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Zidane Discusses Possibility Of Swapping Cristiano Ronaldo For Mo Salah

Zidane Discusses Possibility Of Swapping Cristiano Ronaldo For Mo Salah

The Champions League final is being billed as a battle between the Liverpool star man and Real's own superstar.

Ryan Sidle

Ryan Sidle

Saturday is being billed as Mo Salah vs Cristiano Ronaldo as two of the Ballon d'Or front runners come face-to-face in the Champions League final. Would Zinedine Zidane swap his man for the Liverpool forward?

Cristiano Ronaldo has helped Real Madrid to win back-to-back Champions Leagues, the first club to do so since the competition changed from the European Cup to the Champions League. On Saturday night they go for a third title in a row.

In Kyiv they will come up against Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool. The Premier League side aren't there by accident and they have the incredible Mo Salah at their disposal, with the Egyptian tearing through most opposition this season.

Salah has 43 goals to his name for the Reds this season with 10 of those coming in the competition. The 25 year old has his own Ballon d'Or triumph suddenly within his own reach.

Which one of the two will have the biggest impact on the final is the hot topic surrounding Saturday's game. When asked whether or not he'd swap Ronaldo for Salah, Los Blancos boss Zidane said:

"No, I have Cristiano and I talk about my players. Cristiano is the best, he shows it every year. Sometimes pressure gets to players and it spurs others on. He is certainly the latter. He's of maximum importance to us."

Salah's brace against Roma nearly settled the tie in the first leg. Image: PA Images
Salah's brace against Roma nearly settled the tie in the first leg. Image: PA Images

Who in their right mind would swap Ronaldo in fairness, even if the deal seems pretty even considering how good Salah is at the moment, considering all that he has done for Real.

Ronaldo scored twice in last season's 4-1 final win over Juventus and was man of the match, in 2016 he scored the winning penalty in the shoot-out against Atletico Madrid and against the same opposition two years before he scored from the spot in extra time.

Added with his goal in Manchester United's 2008 Champions League final win over Chelsea and you've got a man who loves scoring on the big occasion.

Ronaldo has a history of scoring goals in the big games. Image: PA Images
Ronaldo has a history of scoring goals in the big games. Image: PA Images

Liverpool have their own history with the competition having famously won it five times but the most recent occasion was in 2005 when they beat AC Milan in Istanbul having come from 3-0 down to win on penalties.

Both Liverpool and Real have a lot more than just Salah and Ronaldo at their disposal but they are their side's most likely match winners.

Who will win on Saturday?

Featured Image Credit:

Topics: Football News, zidane, Zinedine Zidane, Champions League, Mohamed Salah, Mo Salah, Cristiano Ronaldo, Real Madrid