May 2019
Harry Winks: ‘I would never have dreamt I’d get to the Champions League final with Tottenham’
Harry Winks’ connection with Tottenham Hotspur was established when he first trained with the academy when he was five years old. Little wonder, then, that the midfielder suggests his association with the club makes a career-high Champions League final appearance “ten times more special”.
To say the midfielder is steeped in the club is an understatement having been taken to White Hart Lane as a six-year-old by his Spurs-supporting dad, Gary, and then witnessed the changing fortunes of the club first hand while coming through the ranks as a player.
Winks can contrast the upward trajectory of recent years with less successful periods at the club and knows as much as anyone about the significance of Saturday’s meeting with Liverpool. Now, having recovered from the groin injury that forced him to miss the semi-final against Ajax, he acknowledges that he is on the verge of being part of something he never thought possible.
Read more: Champions League final: Mauricio Pochettino, Jurgen Klopp and the death of a narrative
“To be part of a team that has got to the Champions League final with Tottenham is something, honestly, I would never have dreamt of doing,” said the 23-year-old. “To have the opportunity to say that. But to have been a part of the team and to have played as many games as I have done in the Champions League, to be part of this amazing side and this incredible era for Tottenham, honestly, it’s a true privilege. I am humbled to have the opportunity to do that and if we can go all the way then we’ll make history and it will be fantastic. It’s something that we believe we can do as well.”
He added: “It’s my club. I’ve known the club since I was five years old [when he joined them], it’s the only club I’ve ever played for. To be part of a Champions League final with Tottenham, it feels crazy to say it. It hasn’t really sunk in.”
Transition
The Tottenham Winks grew up watching was a by-word for inconsistency with the Uefa Cup and Europa League the club’s natural home before the recent transformation under Mauricio Pochettino, who handed Winks his Premier League debut three years ago. “I’ve been there, I’ve watched them from the stands at White Hart Lane and been to the games when I was a kid so I know exactly how the transition of Spurs has been,” he said.
“The only thing you can say about Spurs is that over the years, we’ve been a bit mixed. We’ve had seasons where we’ve been excellent and others where we have underperformed and since the gaffer has come in, he’s made us a solid top four side and one to be taken very, very seriously in Europe. As a Spurs fan, growing up from a little boy, I’ve seen that transition, what the manager has done to the club and how far he has taken everyone and not only as players but as people. Honestly, it’s incredible to have seen.”
Read more: Hugo Lloris: ‘Every man makes mistakes – it’s how you respond that matters’
Now, having battled through a dramatic campaign to reach the final, Winks and his teammates must overcome one last barrier if they are to deliver the Champions League to the club for the first time. “The way the manager has instilled this belief in us, to never give up and always go until the end,” he added. “It’s only over when the referee blows his whistle. The boys constantly believe we have got quality in the team and if a chance comes at any time in the games, we have the quality to take that.”
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Liverpool and Spurs fans descend on Madrid as Champions League final tickets go for £25,000 apiece
Valentin is a 29-year-old Romanian who lives in Madrid. He is tall, thin, blond, wears trendy round tortoiseshell glasses.
He was a handy footballer when he was younger and played in the Romanian second division — Liga II — until he moved to Spain five years ago to join Atlético Tomelloso, a club in the Spanish third division roughly 200 kilometres from the Spanish capital.
Football didn’t work out for Valentin, so now he is an Uber driver and his wife works at Terminal 3 of Madrid Airport. They are off to Valencia for the weekend to get away from the Champions League final.
“I want to stay here but it’s a madness,” Valentin tells i. “My wife was given a list of all the flights from England to Madrid. They were told to expect 100,000 people.”
And that’s not including the Liverpool and Spurs fans flying all the way from Asia, North America and Oceana. Nor merely tourists from other countries who have unwittingly booked a weekend away to Madrid not realising who they will be sharing their holiday with.
Soaring temperatures
Some fans who took off from torrential rain in London or Liverpool on Thursday have been caught out by the scorching Madrid sun. Topping 31 degrees centigrade on Friday. Thirty-three on the day of the game — still in the high twenties when the match kicks off at 9pm local time, a heat that the players will be unused to. It will be 34 on Sunday, when supporters wake up with hangovers from hell and temperatures to match. On Friday they were on the hunt for suncream and sun hats and cheap sunglasses to temporarily replace the ones they had left at home.
Puerta del Sol is the main square in the centre of Madrid. The name means “Gate of the Sun”. A big stage has been set up at one end of plaza, providing family entertainment by day and DJ sets by night. In the centre is a temporary raised platform, almost reaching the same height as the grand statue of King Charles III of Spain on horseback. Fans and tourists form an orderly queue snaking up to the platform for a glimpse and a selfie with the Champions League trophy.
Read more: Hugo Lloris interview – ‘Every man makes mistakes – it’s how you respond that matters’
Unlike Valentin, plenty of locals are embracing that the Uefa party has come to them. On Thursday night Puerta del Sol was packed full to bursting, but mainly without football fans, the majority still due to arrive on Friday and Saturday.
On Friday, Liverpool and Spurs began to move in. The first “Allez! Allez! Allez!” chant started up at 12.54pm. Soon after, “When the Spurs go marching in” filled the air. Later in the afternoon, chants from bodies of red and white were bouncing back and forth.
Ticket touts everywhere provide a taste of home. There are loads of them: mingling with fans and tourist with their man bags, calling out in London and Liverpool accents, the Spanish ones holding cardboard signs with cobbled together English.
Bart Simpson is wearing a Liverpool shirt and posing with Super Mario for photos with fans and tourists, then asking for money. So, too, is someone wearing a Chucky mask with a full Liverpool kit on and a cardboard Champions League trophy nestled under one arm. Mickey and Minnie Mouse are walking around as well. Intellectual property lawyers would have a field day.
Black market
Cheap leaflets are being handed out across the city centre. “WE BUY ANY TICKETS”, they say on them, mobile numbers to call Matt and John and a rough guide of prices:
Category one tickets — €6,000
Category two tickets — €5,000
Category three tickets — €4,000
Category four tickets — €3,500
They sound insane, until you realise that fans say they are willing to pay upwards of £25,000 for one. The disparity in numbers has driven secondary ticket prices through the roof — the two clubs have a combined allocation of 32,000, leaving 68,000 without one and police have decided not to allow the match to be shown on big screens in public spaces, so the bars will be heaving.
Fans of all clubs
It is not only Spurs and Liverpool supporters in town. A pair of West Ham fans travelled over on my plane on Thursday evening. Andy, a retired physics teacher, is a Manchester City fan and has booked flights and accommodation as early as possible for each Champions League final for several years in the hope that City make it. He goes along anyway, for the occasion. He was left waiting for at least another 12 months when Spurs knocked City out in dramatic fashion in the quarter-finals.
A little way out from the centre, up one of the winding canopy-covered streets leading away from Puerta del Sol, is an artificial archway that opens to a temporary Uefa Champions League store and a giant plastic Champions League ball, which everyone wants a picture alongside. On either side of the archway are giant images of Heung-min Son, Sadio Mane, Virgil van Dijk and Harry Kane. They are temporarily replacing the usual football kings of Madrid. Perhaps one day these stars from tonight’s unexpected Champions League finalists will be permanent fixtures here.
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Damir Skomina: Who is the Champions League final referee and why did Neymar call him a ‘disgrace’?
Liverpool and Tottenham‘s preparations for Saturday’s Champions League final in Madrid will be nearing their conclusion, but one thing that cannot be mitigated for are difficult refereeing decisions.
The two English clubs will no doubt be hoping that the man chosen by Uefa to referee the match, Damir Skomina, has a controversy-free final. He will be assisted by his countrymen Jure Praprotnik and Robert Vukan, while Antonio Mateu Lahoz of Spain is the fourth official.
VAR will be active in the match, with the video assistant referee being Danny Makkelie of the Netherlands, assisted by Pol van Boekel (Netherlands), Felix Zwayer (Germany), and Mark Borsch (Germany).
Who is Damir Skomina?
Read more: Champions League final: How to watch free BT Sport live stream of Tottenham vs Liverpool
Age: 42
Nationality: Slovenian
Cards record: 173 yellow cards and 7 red cards in 48 matches this season
Skomina began refereeing as a 15-year-old and has taken charge of international matches since 2002. “I played football, but was told by doctors at the time to stop because they thought I had a health problem,” he said.
“So, I started refereeing as a way of staying in football. A few years later, I had another medical exam, and was told that everything was fine – so I was free to continue refereeing.”
He managed proceedings at the Europa League final between Ajax and Manchester United in 2017, as well as the Uefa Super Cup match in 2012. He was the fourth official for the 2013 Champions League final.
What controversial decisions has he been involved in?
Skomina made headlines earlier this season when awarding Manchester United a dramatic stoppage time penalty against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League last 16. BT Sport pundit Michael Owen said at the time “It’s not a penalty in a million years,” while Thomas Tuchel said there was “no logic” in the decision.
THE UNTHINKABLE HAS HAPPENED!
Marcus Rashford converts from the spot after VAR awards the visitors a late, late penalty!
Man Utd are through, PSG are out. Unbelievable!
pic.twitter.com/03NMqxQUj6
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) March 6, 2019
Read more: Tottenham team news: The expected 4-2-3-1 line-up
PSG’s injured forward Neymar was equally outspoken, saying: “It’s a disgrace. Four guys who know nothing about football watch a slow-motion replay in front of the television.
“What can [Kimpembe] do with his hand while his back is turned?”
Skomina also refereed the first leg of the last 16 tie between Ajax and Real Madrid, ruling out a Nicolas Tagliafico goal for the Dutch side after VAR consultation. His decision was that Dusan Tadic was offside and interfering with play, by standing in front of Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois at the moment of the header.
Skomina took charge of Liverpool’s home group match this season against Napoli, carding Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane, Virgil van Dijk and Andrew Robertson in a 1-0 victory. In total he has refereed Liverpool five times, of which they have lost four matches and won just one. In those games he gave out nine yellow cards.
He officiated Liverpool’s 5-2 win over Roma in last season’s Champions League semi-final, wrongly flagging Edin Dzeko for offside and not giving a Trent Alexander-Arnold handball during the match. Roma president James Pallotta said at the time: “It is very clear VAR is needed in the Champions League because you just can’t let stuff like this happen.”
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He has presided over three Tottenham matches, two draws and a loss, in which he’s issued four yellow cards and one red.
Last summer he refereed three World Cup matches – Colombia vs Japan, England vs Belgium (group stage) and Sweden vs Switzerland. He gave out red cards to Colombia’s Carlos Sanchez and Sweden’s Michael Lang.
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Steph Houghton happy to hear more home truths from Phil Neville as England prepare to kick off World Cup campaign
When Phil Neville was unexpectedly appointed England coach, one of the criticisms that most irked him was the idea that, because he had never worked in the women’s game, he could not coach women. His view, confirmed by a discussion with his sister, Tracey – coach to England’s netball team – was that players are players, regardless of gender.
While there are specific issues pertaining to the women’s game, especially medical, Neville has seen nothing to change his initial view and has treated his players as he would male ones. Which means, when he feels the need to reach into the memory banks and summon up Sir Alex Ferguson’s hairdryer, he doesn’t hold back.
One such occasion was the SheBelieves Cup tie against Brazil in Chester, Pennsylvania, in February, and the player on the receiving end was the captain. “I got an absolute bollocking,” said Steph Houghton, recalling the England coach’s fury, “[he was] shouting, kicking stuff.”
The choice of Houghton also echoed Ferguson. It is easy for a manager to bawl out a junior player, braver and more effective to dig out a senior one. Houghton is mature enough to recognise that. “I have to take that,” she said. “I am going to be used as an example.”
Read more: Women’s World Cup 2019: How and when to watch every England and Scotland game
Houghton admits she had not played well, adding in mitigation that she had played three games in a week for Manchester City, then travelled across the Atlantic. That did not cut any ice with Neville.
There is another excuse she did not use: that she and her husband, former Bolton Wanderers player Stephen Darby, were dealing with the latter’s diagnosis with incurable motor neurone disease. Houghton is grateful for the support Neville and the others in the England camp have provided, but would not expect or want to be treated any differently when it came to her performances.
‘He showed faith in me’
A surprise choice when made skipper by Mark Sampson, as she was just 25, Neville did not hesitate to retain Houghton. “Me and Phil have a great relationship,” she said. “When he came in, you don’t know how it’s going to work. Whether I’ll still be captain. But he nailed that the first day he met us in La Manga. That really settled me. He showed faith in me, not just as a player but also a leader. One thing I’ve learnt from him is that you have to let your football do the talking.
Read more: Carly Telford hopes third time is a charm in memory of her mum
“This season, especially, I’ve focused so much on playing well and improving my game, and with that then comes the leadership, on and off the pitch. He never used to cut corners as a player and that’s why he had the career he did. He’s a great example of how to be successful.”
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Jan Vertonghen: ‘Getting to the Champions League final with Tottenham has made this season the craziest of them all’
Jan Vertonghen admits that when he gets to the point when he is looking back on his playing days, it will be this season – his “craziest” – that provides the most vivid memories and what he hopes will be the high-point of his career.
The centre-back, 32, doesn’t know if destiny has been the driving force behind Tottenham Hotspur’s unexpected white knuckle journey to this Saturday’s Champions League final.
What he does know is that the exhausting narrative of a campaign has reinforced the sense that Mauricio Pochettino’s side are more than capable of finishing the job in Atletico Madrid’s Wanda Metropolitano.
‘Beautiful and crazy’
“It’s been the craziest one ever and being at the end of that crazy campaign now is something unbelievable,” he said. “How many games have we played to get here eventually? Twelve games? In every single one of them, something crazy happened. At the end of my career, I’ll hopefully look at this and think this was the most beautiful and craziest year of them all.”
After collecting just one point from their opening three group games, Spurs turned brinkmanship into an art form, producing a succession of late goals, including Lucas Moura’s equaliser at Barcelona, to reach the knockout stage.
The more straightforward last 16 defeat of Borussia Dortmund provided a degree of respite from the drama before anxiety levels were cranked up again during the thrilling ties with Manchester City and Ajax – when Vertonghen was forced out of the first leg with a head injury before returning for the second leg in Amsterdam – that paved the way to tomorrow’s meeting with Liverpool.
Read more: Tottenham team news: The expected 4-2-3-1 Spurs line-up against Liverpool
So did Vertonghen get the sense something was special as the competition progressed? “Like 16 times, maybe,” he said. “In the group stages, we should not have lost that Inter away game, we got one point after three games, the Barca away game… there are so many I can’t tell them all but it’s been crazy. To be playing in a Champions League final is something to cherish.”
‘The ideal script’
There will only be a real sense of fufillment, however, if they return to North London with the trophy. “I will always be able to say I was part of a Champions League final but you want to tell a different story to your kids and this is the ideal script,” said the Belgium international. “I don’t know about destiny. We have to win it, if it is to be destiny.”
Vertonghen arrived at Spurs from Ajax seven years ago, two years before the arrival of Pochettino. For the defender, getting to the final sums up just how far the club has progressed.
Read more: Liverpool team news: The expected 4-3-3 line-up against Tottenham
“The first two years I was here were Europa League nights but it’s what we’ve been working on,” he said. “Maybe outside, they did not expect a Champions League final, and I can understand that. Five years ago, the manager picked this club up and brought us to the level we are at now.”
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Where to watch the Champions League final in Liverpool: The best big screen venues for Tottenham vs Liverpool
If the nostalgia of the outdoor screenings from last year’s World Cup still makes your heart flutter, there are more than a few places on Merseyside to try and chase the high when Liverpool take on Spurs in Saturday’s Champions League final.
The match is available to watch free with BT, but if you need the allure that only a big screen can bring – here are a few options in Liverpool to consider.
Baltic Market
Address: 107 Stanhope St, Liverpool L8 5RE
Price of ticket/arrival: £13.45, although they are currently sold out
What that gets you: A free can of Moritz on arrival and a big screen in an excellent food market.
For more information, click here.
Camp and Furnace
It's happening… Football's coming home!
We've had tons of enquiries about Saturday's game. Here's the plan..
∙ England v Sweden Kick off 3pm
∙ Free Entry ∙ Doors open 12pm
∙ Seating is first come first served pic.twitter.com/P1ldbC2Iaz— Camp and Furnace (@CampandFurnace) July 4, 2018
Address: 67 Greenland St, Liverpool L1 0BY
Price of ticket/arrival: £22, although they are currently sold out
What that gets you: A sellout crowd of 1200 exxpected in a music venue-turned fan park with entry from 5pm.
For more information, click here.
Einstein Bier Haus
Address: Concert Square, Fleet St, Liverpool L1 4AQ
Price of ticket/arrival: Free standing entry all day, but all tables and booths are booked
What that gets you: A bar in a Bavarian-steampunk style day-to-night venue.
For more information, click here.
Grand Central Hall
Address: 35 Renshaw Street, Liverpool, L1 2SF
Price of ticket/arrival: £11-$16, but they are currently sold out
What that gets you: One of the biggest screens around in large hall, with food and drink venus on-site.
For more information, click here.
M&S Bank Arena
Address:King’s Dock, Port of Liverpool, 16 Monarchs Quay, Liverpool L3 4FP
Price of ticket/arrival: £10 adults, £5 children
What that gets you: Entrance to the city’s landmark entertainment venue and a seat in front of the big screens.
For more information, click here.
The Sandon Pub
Address: 166-182 Oakfield Rd, Liverpool L4 0UH
Price of ticket/arrival: Free entry from 10am
What that gets you: Live music throughout the day and a large outdoor screen.
For more information, click here.
Thaikhun Street Bar
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Address: Chavasee Pak. 5-6 Kenyon steps, Liverpool One, Liverpool L1 3DF
Price of ticket/arrival: £10, although they are selling fast
What that gets you: A free drink with entry, either a beer, a soft drink or a slush puppy.
For more information, click here.
More on the Champions League:
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