How Liverpool and Real Madrid compare ahead of the Champions League final

Liverpool take on Real Madrid in Saturday’s Champions League final with both sides looking to add to their impressive history in the tournament.

Here, the PA news agency looks at how the teams compare ahead of the clash at the Stade de France in Paris.

Liverpool and Real Madrid have been crowned champions of Europe on a staggering 19 occasions between them.

Real are the tournament’s specialists, winning 13 titles, while Liverpool are six-time winners.

Real also hold the superior record in the Champions League era with seven wins to Liverpool’s two, reaching eight finals compared to the Reds’ five and 15 semi-finals to six.

Carlo Ancelotti’s squad is far more experienced in the competition than Jurgen Klopp’s, with five players boasting more than 100 appearances (Karim Benzema, Toni Kroos, Luka Modric, David Alaba, and Marcelo). Thiago leads the way for Liverpool on 74 matches.

The Champions League brings out the best in both teams, even when they are not on top domestically.

As was the case in 2019, Liverpool could become European champions on Saturday despite losing out on the Premier League to Manchester City.

Since 1992, when the European Cup was renamed the Champions League, the Reds have reached five finals including this weekend’s showpiece, the most among English clubs. Manchester United are next with four and, over the same period, have 13 Premier League titles to Liverpool’s one.

Real Madrid, who were crowned Spanish champions last month, are in their eighth final since 1992, almost twice as many as their domestic rivals Barcelona (five) despite Barca winning 14 league titles to Real’s 10. This is only their second final to come in the same season as a LaLiga triumph, after 2016-17.

Both teams have won the