Massimiliano Allegri’s Juventus and Zinedine Zidane’s Real Madrid lock horns in Cardiff’s Principality Stadium this Saturday for the UEFA Champions League final. Both sides are evenly matched, which should make for a fascinating encounter at the weekend.
The 33-time Spanish champions head to the Welsh capital as the slight favourites with the bookies. Juve, however, have gone from strength to strength as the tournament has progressed and will be a force to be reckoned with on Saturday.
Will Los Blancos seal a 12th European Cup title, or can Bianconeri lift the Champions League for the first time since 1996? Standby for what promises to be a captivating affair in Wales.
Juventus v Real Madrid
We’ve yet again been treated to a superb Champions League campaign, with plenty of thrills and spills along the way. We saw Leicester City go further than any other English club, Barcelona pull off a miracle, the emergence of Monaco’s Kylian Mbappe, repeated Juve defensive masterclasses and several other magical and unforgettable moments.
Now, we’re down to the last two, as European grandees Juventus and Real Madrid square off at the Principality Stadium in Wales’ capital. The Old Lady’s miserly defence versus Los Merengues’ devastating attack – something has got to give in this mouth-watering final.
Zidane’s side head to Cardiff as the bookies’ favourites to return to the Spanish capital with a 12th European Cup title. This Real team have all the experience in the world, having won this competition twice in the last three seasons, as well as reaching the final every year since 2010.
As for Juve, they last contested the Champions League final two years ago, when they eventually lost to Barcelona in Berlin. You have to go back 21 years for the last time they lifted this trophy, but the Italian giants are certainly on the up again. Allegri has done an outstanding job in Turin, will this be there moment to shine on European football’s biggest stage?
Real Madrid have won this competition 12 times, making them by far the most successful side in the history of the European Cup/Champions League. Juve, in contrast, hold the unwanted record for losing the most finals. These two last met at the semi-final stage in 2015, which Juve went on to win 3-2 on aggregate. They also squared off the year before, with Real coming out on top that time. Over the years, things have been pretty even in their head-to-head battles and we’re expecting more of the same at the weekend.
Los Blancos have scored in every single game this term. That’s a staggering stat, considering Saturday’s match will be their 60th fixture of a memorable campaign. Incredibly, the last time Real failed to score in a game was away at Manchester City in the CL semi-finals last year.
In contrast, Juve have not been quite as prolific in front of goal as their opponents, but they are extremely hard to break down at the other end. Allegri’s troops have conceded just three times all tournament, with only one of those coming during the knockout stages.
This has all the makings of being one of the tightest finals in recent times. With their stunning attack, Real are bound to score, but how do they go about trying to crack Juve’s indestructible defence?
Nevertheless, we believe Real’s experience could play a deciding factor in Cardiff, so the standout bet is Zidane’s boys to win and both teams to score, which is available at the tempting price of 24/5 with Betfair. Juve are packed with experienced pros but the historical omens suggest their illustrious opponents will once more deny the club from Turin at the final hurdle.
Real Madrid to Win and Both Teams to Score – 24/5 at Betfair