- Title: Chelsea arrive in Porto ahead of Champions League final
- Date: 27th May 2021
- Summary: PORTO, PORTUGAL (MAY 27, 2021) (REUTERS) CHELEA BUS CARRYING PLAYERS HEADING TO HOTEL EXTERIOR OF THE YEATMAN HOTEL AND BUS PULLING IN VARIOUS OF PLAYERS COMING OFF BUS AND ENTERING HOTEL BUS PARKED OUTSIDE HOTEL VARIOUS OF PLAYERS ENTERING HOTEL PLAYERS INSIDE HOTEL LOBBY SEEN THROUGH DOOR EXTERIOR OF HOTEL PLAYERS INSIDE HOTEL LOBBY SEEN THROUGH DOOR BUS PARKED OUTSIDE HOTEL
- Embargoed: 10th June 2021 19:35
- Keywords: Champions Chelsea Chelsea arrive in Porto Porto Portugal arrival final soccer
- Location: PORTO, PORTUGAL
- City: PORTO, PORTUGAL
- Country: Portugal
- Topics: Europe,Soccer,Sport
- Reuters ID: LVA001EEQNJGN
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: After a season in which Europe's traditional powerhouses stumbled, Saturday's (May 29) Champions League final between Manchester City and Chelsea is a showcase for the contemporary dominance of England's Premier League.
Neither club can boast a rich pedigree at this level -- City are making their debut on this stage while Chelsea will be featuring in their third Champions League final, having won the competition in 2012.
It is an 'all-English' final but both teams highlight the Premier League's ability to recruit the finest coaching and playing talent from across the continent and beyond.
City are coached by Spaniard Pep Guardiola, who won the competition twice when guiding Barcelona, while Chelsea's German boss Thomas Tuchel led Paris St Germain to the final last season, where they were beaten by Bayern Munich.
Both have benefited from their foreign owners' willingness to invest in top international talent with City's Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan from Abu Dhabi and Chelsea's Russian backer Roman Abramovich constantly providing the millions needed.
It is the second all-English Champions League final in three years, confirming the long-standing fears of debt-ridden Spanish giants Real Madrid and Barcelona that the unmatched global commercial success of the Premier League will eventually be replicated on the field.
Indeed, a recent UEFA report showed that English clubs were responsible for 43% of all global transfer activity in last summer's trading window.
Chelsea, with Brazilian veteran Thiago Silva at the heart of their defence, have tightened up at the back and indeed the two finalists have conceded just four goals each in Europe this season.
That is lowest total for the two finalists since Barcelona (four goals against) took on Arsenal (two) in the 2006 decider. Neither side have conceded more than once in a Champions League game this season.
But thankfully there will be no shortage of attacking talent aiming to exploit any lingering weaknesses in the two defences.
City have an abundance of attacking options, yet despite those numbers, Chelsea have shown that they can get the better of Guardiola's side -- the Londoners have won the last two encounters, at Wembley in the FA Cup semi-final and at the Etihad in the league earlier this month.
Englishman Mason Mount and American Christian Pulisic bring speed and precision to Chelsea's attack and while Germans Timo Werner and Kai Havertz have yet to fully deliver on their promise, they present a threat.
After a season in which games were played behind closed doors, up to 16,500 fans will be present at the Estadio do Dragao, the bulk of them having travelled from England.
They could be in for a treat.
(Production: Silvio Castellanos, Catarina Demony) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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