All eyes on Glasgow
Wednesday, May 15, 2002
Article summary
Millions of eyes will fall on two teams tonight when surprise package Bayer 04 Leverkusen take on fancied Real Madrid CF in the UEFA Champions League final.
Article body
David and Goliath?
This is no remake of the Old Testament prizefight between David and Goliath though. Madrid might be appearing in their 12th final, and Leverkusen their first, but the numbers do not necessarily add up to a Spanish victory. Let alone a football fiesta.
Losing run for Zidane
The statistics show that since Madrid lifted the European Champion Clubs' Cup five years running in the late 1950s, only three teams have managed to go to three finals without losing at least one: AFC Ajax, FC Bayern München and Liverpool FC. The Merengues won on their last two appearances, in 1998 and 2000. Meanwhile, their French international Zinedine Zidane lost on his two previous appearances as a Juventus FC player.
Most successful side
Big is not always beautiful. Madrid are the most successful team in the Champions League with 45 victories in 76 outings since 1992/93, while their favourite son, Raúl González, is the competition's record goalscorer. But in this FIFA World Cup year, Raúl has seen more minutes of action than any other player involved tonight - 5,117 in 59 games. If they carried on much longer, Madrid's fixture list could reach three figures in their centenary season.
Inspirational Ballack
The man who hopes to stop Raúl registering, Carsten Ramelow, could also be known as leg-weary of Leverkusen. His campaign has lasted 4,874 minutes over 56 matches. Their inspirational midfield player, Michael Ballack, is not far behind. And to what extent will both teams' alert football brains be clouded by the double disappointments they have endured of late?
Spanish tilt
One area where the numbers game could suit Madrid is off the field. Leverkusen will have trouble turning the town red and black in the event of a German victory. An estimated 7,000 have made the journey from the Rheinland compared with the 18,000-strong army that has travelled from Castille. Certainly, there was a Spanish lilt to much of the pre-match talk conducted in Glasgow city centre this afternoon.
Do not miss it
For most football lovers, though, the figures that really matter are easily remembered: namely, 2045CET, with uefa.com bringing you full audio and text coverage as well as match reports, reaction, analysis and video highlights.
