Four years ago, Gareth Bale scored a sensational bicycle kick to win his team a Champions League title under the lights of the NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium in Kyiv, Ukraine. That sentence is as impossible as ever in 2022. Perhaps it’s worth looking back at the players who took part in the 2018 UEFA Champions League final and see where they are now.
2018 Champions League Final Players — Where Are They Now?
Liverpool 2018 Champions League Players
GK — Loris Karius
Current Club: Liverpool
The 2018 Champions League final was the start of Karius’ downfall. Two major blunders in that final meant the end for the German goalkeeper.
What a mistake from Karius as his throw gets blocked by Benzema and ends up in the back of the net! pic.twitter.com/F5KsQ8ts1Y
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) May 26, 2018
Karius AGAIN with the mistake in net!
This time he gifts Gareth Bale his second goal of the night, putting Real Madrid up 3-1. pic.twitter.com/iZEA7RnZMr— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) May 26, 2018
After two unsuccessful loan spells at Besiktas and Union Berlin he returned to Liverpool. He’s almost like a ghost of the club now as he hasn’t made a single roster for the 2021-22 season. He lurks the Anfield halls and is apparently shredded now.
For who can't remember: Loris Karius then vs now pic.twitter.com/wx8fevJ1zw
— Football Memes (@FootballMemes55) April 11, 2022
RB — Trent Alexander-Arnold
Current Club: Liverpool
TAA was only 19 years old during his breakout season with Liverpool. Still just a teenager he went the full 90 minutes against Real Madrid and was dealt the task of marking Cristiano Ronaldo at the peak of his powers. TAA played well and has become one of the most dangerous right backs in the world since.
CB — Dejan Lovren
Current Club: Zenit
After losing out on his starting role at center back Lovren left Liverpool in 2020 for more starting time with Zenit. That move hasn’t aged well as Zenit and all other Russian clubs have been banned from UEFA competitions. The Croatian defender performed well in the 2018 UCL final and assisted Liverpool’s sole goal in the 3-1 defeat.
CB — Virgil van Dijk
Current Club: Liverpool
Virgil van Dijk was only in his first season with Liverpool for the 2017-18 season. Since then he has become one of the greatest defenders in Europe, rebounded from an ACL injury and is once again on top of his game.
LB — Andrew Robertson
Current Club: Liverpool
Rounding out Liverpool’s defense is Scotsman Robertson. He was also in his first season with Liverpool at the time. Three of the four defenders for Liverpool in the 2018 final were in their first full season with the club.
Liverpool’s defense played admirably against Real Madrid in 2018 and Robertson was no exception. With a much more confident goalkeeper between the sticks this time around Liverpool shouldn’t be expected to concede three times.
CM — James Milner
Current Club: Liverpool
Milner now has a much more reserved role with Liverpool and would be a surprise appearance in the 2022 Champions League final. He’s only started three Champions League games for Liverpool in the latest European campaign and is typically a last-minute substitute.
CM — Jordan Henderson
Current Club: Liverpool
It’s hard to remember a time before Henderson was with Liverpool. Henderson captained the Reds in the 2018 final but didn’t have the most memorable performance. The 31-year-old has only missed on Champions League game for Liverpool this season and will hope to make his mark against Real Madrid this time around.
CM — Georginio Wijnaldum
Current Club: PSG
Has anyone else not heard anything about Wijnaldum since he went to PSG? The Dutch midfielder has been collecting his massive paychecks with the Parisian club after his summer transfer in 2021 and has a couple goals and assists. Sounds like a nice life he’s got going on over in Ligue 1.
RW — Mohamed Salah
Current Club: Liverpool
“I will avenge my beat-up shoulder that Sergio Ramos tried to break, I will avenge my beat-up shoulder that Sergio Ramos tried to break, I will avenge my beat-up shoulder that Sergio Ramos tried to break…” — Mohamed Salah, probably.
LW — Sadio Mané
Current Club: Liverpool
He already found the net once against Real Madrid in 2018. There’s no reason to think he won’t do it again in 2022. Mané has one season left on his contract with Liverpool and some rumors point to a possible move to LaLiga if an agreement isn’t made with the Reds. Could Mané be seeing a lot more of Madrid in the future?
ST — Roberto Firmino
Current Club: Liverpool
The 2022 final could be the first time Firmino doesn’t start for Liverpool in the Champions League final. He started in both the 2018 and 2019 finals but has yet to score on the big stage. A litany of injuries and the growing presence of Luis Díaz and Diogo Jota this season makes it seem unlikely for Firmino to start in the 2022 final.
SUB — Adam Lallana
Current Club: Brighton
Lallana was called into action in the 2018 final after Ramos’ attempted murder on Salah. Lallana is no Salah, but he did all he could in that final. The 34-year-old said he hopes to be in Paris for the 2022 final, but he will watch Liverpool from the stands this time around. Lallana has been with Brighton for two seasons now and helped the club to its best finish in the Premier League.
SUB — Emre Can
Current Club: Borussia Dortmund
Can was brought on in the 83rd minute of the 2018 Champions League final in what would be his final minutes as a Liverpool player. His contract with the club had run out and that summer he headed to Juventus where he found little success. He spent a season and a half in Turin before he joined Dortmund in 2020.
Real Madrid 2018 Champions League Players
GK — Keylor Navas
Current Club: PSG
The Costa Rican legend was truly at the top of his game in the 2017-18 season. On top of claiming his third Champions League title in-a-row, he was named the UEFA Champions League Goalkeeper of the Season after the victory vs. Liverpool. In 2019 he made a move to PSG. The 35-year-old has been competing for minutes with Italian prodigy Gianluigi Donnarumma and could seek a new club soon.
RB — Dani Carvajal
Current Club: Real Madrid
Carvajal will want to finish the Champions League final against Liverpool this time around. In the 38th minute of the 2018 final the long-time Madrid player was forced to leave the game with a hamstring injury. If Real Madrid come out victorious again it will be Carvajal’s fifth UCL title with Los Blancos.
CB — Raphaël Varane
Current Club: Manchester United
After spending ten seasons with Real Madrid, Varane made the $44 million move to Manchester United last summer. After such a disastrous season in Manchester it’s hard to imagine what he’s thinking watching his former club compete in the final.
CB — Sergio Ramos
Current Club: PSG
Unfortunately for neutral viewers the main villain of the 2018 final won’t be playing this time around. Ramos won’t have the chance to dislocate Salah’s shoulder, instead the Spaniard collected a nice paycheck with PSG while making less than 15 appearances.
LB — Marcelo
Current Club: Real Madrid
Marcelo is a Real Madrid legend. The Brazilian holds the club record for most titles won as he claimed his 24th trophy with Madrid after the club won the 2021-22 LaLiga title. He can make it 25 titles with the 2022 Champions League title.
CDM — Casemiro
Current Club: Real Madrid
Casemiro is another player that will be seeking his fifth Champions League with Real Madrid. The defensive midfielder has only missed two UCL games for Madrid this season and will surely be playing in the final yet again.
CM — Luka Modric
Current Club: Real Madrid
The resurgence of Modric has been huge for Madrid this season. He sparked the comeback vs. Chelsea in the quarterfinals and has been dynamite. The 36-year-old has put up better numbers in the 2021-22 season (three goals, 12 assists) than he did in the 17-18 campaign (two goals, eight assists).
CM — Toni Kroos
Current Club: Real Madrid
This feels like a broken record at this point: another solid player who has been with Real Madrid for years now. Kroos joined in 2014 and is seeking his fourth UCL title. He didn’t have the most convincing performance vs. Liverpool in 2018 and will look to do better this time around.
CAM — Isco
Current Club: None
Isco is a free agent after leaving Real Madrid on May 20 this year and in search of a new club. In the 17-18 season he made 49 appearances for the club, this year he only made 17 as he fell down the Madrid pecking order. After Real Madrid’s final LaLiga game, Carlo Ancelotti said “Isco’s career with Real Madrid ends today and it’s been a great career.”
CF — Karim Benzema
Current Club: Real Madrid
Benzema scored 12 goals in that 17-18 season including one of the best goals the Champions League final has ever seen.
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But in all seriousness, Benzema has only gotten better with age and has an astounding 44 goals this season. With an average of about a goal per game, he should be expected to find the net against Liverpool once again.
CF — Cristiano Ronaldo
Current Club: Manchester United
Critics of Real Madrid made the claim that the club couldn’t win a Champions League title with Ronaldo. The last time Madrid won it all without Mr. Champions League was 2002. That claim looked to be true after three consecutive seasons of not making the final. But while Ronaldo fights to keep Manchester United afloat his former club has returned to the grand stage.
SUB — Nacho
Current Club: Real Madrid
Nacho wasn’t expected to play in the 2018 final, however after Carvajal went down injured he was ready to go.
SUB — Gareth Bale
Current Club: Real Madrid*
Is Bale actually on Real Madrid? Hard to say. He will leave the club this summer and Bale has only made seven appearances for Real Madrid across all competitions this season. He has seven minutes clocked in the Champions League this season.
It’s crazy to think that just four years ago Bale scored one of the greatest goals ever in a Champions League final and now he has basically zero shot at playing this time around.
ARE YOU SERIOUS! Gareth Bale scores one of the best goals you'll EVER see to give Real Madrid a 2-1 lead! #UCLfinal pic.twitter.com/SCqFozk6qx
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) May 26, 2018
SUB — Marco Asensio
Current Club: Real Madrid
Asensio has usually only come off the bench for Real Madrid in the Champions League season. Perhaps his greatest contribution was a tiny little flicked header to Rodrygo for the goal that sent the semifinal vs. Manchester City to extra time.
Will he come off the bench again on Saturday for yet another key contribution?
