Liverpool were not at their best last night as they beat Tottenham to win the Champions League final – and the stats prove it was far from a vintage performance.
Reds fans won’t be too bothered – in fact they may even be proud of their team’s new-found ruthlessness – but they became the first team since Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan in 2010 to win the Champions League final despite having less possession than their opponents.
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That’s according to Opta Joe in the tweet below, with the football stats experts claiming Liverpool had only 35.4 per cent of the ball in Madrid.
35.4% – Liverpool (35.4%) have become the first side to win the Champions League final despite having less possession than the opposition since Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan beat Bayern Munich in 2010, also in Madrid. Masterplan. #UCLfinal pic.twitter.com/cuydtDvbbQ
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) June 1, 2019
Despite that, LFC did enough to lift their sixth European Cup with an early penalty from Mohamed Salah and a late strike from substitute Divock Origi.
It’s also fair to say that while Spurs may have had more of the ball, they did not create a great many big chances to worry Jurgen Klopp’s side.
This was not a classic by any means, but Liverpool can take heart from a brilliant season in which they lifted one of the biggest prizes there is to win without even getting into full flow.