Raphinha scores hat-trick in 100th appearance for Barca
Brazilian winger Raphinha celebrated his 100th appearance for FC Barcelona with a hat-trick goal against Bayern Munich in the Champions League encounter on Wednesday night.
The lineups for the 2017 UEFA Champions League Final have been announced, with both Juventus and Real Madrid trotting out with an expected but extremely strong starting XI for the showpiece event at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff.
Massimiliano Allegri has made no changes from the side that has served him so well this season, with the ‘BBC’ starting at the back, Miralem Pjanic and Sami Khedira holding things in midfield and Brazilian wing-backs Dani Alves and Alex Sandro set to fly on the flanks. Up front, they have the deadly trio of Mario Mandzukic, Gonzalo Higuain and Paulo Dybala start.
Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane has made a bold decision to not start club record-signing Gareth Bale on the bench, going for the in-form Isco instead of the speedy Welshman. He has opted to start Raphael Varane (Centre-Back) and Daniel Carvajal (Right-Back) in the line-up and whether those two last the full 90 or possibly, 120 minutes, considering they are returning from injury, remains to be seen. Their three-man midfield of Toni Kroos, Casemiro and Luka Modric remains the same with Isco partnering with talisman Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema up top.
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The final is too close to call, with book-makers putting the Spanish giants, who are vying to become the first team in history to defend the Champions League in its current format, to have the edge but Juventus are no pushovers, and they have impressed many in their journey to the final.
Juventus: Gianluigi Buffon, Andrea Barzagli, Leonardo Bonucci, Giorgio Chiellini, Dani Alves, Alex Sandro, Mirjalem Pjanic, Sami Khedira, Juan Cuadrado, Paulo Dybala,
Real Madrid: Keylor Navas, Marcelo, Sergio Ramos, Raphael Varane, Daniel Carvajal, Luka Modric, Casemiro, Toni Kroos, Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, Isco
The kick-off time of the game is 7.45 PM GMT/12.15 AM IST.
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