Five key player battles for Liverpool v Spurs in Champions League final

Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur are set to fight in the Champions League final on Saturday. Here are the five key player battles between Spurs and the Reds.

I have spent the last two and half weeks thinking about this match: Liverpool v Tottenham Hotspur in the Champions League final. As I look over the two teams I see a handful of key battles that will decide the game for either Liverpool or Spurs.

Listening to Jurgen Klopp in his pre-match press conference he talks about how the two sides are evenly matched. He can’t say it publicly but I’m sure he believes his players are better. Some of them significantly so.

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There is plenty of respect from the manager for Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino. The Argentinian has proved himself a keen tactician who can eke out every last drop of energy and quality from his squad.

However Klopp also believes this is the best team he has ever had in European final. And he’s not wrong. All around the pitch will be world-class players who have proven themselves time and again over the last 18 months.

But the match won’t be won on previous performances. It will be fought on the Madrid turf; player against player.

I think the style of Tottenham Hotspur doesn’t suit the Liverpool way of playing – one of the reasons the two league games were closer than they should have been. But I do think the Reds matchup very well in individual battles.

If they can isolate some players on Saturday then the quality of Klopp’s men will win out the day. Here are five key player battles for Liverpool v Spurs in the Champions League final.