Will Harry Kane start? Latest team news for Liverpool v Spurs Champions League final
There is a uniquely full-English flavor to this weekend's UEFA Champions League Final in Madrid as both Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur tangle for European club football's biggest prize.
Last year's losing finalists Liverpool, who came agonizingly close to claiming their first English title in three decades on the final day of the Premier League season, will be hoping that the silver-lining to their year will come inside Atletico Madrid's Wanda Metropolitan Stadium on Saturday night as they face a Tottenham team whose participation in the final was secured with a last-gap winner in a pulsating semi-final against Ajax.
Mo Salah has once again been the mercurial talent at the heart of Liverpool's outstanding season. A year ago, the hopes of the red half of Merseyside were pinned squarely on the Egyptian's shoulder - until that same shoulder was dislocated early in the final after a tussle with Real Madrid's Sergio Ramos.
This time though, and with presumably no injury derailing his plans early in the game, Salah will look to cement his status as a global superstar by guiding his team to the trophy.
Tottenham, led by Argentine boss Mauricio Pochettino, will not be a walkover but with both of this season's league fixtures between the two sides ending in a 2-1 victory for Liverpool (a Carabao Cup fixture was also won by Liverpool by the same score), Pochettino knows that he will have to coax a performance out of his side which was absent in their three previous meetings.
WILL HARRY KANE START?
The England captain is the primary selection headache for Spurs' boss Pochettino, as he battles to return to full fitness following an ankle injury he sustained in the quarterfinal with Manchester City.
The player himself has said that he is 'ready to go' but the final decision will be made by the Argentine boss on Saturday.
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Outside of Kane, there had been doubts surrounding the fitness of Dele Alli, Jan Vertonghen and Danny Rose, but all three are expected to be available for selection. If Kane is indeed ruled out, Spanish forward Fernando Llorente could be drafted in to lead the line, or semifinal hero Lucas Moura and South Korean star Son Heung-min could be paired upfront.
Midfielder Harry Winks, out since April, could also be in contention for a surprise start, according to reports.
LIVERPOOL TEAM NEWS
Naby Keita has been ruled out of the game with a thigh injury while Roberto Firmino remains a doubt because of an on-going groin problem, but the good news is that influential fullback Andrew Robertson looks to have recovered from a calf strain.
WHO ARE THE FAVORITES?
Jurgen Klopp's team have been installed as favorites by the oddsmakers in a reflection of their second-place finish in the Premier League compared to Tottenham's fourth-placed finish.
WHO WILL WIN?
The pain of losing last year's final will still be smarting a Liverpool squad already bitter about the small margins which denied them a Premier League crowd on the season's final day. Failure on Saturday, combined with the EPL heartbreak and last year's UCL reverse to Real Madrid, could lead to Liverpool being tagged as perennial 'chokers' - but in all likelihood, it is their game to lose.
