2016/17 Champions League Final Preview

The 2016/17 UEFA Champions League final will be contested between Juventus and Real Madrid on the 3rd June at the National Stadium of Wales, Cardiff.

Without doubt, Juventus and Real Madrid both deserve their places in the final, having been the best two teams in the Champions League this season.

Juventus started their campaign in Group H, along with Sevilla, Lyon and Dinamo Zagreb.  The Italian champions were expected to progress from this group without too much difficulty and only Sevilla were expected to cause them problems.

However, both Sevilla and Lyon took points off Juventus in Turin, drawing 0-0 and 1-1 respectively but by defeating both teams away from home, Juventus finished top of the group.  They recorded four wins and two draws from their six games.

Into the Round of 16 and Juventus met Porto, who finished second in Group G behind Leicester City.  This was expected to be a comfortable tie for the Old Lady and having won the first leg 2-0 in Portugal, they moved into the quarter-finals with a 3-0 aggregate win.

This is where things became more difficult and Juventus faced Barcelona.  In truth, Barcelona were not at their best this season and Juventus took advantage of that thanks to a scintillating display in-front of their own fans in the first leg, winning it 3-0.  This was a sign Juventus could go all the way in the Champions League this season and the way they defended to see out a 0-0 draw in the Camp Nou in the second leg, further underlined their credentials.

Juventus faced Monaco in the semi-final, a team who shocked many by reaching this stage of the tournament.  The Ligue 1 champions were dangerous going forward, as proved by their victories over Manchester City and Borussia Dortmund.  However, they were no match for the Juventus defence, who kept them out at the Stade Louis II to claim a 2-0 win in the first leg.

The second leg ended 2-1 in favour of Max Allegri’s team and Juventus booked their place in the final.  Juventus also went on to win Serie A for the sixth time in succession, making it a great campaign.

Real Madrid began the 2016/17 Champions League season in Group F along with Borussia Dortmund, Sporting Lisbon and Legia Warsaw.  Surprisingly, Real Madrid won only three of their six games, drawing twice with Dortmund and away to Legia Warsaw, which saw them finish second in the group.

Paired with Napoli in the Round of 16, Real Madrid went 1-0 down in both legs of the tie but came back impressively to win each of them 3-1 and progress 6-2 on aggregate.  The quarter-final draw set up a tantalising tie with Bayern Munich and fans were treated to two excellent games.

Real Madrid won the first leg 2-1 in the Allianz Arena, which gave them a strong advantage going into the second leg at home.  However, a goal from Robert Lewandowski and an own goal by Sergio Ramos took the tie into extra-time.  With Bayern down to ten men, Real Madrid took advantage and Cristiano Ronaldo struck twice to complete his hattrick and send his team through.

The semi-final saw Real Madrid meet local rivals Atletico Madrid.  Having recently defeated Atletico twice in the final, Real Madrid held the psychological advantage and took a commanding 3-0 lead into the second leg at the Vicente Calderon.  Despite suffering a scare by conceding two early goals, an away goal from Isco settled the tie and Real Madrid progressed to their third final in four years.

Much like Juventus, Real Madrid won their domestic league and will come into this final full of confidence.

The team news is very positive for Juventus, who are missing only Marko Pjaca through injury.  Allegri is likely to continue with his three at the back policy from the semi-final, which will see Dani Alves and Alex Sandro operate as wing backs.  Mario Mandzukic will play out on the left, with Paulo Dybala given more freedom to support Gonzalo Higuain in attack.

Gareth Bale has stated his is not fully fit for this match in his home country and will likely start the game on the bench.  Isco will therefore keep his place in the team, playing off Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema.  Daniel Carvajal is unlikely to be fit, meaning a place in the back four for either Danilo or Nacho.

Trends show there have been over 2.5 goals scored in each of Real Madrid’s twelve Champions League matches this season.  In all but one of those twelve games, Real Madrid have conceded at least one goal.

There have been over 2.5 goals in four of Juventus’ twelve Champions League games, with the difference being Juventus have kept nine clean sheets.  Therefore, this match will be won or lost depending on whether Real Madrid can break down the Juventus defence.

Juventus have failed to score twice in the Champions League this season, one of which was at Barcelona defending a 3-0 lead from the first leg.  This suggests they should find the back of the net against a team who struggle to keep clean sheets.

There are so many aspects to this game which makes it exciting.  Marcelo vs Dani Alves, Casemiro vs Dybala, Sergio Ramos vs Higuain and Ronaldo vs Chiellini to name but a few.  This has all the makings of a classic Champions League final.

It’s a tough one to call and Real Madrid are favourites with the bookies but Juventus seem more suited to playing in a final. They have the stronger defensive set-up, yet have the ability to score good goals.  Juventus to win this match by a single goal is a likely outcome and available at good odds.