Champions League final preview: Tottenham v Liverpool

• Tottenham play Liverpool in second all-English final
• Klopp: "Two proper football teams in the final"
• Pochettino: "Most important is to play with freedom"
  
• Firmino passed fit; Pochettino coy on if Kane will play
• Visit our dedicated Champions League final section

COUNTDOWN  TO KICK-OFF

UEFA.com reporters' views

Daniel Thacker, Tottenham: While midfield will be a key battleground, the full-back areas could prove just as pivotal. If Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson rampage forward as they did at Anfield recently, Liverpool will be well set. If Mauricio Pochettino can devise a way not only to stop them, but to do damage in the wide channels through the inspirational Heung-Min Son and his own full-backs, then Spurs could reap the rewards. It will be tight, it will be tense and it is too close to call.

Matthew Howarth, Liverpool: Tottenham shaded the midfield battle in the teams' most recent league meeting and would have left Anfield with a point had it not been for Hugo Lloris's late error. If Liverpool are to exorcise the demons of Kyiv, the likes of Jordan Henderson, Georginio Wijnaldum and Fabinho will need quickly to gain control in the middle of the park. If they succeed, Jürgen Klopp's "mentality monsters" have every chance of lifting their first piece of silverware under the charismatic German.

Possible line-ups

Spurs: Lloris; Trippier, Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Rose; Winks, Sissoko; Eriksen, Alli, Son; Kane
Out: none
Doubtful: Kane (ankle)

Liverpool: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Matip, Van Dijk, Robertson; Fabinho, Henderson, Wijnaldum; Salah, Firmino, Mané
Out: Keïta (thigh)
Doubtful: none

Our full rundown on all the team news and selection dilemmas is available here.

What the coaches say

Mauricio Pochettino, Tottenham
The most important thing is to be free. To play like when you were young, a child, seven, eight, nine years old and you feel freedom. The key is not to think there's one billion people watching you. Tomorrow is about winning. We want to write history in football. We know very well what we need to do. Liverpool are a great team, Jürgen is a very successful manager. I admire him a lot. To arrive in the third personal final of the Champions League is chapeau and congratulations.

Jürgen Klopp, Liverpool
Finals are always different – you come with a different team, the circumstances are always different. If I was the reason for losing six finals in a row, then everyone needs to worry! But that's not the case. In the last seven years at least I'm probably the world record holder in winning semi-finals. If I was to write a book about it, probably nobody would buy it. It's a real football final. Now we both have to deal with that because it makes it really intense.

Form guide

Most recent game
12/05: Spurs 2-2 Everton (Dier 3, Eriksen 75; Walcott 69, Cenk Tosun 72)
12/05: Liverpool 2-0 Wolves (Mané 17 81)

Last ten results (all competitions, most recent first)
Spurs: DWLLLWLLWW
Liverpool: WWWLWWWWWW

Key battles

Sadio Mané v Kieran Trippier? Heung-Min Son v Trent Alexander-Arnold? Moussa Sissoko v Jordan Henderson? UEFA.com has picked out three areas where Saturday's game might be won and lost.

Where to watch

Fans can find their local UEFA Champions League broadcast partner(s) here.

Final facts

• Liverpool would go third on their own on the all-time European Cup honours' board should they beat Spurs to lift the trophy for a sixth time.

• In total, Tottenham and Liverpool have met 170 times in all competitions, the Reds winning 79 to Spurs' 48; there have been 43 draws.

• Spurs are the 40th club to reach the European Cup final, and the first newcomers since Chelsea in 2008. They could become the 23rd side to win the European Cup.

• Having got Liverpool's goal against Real Madrid in Kyiv last year, Mané could become the eighth player to score in more than one UEFA Champions League final.

• There have been six previous UEFA Champions League finals between teams from the same country.