Mo Salah explains why he wants to avoid Manchester City in Champions League final

Liverpool attacker Mo Salah explained why he would rather play Real Madrid than Manchester City in the final of the Champions League.

The Reds booked their place in Paris with a 5-2 aggregate victory over Villarreal on Tuesday night. They will learn tonight who they will be facing when City travel to Madrid with their 4-3 first-leg advantage.

City lost in last year’s Champions League final to Chelsea while Liverpool were defeated by Real Madrid in the 2018 showdown before lifting the trophy 12 months later. In that final against Cristiano Ronaldo 's Los Blancos, Salah was forced off with a shoulder injury on 31 minutes after a tangle with Sergio Ramos.

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It’s clear the Egyptian still has sour memories of that night judging by his comments after the win over Villarreal. It’s why he would prefer to right the wrongs against Madrid rather come up against City, albeit he praised the Premier League champions.

Speaking to BT Sport, he said: “I want to play Madrid, I have to be honest. City’s a really tough team, we play against them a few times this season. If you ask me personally I would prefer Madrid.

“Because we lost in the final before against them. So I want to play against them, hopefully win it against them as well.”

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