Born in the south east of Ireland, Simon put his life-long love of football to good use when he started a successful independent blog in 2010. That opened up an alternative route to a career in journalism, and having had work published across a number of sites and publications, Simon joined the staff at Spotlight Sports Group in 2018.
In a little over 24-hours’ time, the Wanda Metropolitano in Madrid will host the 64th Final of European’s Premier Cup competition and the 27th Final since the tournament was rebranded as the Champions League nearly 3 decades ago.
The 2018/19 Final between Tottenham and Liverpool is only the second all-English climactic fixture of the competition since it’s original inception in 1955, and it sets up a mouth-watering local skirmish on a continental battleground in the Spanish capital.
As always, bet365 are offering a superb selection of player special betting markets for tomorrow’s UEFA Champions League Final, and we’ve picked out a collection of those specials that caught our eye.
Check out our selections below:
Read our Tottenham Hotspur vs Liverpool predictions and betting tips in our detailed match preview here.
Sadio Mane over 2.5 shots – 4/5
Sadio Mane doesn’t tend to get as much of the limelight as his Liverpool teammate Mohamed Salah or his Spurs’ striking counterpart Harry Kane, though the Senegalese international will come in to tomorrow night’s Champions League Final as the most in-form attacking player on the pitch.
Mane has enjoyed a blistering 2019 so far, hitting 17 goals in 24 games since the turn of the year, and the 27-year old closed out his sensational campaign with 4 goals in his last 6 matches for Liverpool – a streak that allowed him to win a share of the Premier League’s Golden Boot award for 2018/19.
Mane racked up an average of 2.4 and 2.1 attempts on goal per Premier and Champions League game this season respectively, and the former Southampton winger hit at least 3 shots on goal in a whopping 23 separate fixtures overall this term.
With his confidence sky high and his shooting boots firmly on, we think Mane looks brilliant value at 4/5 with bet365 to rack up over 2.5 shots again in Madrid tomorrow night.
Kieran Tripper over 2.5 tackles – 4/7
Combative full-back Kieran Trippier is one of Tottenham’s most aggressive players, routinely putting his foot in more often than the majority of his Spurs’ teammates.
Trippier’s 2.5 tackles per game average in the Premier League this season was the 2nd highest figure at the club behind Justin Foyth (2.6), though the England international’s 2.4 tackles per game average in the Champions League puts him out on his own as Spurs’ most prolific challenge maker on the continent.
The 28-year old made a bone-crunching 5 tackles when Spurs last played Liverpool at Anfield at the end of March, and we’re backing him to be just as busy with his studs when the teams renew acquaintances tomorrow.
You can get 4/7 with bet365 on Tripper making over 2.5 tackles against Liverpool.
Click here to read our feature about the Champions League Final players to watch on Football Index.
Trent Alexander-Arnold over 0.5 assists – 7/2
We tipped flying Liverpool fullback Trent Alexander-Arnold to grab an assist at similar odds before the Reds’ Champions League Semi Final second leg triumph over Barcelona, and the 20-year old duly delivered, picking out Divock Origi for the game’s crucial 4th goal on 79 minutes.
Incredibly, that was 1 of 7 assists Alexander-Arnold amassed in his last 6 appearances of the season for Liverpool, and in total, the youngster finished the campaign with a record breaking 15 assists in all competitions for the club.
Liverpool will be hoping that Alexander-Arnold’s pinpoint delivery and set-piece accuracy can be just as effective again tomorrow, and the defender is priced incredibly generously at 7/2 with bet365 to provide his 16th assist of the season against Spurs.
Check out the latest and best Champions League betting offers here!
Christian Eriksen over 43.5 passes – 11/10
Creative midfielder Christian Eriksen is among the most technically gifted players in Tottenham Hotspur’s ranks, and the Danish international’s passing statistics and numbers reflect that fact.
Eriksen’s 53.5 passes per game average in the Premier League places him approximately 5th in Tottenham’s list of distribution leaders, though his 2.1 key passes on average per 90 minutes puts him head and shoulders above the rest in terms of inventiveness.
The 27-year old ranks 3rd at the club for average passes played per Champions League game with 51.5 passes, though it’s worth noting that Eriksen has played over 43.5 passes in 76% of his Premier League and 70% of his Champions League appearances in 2018/19.
Tottenham will once again be looking to Eriksen’s ball recycling abilities and pass-picking acumen to help them control the game against Liverpool tomorrow, and we think that makes him well worth considering at 11/10 with bet365 to play over 43.5 passes.
Son Heung-Min over 0.5 shots on target – 1/2
In the absence of the injured Harry Kane, versatile attacker Son Heung-Min became Spurs’ most threatening player in the closing months of the season, finishing the campaign with a goal every other game since Kane was sidelined in early April.
The South Korean icon hit the net 20 times in all competitions for Spurs in 2018/19, and Son’s consistently high attempts on goal figures helped him build up his impressive haul for the year.
Son averaged 2.4 shots on goal per Premier League appearance last season, 0.9 of which hit the target, however, in the Champions League, Son’s shots average jumped to 2.7 per contest, with 1.3 of those hitting their mark.
We think Son’s ability to get high numbers of accurate shots off every time he features for Spurs makes him a terrific price at 1/2 with bet365 to hit over 0.5 shot on target against Liverpool in Madrid.
