The Reds of Jurgen Klopp will lock horns with Mauricio Pochettino’s Spurs in the Champions League final.
John Barnes has warned Liverpool about a “dangerous” Tottenham Hotspur trait in which, as well as being able to play as a team, they have several individual players who can win games by themselves, as what happened away at Ajax.
On Saturday, the eyes of the football world will be on Madrid’s Wanda Metropolitano stadium as the Reds face their fellow Premier League outfit in the final of the competition, and both sides overcame the odds to get there.
Jurgen Klopp’s charges went into their semi-final second leg against Barcelona at Anfield saddled with a three-goal deficit from their Camp Nou trip, but they overturned it in destructive style as they ran out 4-0 winners over the Blaugrana to reach the final at their expense.
Tottenham, meanwhile, were a goal down going into their second leg at the Johan Cruyff ArenA and had shipped two more by half time, but a Lucas Moura hat-trick ensured a 3-2 win on the night and 3-3 aggregate score which meant Mauricio Pochettino’s side prevailed on away goals.
Barnes, who won two First Division titles and two FA Cup titles with Liverpool, believes that the Merseysiders will most likely put in a consistently impressive team performance as they have done all season, while Spurs may be more unpredictable, which is not necessarily good news for Klopp and his men.
“Tottenham are a good team,” Barnes told Sky Sports News. “With Harry Kane I think they’re a better team. Without Harry Kane they may not play as well but they have individuals who can win games by themselves, as Lucas Moura showed. You’ve got Son, Dele Alli – great players.
“Liverpool will put on a performance, but that’s what they’ve done all year. With Tottenham we don’t know; however, that’s dangerous. They don’t have to play, as in the second half against Ajax they won the game in the second half with individuals.”
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