2018 was a nice year.
Covid didn’t exist, some great films were released (Eighth Grade, Roma, Isle of Dogs), and we all watched a historically good UEFA Champions League final.
That final was contested between Real Madrid and Liverpool.
It was won by the former after Sergio Ramos injured Mohamed Salah, Loris Karius fumbled the ball into his own net (twice), and Gareth Bale scored an outrageous overhead kick.
As part of 90min‘s Rivals series, we thought we’d have a look at where the players from the game ended up.
GK – Keylor Navas – A fan favourite at Real Madrid but was eventually replaced by Thibaut Courtois and shipped off to PSG…where he was eventually replaced as the number one by Gianluigi Donnarumma.
RB – Dani Carvajal – One of the very best full-backs of his generation, Carvajal is still at Real Madrid and still somehow only 30 years old.
CB – Raphael Varane – The French World Cup winner spent 10 trophy-laden years at Los Blancos before being sold to Man Utd in 2021. He’s struggled for fitness and form in a rather terrible Red Devils team.
CB – Sergio Ramos – Probably the best centre-back in Real Madrid’s history, Ramos won absolutely everything in Spain before moving to PSG last summer. He’s barely played since due to injuries.
LB – Marcelo – Still at the club but very much a bit-player at this point in his career.
CM – Luka Modric – Now 36 years old, Modric is amazingly still one of the best players in the world. An outrageous talent who’ll surely end his career at Real Madrid.
CM – Casemiro – A player opposition fans love to hate, Casemiro is key for Real Madrid’s midfield to this day.
CM – Toni Kroos – Yep, this midfield is still the same as it was four years ago.
RW – Isco – There was one a time when Isco looked like a world beater…those days are long gone. Now he’s set to leave Real Madrid as a free agent this summer after barely playing football in the last few seasons.
ST – Karim Benzema – The French forward has, somehow, gotten better recently. He’s now the best footballer in the world.
LW – Cristiano Ronaldo – CR7 left Real Madrid after this final, heading off to Juventus for £100m. He scored 100 goals there and now he’s back at Man Utd, where he will probably score another 100 goals.
SUB – Kiko Casilla – Left for Leeds United in 2019, and fined and received and eight-game ban later that year for racially abusing Jonathan Leko. Now on loan at Elche.
SUB – Nacho Fernandez – Real Madrid’s ultimate utility man. Still going relatively strong.
SUB – Theo Hernandez – Yes, he was at Real Madrid. Yes, he only played 13 games. Yes he’s now at AC Milan and might be the best left-back in the world. Yes, Real Madrid made a mistake here.
SUB – Marco Asensio – Once a very, very exciting young talent, Asensio is still just a squad player at Real Madrid.
SUB – Mateo Kovacic – Shipped off to Chelsea when it was clear that he was never getting into the starting XI ahead of Modric and Kroos, Kovacic is now a very accomplished Premier League player.
SUB – Gareth Bale – Scored one of the best goals, well, ever in the 2018 final. Since then he’s been injured, sent out on loan to Tottenham, became public enemy number one in Madrid for a bit, and is now basically just doing nothing.
SUB – Lucas Vazquez – Always had ‘move to top six Serie A team’ written all over him but is still quite a useful player in the Real Madrid squad.
GK – Loris Karius – Well…let’s just say Karius didn’t enjoy the 2018 Champions League final…since that final he’s been on loan at Besiktas and Union Berlin and has generally been terrible.
RB – Trent Alexander-Arnold – He was only a kid in 2018 but was proving himself to be one of the most exciting young players in Europe. Now 23, TAA is the best right-back in the world. Bar none.
CB – Dejan Lovren – Sold to Zenit after six seasons at Liverpool, Lovren is now a big fan of conspiracy theories.
CB – Virgil van Dijk – A game-changer for Liverpool. VVD is the best centre back in the world and the leader of the current Reds team.
LB – Andy Robertson – Another who is still at Liverpool, Robbo has been a very consistent performer for Jurgen Klopp down the years.
CM – James Milner – Now 36, Milner is a bit-part player for Liverpool at this point in his career but is still willing to put a shift in when necessary.
CM – Jordan Henderson – Captain to this day, Henderson has lifted the Champions League, Premier League, EFL Cup and FA Cup in recent seasons.
CM – Georginio Wijnaldum – Left Liverpool at the end of contract in 2021 and move to PSG. He hasn’t played as much as expected in Paris.
RW – Mohamed Salah – The 2018 final was a heartbreaking one for Salah, who went off injured after a few minutes. He’ll be looking for his revenge this weekend.
ST – Roberto Firmino – No longer a starter at Liverpool. The goals dried up for the Brazilian but he can still have an impact off of the bench.
LW – Sadio Mane – Still at Liverpool for the moment, but his contract situation means he could be sold in the very near future.
SUB – Simon Mignolet – Finally left the club in 2019 for Club Brugge and has actually had a nice time back in Belgium – winning three league titles.
SUB – Nathanial Clyne – Star of ‘Love & Hip Hop Miami’, Clyne endured a few years of poor form before finding his footing again at Crystal Palace.
SUB – Ragnar Klavan – Sold to Cagliari in 2018, the Estonian played three seasons in Italy before heading back home with Paide Linnameeskond.
SUB – Alberto Moreno – Generally a bad footballer, Moreno left for Villarreal in 2018 and has been there ever since.
SUB – Emre Can – Once a very highly-rated player, Can is no longer highly-rated and plays for BVB.
SUB – Dominic Solanke – Struggled in the Premier League but has seemingly found his level in the Championship with Bournemouth, scoring a ridiculous 29 goals this season.
