Be honest, you didn’t think it was going to happen right? Here we are, the end of august, and we are reaching the climax of an incredible tournament. For the first time in history, we are witnessing a Champions League Finale with no English, Spanish or Italian teams. How different were things last year, when the Champions League final between Tottenham and Liverpool was a showcase of Premier League superiority.
This time around we are seeing the rise of the French clubs in the top ranks in Europe. That Paris Saint Germain would one day succeed to best the competition was to be expected, but no one saw Lyon coming as far as they did. Another honourable mention goes out to RB Leipzig, a club that was founded as recent as 2009(!) Last but not least, regardless of who will win this tournament, this year’s edition of the Champions League will be remembered for two things: no supporters in the stadium and the 8-2 victory of Bayern Munchen over Barcelona. Maybe it was for the best that there were no spectators aloud that game.
Champions League 2020 Finale Predictions
Lyon had their chances against Bayern, but lacked the killer instinct. In all honesty, we are happy to see the dream finale of two absolute powerhouses instead of the number one versus the number seven of Ligue 1. This is the best final we could have hoped for and both teams have a decent chance of winning. Let’s go over the variables that can impact the outcome of this match:
The vedettes
Big names. Some of the biggest names in football will be on the pitch sunday. On both sides. Neymar, Diego Costa, Mbappe are the most notable ones on the side of PSG. An attack trio that is almost impossible to stop; speed, technique and football intelligence define these players. Bayern has their unstoppable force in Muller, Lewangoalski and Sané. It’s crazy to think the amount of players we are leaving out of the equation…Bayern is so packed with good players that their bench probably will be good enough to survive the group stage in the Champions League.
The commonalities
Both clubs have been reigning supreme in their national leagues for years. They both play dominant offensive football, with extremely dangerous break outs the second they get in possession. Overall, the strength of Bayern Munich is more equally divided over the team. Something represented in the person of Samuel Neuer, who played a crucial role in the semi finals against Lyon. The same goes for substitutes. Take out Muller or Lewandoski and put in Coutinho and you hardly lose any quality. The difference in quality in substitutions is a bit more apparent with Paris Saint Germain; who would replace Neymar?
Conclusion
Bookmakers agree that this will make all the difference over 90 minutes, granting Bayern better odds than their French counterparts. Another reason to point Bayern out as the favourite in this game is the experience in playing Champions League Finals. Some of the current players were there the last time around (the trauma of 2013). In Paris, the Champions League has seemed an impossible mission for so many years; one might say a ‘cursed’ mission. Does this mean the Parisians don’t stand a chance against the Germans? Most certainly not. In every other scenario betting against Neymar and Mbappe seems a bad idea; so, why would it suddenly be a good idea now?
