The biggest game in club football, the UEFA Champions League Final is almost upon us.
Current holders PSG will have the opportunity to become the first club to win back-to-back titles since Real Madrid won three in a row between 2016 and 2018. They will face Arsenal, who look likely to enter the game as new Premier League champions.
Indeed, Mikel Arteta’s side are just one game away from winning the league, but with the reported outgoing Pep Guardiola’s side still having two left to play, there are many who may look to consider the EPL as a betting opportunity before the conclusion of South Africa’s domestic league, where there are Premier Soccer League betting odds available to consider in the race for the title.
Still, expect Arsenal to be competitive against PSG, although Luis Enrique’s team have steamrolled English opposition (and everyone else) in this year’s competition…
PSG’s record in the UCL this season has been nothing short of exceptional when playing in the knockout stages. In fact, they had a relatively poor start to their defence and looked like they could be going out early.
The French side would get through to the playoff stage after finishing 11th in the Group Phase, winning four, drawing two, and losing two. They’d face Monaco in the playoff and win 5-4 on aggregate. But from that point on, they were exceptional.
Enrique’s side would get the better of two English clubs in consecutive rounds, with Chelsea first. Having lost to them in the FIFA Club World Cup last summer, his side won 8-2 on aggregate in the Round of 16. They would then defeat Liverpool 4-0 over two legs in the quarter-final before that epic semi-final first-leg against Bayern Munich. That game finished 5-4 in their favour, with a 1-1 draw in the second leg (6-5 on aggregate) enough to secure their passage to the final in Budapest, Hungary.
With that record, they’ll be considered favourites to win, especially if Khvicha Kvaratskhelia continues his top form in the latter stages. He has 10 goals in 15 games and seven assists. Ousmane Dembele may be a doubt.
Arteta’s side won’t make it easy for PSG. They enter the game with one of the best defences, and will potentially have a bounce in their step if they win the English Premier League title.
The Gunners sailed through the Group Phase of the competition, winning all eight games. They scored 23 goals and conceded just four. In the Round of 16, they defeated Bayer Leverkusen 3-1 on aggregate, before overcoming Sporting 1-0 across two legs. The semi-final saw them take on Atletico Madrid, where they won 2-1 across the two games to seal their place in the final against PSG.
Arsenal have only ever reached one UCL final in the past, having lost to FC Barcelona in France 2-1 in the 2005/06 edition of the tournament. It’s worth remembering that PSG won last year’s competition by blowing Inter away, winning 5-0 in Germany.
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