It is, in one sense, a classic Champions League final. Real Madrid against Liverpool. The most successful side the competition had known against the most successful English side. It will be the first matchup to have happened in the final three times; it’s even happened once before in the same city, albeit in a different stadium. Both have already won trophies this season.
Yet for all the success both clubs have enjoyed over the last nine months, both end their seasons facing not just the immediate anti-climax of defeat in a certain sense but also a real specter of disappointment.