dijk would have started the game..."
"Granted that this is a Champions League final, they will say 'we need you' if things were that desperate. But I don't think Van Dijk would have been on the bench if there wasn't a chance that he was going to play against Real Madrid..."
James took the example of Manchester City's loss to Madrid in the semi-finals, where the side played an injured Kyle Walker before substituting him off in the first half itself, "If you look at the situation with Kyle Walker, he is probably the easiest example for Manchester City because he was brought back for that Real Madrid game after having what appeared to be a serious injury. Then he was substituted off because the injury was compounded and he was out for the rest of the season."
When it comes to Fabinho (and his injury), the question that arises is can you replace Van Dijk in the biggest games? This is much more difficult than replacing Fabinho. Because you have got the likes of Jordan Henderson, James Milner who can fit in that midfield role," the legendary England goalkeeper concluded.
WHERE TO WATCH
Watch UEFA Champions League 2021-22 Final: Liverpool vs. Real Madrid live on Sony Ten 2 (English), Sony Ten 3 (Hindi) & Sony Ten 4 (Tamil & Telugu) channels +on 29th May 2022, at 12:30 am IST.
