Liverpool take on
Real Madrid in Saturday night’s
Champions League final and
Mohamed Salah and
Cristiano Ronaldo will both score.
That’s the verdict of Sky Sports pundit Paul Merson, who expects Jurgen Klopp’s side to lose 3-2 in Kiev.
Liverpool booked their place in the Champions League final by beating Roma 7-6 on aggregate, with Salah playing a starring role.
Real, meanwhile, overcame Bayern with Ronaldo’s failure to get on the scoresheet in either leg coming as a huge surprise.
Merson reckons Salah and Ronaldo, who have 25 goals between them in this season’s competition, will be on target in Kiev.
He believes the Egyptian faces disappointment though, with Real tipped to beat Liverpool 3-2.
"Both teams will open up and Liverpool must think if they have a go they will score goals," Merson told Sky Sports.
"However, I just think Real Madrid turn up on the big occasions.
"We were talking about them last season when they were playing badly and just turned up in the final against Juventus and won 4-1.
"I think it will be a really open game and I'd be surprised if Salah and Cristiano Ronaldo aren't both on the scoresheet, but I'm going for Karim Benzema to open the scoring in a narrow Real Madrid win."
Salah has been tipped to join Ronaldo and co. at the Bernabeu by completing a summer move from Liverpool to Real.
However, former Premier League ace Clinton Morrison reckons the 25-year-old winger would snub the Spanish giants.
"Nah, I can’t see it," Morrison told Express Sport, when asked if he can envisage Salah going to Real.
"You just never know, because in football money talks. But I can’t see him going, I think [after] the job Klopp’s done with him.
"Salah’s done the majority of it himself but without his team-mates and without the players that he’s had around him and [Roberto] Firmino, who doesn’t get a lot of credit but he’s been outstanding, and [Sadio] Mane, I don’t think he’d have been able to score all of those goals.
"I think Klopp’s got the best out of him. Because when he came to the Premier League before, I know he didn’t play as much, but didn’t have that impact that he’s had this season.
"And if Liverpool go on and beat Real Madrid and win the Champions League then he’ll probably stay there. But I know what people are like, and as a footballer, you get that one opportunity to go to a massive club like Real Madrid, you do think twice about it.
"But me personally, I’d stay at Liverpool because I think what Klopp’s got going there is starting to become unbelievable. Maybe in another year’s time Real Madrid still want him and he’s had another terrific season then that might be the time to move on."