The Playoff Final is between West Ham and Blackpool, both sides are looking to bounce straight back up to the Premier League after the pair were relegated last season.
Sam Allardyce took over at Upton Park following the Hammer's demotion last term, his side racked up an impressive 86 points but missed out on automatic promotion on the last day of the season. The East London outfit only have themselves to blame for not going up automatically following a winless run at home towards the end of the campaign which saw the team draw many games. With that being said West Ham United only lost 8 games in the Championship this season fewer then any other team while the team set a club record of away wins and also battered Cardiff City 5-0 to get to the playoff final. They beat their opponents Blackpool twice this season, 4-0 at home and 4-1 away and even last season the Hammers beat the Seasiders 3-1 with a 0-0 draw in the other fixture. With the club being unbeaten in those last 4 games against Blackpool and consisting of a squad that already has Premier League quality within it West Ham are my favourites to win today, they have the fire power within the team to win as the likes of Kevin Nolan (13) Carlton Cole (14) and Ricardo Vaz Te (11) have an impressive 38 goals between them. They also have players such as Sam Baldock, Nicky Maynard, Henri Lansbury, Mark Noble and Jack Collison who will look to put their stamp on today's final. The team scored 81 goals this season, the second highest in the Championship, and had the best defensive record of any of the 4 playoff teams which showed when the team didn't concede in either of the two games against Cardiff. The likes of youngster James Tompkins and England Goalkeeper Robert Green will be crucial at the back for West Ham today as they look to lift the trophy and move back up to the bigtime at the first time of asking.
But although the odds are stacked against them Blackpool are certainly no pushovers, Ian Holloway's men were nowhere near contenders when they first got promoted to the Premiership and after getting relegated in their first season in the top-flight many wrote off the team going back up as the likes of Charlie Adam left the club once the team went down. Holloway himself said that a win in today's final would eclipse the achievement of when the side first got promoted, his team got through a nervy 20 minutes against Birmingham as they held on to win 3-2 which shows the resilience and capabilities within the Blackpool ranks. Veteran goal machine Kevin Phillips looks to end a personal playoff hoodoo as he has previously lost two finals as a player, he himself has scored 17 goals this season and has been influential in Blackpool's road to Wembley. Holloway's achievements during his time at Blackpool can not be overlooked, he has a great captain in Barry Ferguson. A player who seasons ago people would have laughed at Blackpool for having a chance at signing. The likes of him and Phillips will have to be at their best if they are to beat a very strong West Ham team today, other key players for the Tangerines will be youngster Matt Phillips, 12 goals this season, and Gary Taylor-Fletcher, 8 goals, who stuck with the team despite their relegation last term.
One thing's for sure, in a one off game in any sport anything can happen. Today's match is the most valuable match in football financial wise as it is worth an estimated £90 million to the winner. As well as that it puts the winner in best league in the world and can have devastating affects on the losers. Both team's will be raring to go come 3 o'clock this afternoon with their fans singing their hearts out at the historical venue that is Wembley. Personally my money is on West Ham, I think the class in their side will edge it but don't be surprised if the game goes to extra time or even penalties!
The Champions League Final is the showpiece event for today's football. German giants Bayern Munich take on Chelsea at the Allianz Arena in Munich. The Blues will have to go in to Bayern's backyard and try to get a result in order to lift Europe's biggest prize whilst Munich will look to become the first team to win the trophy at their own ground.
Chelsea's interim manager Roberto Di Matteo has already won his side the FA Cup and looks to propel himself in to legendary status with a win tonight, well with his time at the club as a player that is already confirmed but if his side doesn't win tonight he could sadly suffer a fate many others have under club owner Roman Abramovich and find himself jobless. He has turned the clubs fortunes around since AVB was sacked but with the team finishing 6th in the Premier League tonight is a good moment in the West London clubs future. If they lose they will not only have lost a second Champions League final, the first being on penalties to Manchester United in Moscow, but they will be out of the competition next year which could have a serious knock on effect financial as well as meaning they may not be able to attract the high calibre players they seek. But Chelsea beat Barcelona to get here, on their day Di Matteo's men have shown they can beat anyone and the Spanish side are not just anyone after all let's remember they are a side that has been branded as possible the best footballing side ever. Captain John Terry was sent off on that memorable night for the club in what was a unmemorable night for him personally, after missing the crucial penalty in that final against Manchester United he will now have to sit out of the clubs second chance. Controversially the English international has been given permission to lift the trophy if they win tonight. Whatever happens if Chelsea tonight the players who have played on the night will be the heroes, the likes of Terry and Ramires will be remembered for their roles on the way to the final but tonight it will be down to the likes of Frank Lampard, Peter Cech, Juan Mata and Didier Drogba to put in their best performances in order for Chelsea to win. With the way this season's footballs gone anything can happen, I wouldn't put it past Fernando Torres stealing the show especially as it was his goal that sealed Chelsea's place in the final.
Chelsea have a lot to prove to Europe and everyone watching around the world but can they really do it? Well they have lots against them but they can take positives from the fact that Bayern Munich are trophyless at the moment after missing out on the Bundesliga to Borussia Dortmund following a 5-2 thrashing in the German Cup Final and that they missed out on the title by 8 points finishing second. A positive for Chelsea it might be but for Bayern it is a massive incentive, they will not want to suffer another loss or more humiliation and what could be more humiliating then losing to an English side at your own ground. They have many incentives to win as does star player Franck Ribery who missed out on Bayern's last Champions League Final through suspension when they lost 2-0 in Madrid to Inter Milan. With the likes of Ribery as well as Dutch superstar Arjen Robben Bayern could run riot tonight. The Germans have many quality players within the team and a host of German's in the side who will be eager to get the job done, the likes of Phillip Lahm, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Thomas Muller, Toni Kroos and Mauel Neur will all want to do their country as well as their team proud by celebrating on their own soil. All have unique qualities that could be decisive in tonight's game.
As with all finals in all sports their are many stats and statistic to support either teams case for who will win. Well let's have a look at some, one player I didn't mention on purpose so I could mention him now was Bayern Munich's star striker Mario Gomez. The German international has 12 goals in this seasons competition leaving him just two behind the great Lionel Messi and even more impressive he has a stunning total of 20 goals in his last 17 Champions League appearances. It will be down to the defensive duo of Gary Cahill and David Luiz who are expected to pass late fitness tests to stop Gomez and Bayern's other various attacking options.
If Chelsea fans were worried before then look away now, Bayern Munich have won 13 of their last 14 matches in front of their home crowd scoring 40 goals and letting in just six. Their last defeat was in November 2011 1-0 against Borussia Dortmund (they're pretty good against Munich right!). In the Champions League the stats are just as scary and identical as Bayern have won 13 of their last 14 home fixtures. Their most recent loss in the competition was in last season's campaign during the final 16 round 3-2 against Inter Milan. Overall Bayern Munich have played 30 Champions League matches at the Allianz Arena losing only... three.
To make matters worse Bayern have only lost once at home to an English side and surprisingly that was against Norwich City in the 1993 Uefa Cup. The other 15 matches have resulted in 10 wins and 5 draws for Munich meaning that in the European Cup and Champions League eras Bayern are undefeated at home against English sides. With all that being said Chelsea themselves have beaten the odds this season as they have shown on numerous occasions, they fought back to beat Napoli in extra time and as mentioned previously beat the mighty Barcelona. Against German teams they themselves don't have a bad record as they have won 7, lost 4 and drawn 2 of their last 13 games against German sides. However that glimmer of hope could be dashed when you consider that in 6 travels to Germany, Chelsea have managed just one win in 6 which was back in 2004 against Stuttgart meaning they have lost 4 and drawn 1 in the other 5 meetings.
Many can predict what will happen but in virtually hours the teams will walk out on the field and there can be only one winner as both sides look to lay recent demons to rest but only one will come out on top. Who will it be?
Personally I'd favour Bayern but in a game of this magnitude who knows and once again don't be surprised if there is extra time and/or penalties amongst various other twists and turns in tonight's final.
