Steve McManaman (1972, Liverpool) is one of the chosen few who have worn the shirt of Liverpool and Real Madrid, the two teams that will meet in the Champions League final in Paris. A quote about which the English football legend has been asked on the HorseRacing portal, who always answers with great sincerity, and this time has been no exception.
On whether Aston Villa will do Liverpool a favor on the final day of the Premier League: “I can’t imagine Manchester City falling to Aston Villa. For the last six weeks I have believed that Manchester City would win the Premier League. Obviously Liverpool have come very close to them, but I have always thought that Manchester City will win the Premier League. As much as there is a romantic story for Liverpool fans with Steven Gerrard and Philippe Coutinho going to the Etihad and giving Liverpool a hand, I think City are too good not to win at home on the last day.”
The potential of Liverpool as the best team in history: “If Liverpool were to win the quadruple, they would be considered the best team in the history of the English game, without a doubt. To be honest, if they were to win the treble, they should be considered one of the best teams this country has ever seen. Even if they don’t win the league. When you look at the trebles previously won by Manchester United and Liverpool in the past and analyze all the numbers, then I think this is going to be the best season ever.”
Who will win in the Champions League final: “Liverpool will be the favorites and I do think they will win. Real Madrid is far from the Bernabéu and the Bernabéu is a special place. There you have the results against Chelsea, Manchester City and PSG to a certain extent. It has been shown that I was wrong a lot He believed that Chelsea would be too young and aggressive for Real Madrid and he believed that Manchester City would be the same, so the fact that he is rooting for Liverpool is not a surprise as he believed that English teams were the most strong throughout the year. It was a big surprise for me to see City lose the way they did.”
“Real Madrid in this competition is a special team. They have been in ten of the previous twelve semi-finals, which shows that they are consistently good in this tournament. Yes, they have a lot of experience at this stage, but also Liverpool. If all the The world is fit and well, so you have to say that Liverpool have the strongest eleven and that’s why I think they are the favourites.”
The signing of Mbappé as a stimulus for Real Madrid in the final: “I don’t think the news will give the team a boost going into the final as everyone in Madrid knew it had been done for a long time, it’s just a matter of it being announced. Real Madrid won their league, PSG he won his, both leagues are already over and this transfer is a good PR story ahead of the Champions League final.”
“If you had talked to someone in Madrid in the last three or four months they would have told you that the Mbappé deal was closed. I don’t know if it was signed in front of someone, but everyone in Spain believed that this move was going to happen. , so I don’t think the news will have any effect on the team going into the final on May 28.”
If Van Dijk is the best defender in history, as Michael Owen said: “It was a great statement from Michael and we were talking about it the night before the second leg in Villarreal while we were all together in the hotel. I think it’s a difficult statement to make generationally. To put Virgil ahead of [Franco] Baresi or the defenders of the great Milan team, including [Paolo] Maldini, [Alessandro] nesta or [Alessandro] Costacurta, it is very difficult. Ciro Ferrara at Juventus is another.”
“They were great defenders, so it’s hard to say Virgil is better than them, but Virgil is also a brilliant defender and never seems to be in trouble. He seems like he sails through games, but he has a minor injury at the moment. , so Liverpool need him back. It’s really hard to say he’s the best of all time though. I don’t want to say he’s better than Paolo Maldini as Paolo Maldini has won it all twenty times and been one One of the best defenders in history. You would have to wait for the trial for several years and see if Virgil wins. At the moment, he is without a doubt the best centre-back in England.”
Klopp’s renewal: “It’s a big deal for the club as there was always a cloud on the horizon that Jürgen was going to do two more years and leave. I can’t say the deal guarantees success, but it guarantees Liverpool stay in the league. Jürgen and Pep Guardiola rule at the moment and Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham are a long way from Liverpool and Manchester City and they may all take several years to catch up to their level They are both in a very good position to stay in the top for a long time.”
A possible move from Mané to Bayern Munich: “Personally, I am not worried about this move coming to fruition. Teams should be interested in players like Sadio Mané and Mohamed Salah because they are playing very well and you are talking about players who could be ready for the Ballon d’Or at the end of the year. So I hope there will be interest from other clubs. I think getting Sadio Mane out of Liverpool this summer is almost impossible unless they pay a lot of money, so I’m not too worried to be honest.”
“I would be interested to see if Robert Lewandowski is allowed to leave, as Bayern Munich have notoriously never been open to the possibility of him leaving and he still has a year left on his contract, so Bayern may decide to keep him until his death. contract. Every year, Lewandowski threatens to leave Bayern Munich and they never let him go. We will have to wait to see if they let him go this year at 33 years old and if they look to sign Sadio Mané as a substitute. I think it will be very difficult “.
Tchoumaneni for Liverpool: “I think Liverpool will be looking to make a move for a player in that area, but whether they like Aurélien Tchouaméni now is something else. Maybe they have their eyes on someone else in the future. Tchouaméni is a young midfielder though and they should looking for players like him, but £60m is a lot of money. Liverpool will be looking at that area sooner rather than later considering the age of Jordan Henderson and James Milner and looking to get rid of some of the players.”
Haaland and City: “I think Manchester City would still have been successful and at the top regardless of whether they bought Erling Haaland or not. However, if age was not a factor, Harry Kane would have been more suitable as he played in the Premier League. League for a number of years and he is a proven goalscorer in the league.However I think Erling Haaland could come in and score as many goals as he wants next season.As long as he stays fit he will be Premier League top scorer next season”.
“I think other Premier League teams will go crazy in the transfer window, not because Manchester City have signed Haaland, but because I think they would have gone crazy anyway to catch up. Manchester United will have to invest. and bring in various players, just like Arsenal if they miss out on the Champions League, as appears to be the case after their loss to Newcastle on Monday night.”
Sterling’s continuity at City: “I can’t see Raheem going to Arsenal if they are not in the Champions League and I personally think he should stay at City. He is brilliant at City, although it is true that Pep Guardiola likes to cut and change. He should have a conversation Talk to his manager to see where his future lies. Only three of City’s five or six strikers are allowed to play each week. Plus they just acquired Haaland, so players will be missing from time to time. I don’t know his personal situation. Raheem, or if he’s happy or unhappy, but if I were him, I’d stay because he’s a very important player.”
Frenkie de Jong and his relationship with Erik Ten Hag to facilitate a possible arrival at United: “Manchester United could sign Frenkie de Jong as I don’t think he had the best time in Barcelona. I know Barcelona have just returned to the Champions League and they are building something there, but he has a relationship with Erik ten Hag, so maybe it’s a case of him feeling no love at Barcelona. Playing for rising Barcelona or rising Manchester United is a completely different thing when one plays in the Champions League and the other doesn’t.”
“For him to go to Manchester United, I think they would have to pay him more than what he earns at Barcelona, which I think will be a very difficult thing to do considering he went to Barcelona for a huge amount of money. You prefer to stay at Barcelona in the Champions League with Xavi trying to change things. The possibility that players like [Andreas] Christensen and [Robert] Lewandowski coming in makes it a more exciting challenge in my opinion.”
Cristiano’s future: “I think Cristiano will stay. He’s 37 so I don’t think he has to go and uproot himself again. He’s still had a good season, he’s scored a lot of goals and Manchester United are already going to lose a lot of players. Erik ten Hag has a very difficult job on his hands. He has to control the locker room, fix it, try to get some leaders in there and keep everyone happy.”
“I don’t think it’s necessary to get rid of Cristiano when he has one year left on his contract, as it doesn’t matter to have him around considering the number of goals he scores and the experience he has. He could be a good influence on all the young players. Ten Hag has a big rebuilding job ahead of him. Hopefully Manchester United will give him plenty of time, be patient and allow him to get back on the right track. It won’t be a quick fix.”