Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher has been left red-faced after a ruthless Real Madrid prediction resurfaced following their Champions League success.
Jurgen Klopp's came out second best against the La Liga giants for the third time in five seasons, suffering a narrow defeat in the final in Paris. The Reds controlled proceedings and registered 24 shots, but were unable to equalise following Vinicius Jr's second-half strike.
It was a result which meant Liverpool's bid for an unprecedented quadruple ended in heartbreak, with the defeat to Real Madrid coming after a dramatic final day of the domestic calendar which saw Manchester City again pip them to the title. However, it was still another memorable campaign for Klopp's side, with thousands lining the streets on Sunday to celebrate their FA Cup and Carabao Cup successes.
Carragher had unsurprisingly backed his former side to emerge victorious at the Stade de France, with Real Madrid defying the odds to reach the final with dramatic comebacks against Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea and City. However, the Sky Sports pundit was issued a painful reminder on social media of his dismissive declaration against Carlo Ancelotti's team.
Speaking on CBS Sport earlier this season, the former Reds defender insisted the future La Liga champions and Champions League winners had 'zero chance' of success in Europe. Giving his verdict on Ancelotti's side, Carragher said: "This Real Madrid team will not win the Champions League. Absolutely no chance of winning the Champions League."
The clip unsurprisingly was shared widely on social media following Real Madrid's 1-0 victory over Liverpool, with the Tweet being shared almost 40,000 times at the time of writing. Reflecting after the Reds' defeat, Carragher admitted the Spanish giants were destined to lift the trophy, while also taking aim at UEFA for the ugly scenes outside the Stade de France.
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He posted: "Tough one to take last night but credit to Real Madrid, their name was on the cup after the CL run they’ve been on. Liverpool have lost 4/63 this season so you can’t really ask for much more than that. Friends & family tear gassed on the way out, shocking set up UEFA."
Liverpool fans were subject to heavy-handed tactics from French police ahead of kick-off, with the final delayed by 36 minutes as supporters struggle to take their place in the stands. The UK Government has urged UEFA to launch a formal investigation into the shocking treatment of supporters, and Liverpool left-back Andy Robertson criticised the governing body after the full-time whistle.
He added: "All of us, all of us [had people we were worried about]. Obviously none of us were on our phones but when you come in after the game, go on your phone and you have seen everyone struggle to get in, the French police being pretty heavy-handed, people who have got legitimate tickets being told they are fake tickets, which happened to one of my mates and I can assure you it wasn’t a fake ticket so when it comes to, they have just panicked.
"[My mate] luckily managed to get in because one of the club representatives sorted it but they said it was a fake ticket which I can assure you it wasn’t so I think they were making it up at times and panicked. For me it shouldn’t really happen, UEFA should have been better organised.
"Luckily everyone is fine, obviously hope all the boys are fine and I don’t know whether any fans got hurt so we will find that out but fingers crossed everybody is okay, it’s never nice when these things happen, I am sure there is more of a panic for the fans who are actually involved in it.
"Hopefully everyone is fine, it is never nice especially when you are in a foreign country, you don’t know the lay of the land and things like that, it makes it a wee bit harder so hopefully everybody is okay."
