We've been here before. Saturday's Champions League final between Liverpool and Real Madrid will be the third instalment of the two clubs tussling for European football's biggest prize.
That will make this the most common European Cup/Champions League final contest in the competitions' collective history.
There was Madrid's 3-1 win in Kyiv four years ago, and in 1981 Liverpool emerged 1-0 victors. And it is that Reds success many will be reminiscing about this week.
The 1981 edition was the last European Cup/Champions League final that Madrid lost – their seven such appearances since then have all been won.
To put that stat into context, no other team has won UEFA's elite competition more than seven times, yet Madrid have done so just since 1998.
But given that defeat came to Liverpool and also in Paris (at the Parc des Princes rather than Stade de France, but still…), the focus on that occasion is likely to be a little greater this time around.
La route de Paris
The paths of Madrid and Liverpool to Paris in 1981 were significantly less long-winded than in 2022.
With no group stage to traverse, the old European Cup went straight into a knockout competition and both sides enjoyed some one-sided scorelines along the way.
Finnish club OPS were first up for Liverpool. While the Reds could only return home with a 1-1 draw, any chances of an upset were emphatically blown away at Anfield – Bob Paisley's men won 10-1, though it wasn't quite good enough to break the club's record for biggest European win: an 11-0 defeat of Stromsgodset seven years earlier.
Little did Liverpool know that their next opponent would one day be the club's greatest nemesis. Alex Ferguson and Aberdeen faced the Reds in the second round, but once again Paisley's men claimed an emphatic win, going through 5-0 on aggregate.
CSKA Sofia didn't put up much more of a fight as Liverpool beat them home (5-1) and away (1-0) as well. Bayern Munich did prove a tougher nut to crack in the semi-finals, but after a 0-0 stalemate at Anfield, a 1-1 draw in Germany ensured the Reds progressed thanks to the away goals rule.
Madrid first crushed Ireland's Limerick 7-2 over two legs, before then seeing off Honved (3-0) and Spartak Moscow (2-0).
Inter awaited in the semis and did at least become the first side to beat Madrid in the competition that season, but their 1-0 win in Milan was insufficient to send them through as Los Blancos' star men Juanito and Santillana had earned a 2-0 victory in the first leg.
An underwhelming final
It's fair to say the build-up to the 1981 final – played on this day 41 years ago – was rather less expectant than for this season's.
Liverpool had struggled with injuries over the course of the season, with their fifth-placed finish in the league an indictment of their situation at the time.
They had won each of the previous two First Division titles and would go on to win the next three as well, so 1980-81 was a particularly low ebb when it came to the extended competition of domestic football.
As for Madrid, Vujadin Boskov's team were more renowned for being tough rather than silky, and they had just missed out on the Spanish title to Real Sociedad due to their head-to-head record – Los Blancos didn't get their next LaLiga crown until 1986.
Similarly, this was hardly a Madrid side that was revered on the continental stage at the time. Of course, they had won the first five editions of the competition, but since that run between 1956 and 1960, their only other triumph had been 15 years earlier in 1966.
The match didn't exactly surpass expectations as a spectacle, even if it proved a glorious night for Liverpool.
There were few chances of note in a cagey first half and not many more after the break – Jose Antonio Camacho's chip did at least cause some worry for Reds fans, but he got too much on it as his attempt flew over.
Another defender, Alan Kennedy, made no such mistake, however. The Liverpool full-back raced into the left side of the Madrid area, making the most of a failed clearance attempt by an opponent and smashed into the net from an acute angle with under 10 minutes to go.
They might have picked Madrid off on the break late on, but their inability to do so didn't matter as the Reds were European champions for the third time.
While that match was ultimately deemed an end of an era in some regards for an ageing Liverpool team, they weren't gone for long...
A sign of things to come?
This particular period was something of a golden era for English clubs in the European Cup. Liverpool's 1981 success was the fifth consecutive edition of the competition to be won by a team from England.
The Reds had won their first European titles in 1977 and 78, before Nottingham Forest claimed back-to-back crowns – in fact, they were the fourth team in a row to lift the trophy at least twice in succession after Liverpool, Bayern Munich and Ajax.
Aston Villa prolonged the English dominion in 82 and, although Hamburg were victorious in 83, the European Cup was back in Liverpool's hands again the following year – that would be the last English triumph until Manchester United's treble winners won the Champions League in 1999.
It seems astonishing now, given how synonymous Madrid are with the competition, but it took them 17 years to reach another European Cup/Champions League final. That 1998 victory over Juventus in Amsterdam reignited the club's obsession, however, with six more titles arriving at the Santiago Bernabeu since the turn of the century.
But Madrid arguably head into Saturday's showdown as the underdogs, with English football seemingly entering another era of domination.
If Liverpool win, they'll be the third English team in four years to win the Champions League – it'll also be the first time since the 1980s that England has had back-to-back winners.
Granted, English clubs threatened to establish a similar stranglehold over the competition earlier this century, with seven of the eight finals before 2013 containing a Premier League team, but such is the financial gulf these days, it's difficult to see the rest of Europe resisting for long.
Title-chasing PSG ready for tough game at Lorient, says boss Luis Enrique
Paris Saint-Germain could secure their third straight Ligue 1 title if they defeat Lorient and Monaco fail to beat Lille – but Luis Enrique is not expecting his struggling opponents to hand them any favours.
If Monaco draw or lose against Lille on Wednesday and PSG win away at 17th-placed Lorient, the Parisians would clinch their record 12th league title.
Luis Enrique's side have an 11-point lead over second-placed Monaco with five matches remaining, and a far superior goal difference having lost just one game.
"It's going to be a very difficult game," Enrique told reporters on Tuesday. "When you're at the bottom of the table, you don't have much to lose.
"Generally, teams at the bottom of the table manage to get unexpected results at the end of the season.
"There's a lot at stake. The possibility of being crowned champions is enough to make you pay attention."
The former Barcelona boss, who moved to the French capital last July, is chasing a possible quadruple after PSG booked a Champions League semi-final berth and a spot in the Coupe de France final. PSG secured the Trophee des Champions title in January.
"It motivates us but for the moment, we only have one title, we have to win the league and keep fighting to win it all. It's a long and winding road ahead," Luis Enrique said.
Luis Enrique once again declined to comment on the future of Kylian Mbappe, Ligue 1's highest scorer for the last five seasons.
France captain Mbappe, 25, has been heavily linked with a move to Spanish giants Real Madrid.
PSG, formed in 1970 via the merger of Paris Football Club and Stade Saint-Germain, have won nine of the last 11 Ligue 1 titles.
Mbappe's frustration lies with their performances in the Champions League, however, a trophy they have never lifted despite huge amounts of investment in the squad.
"When Kylian speaks in public, I'll do the same," Luis Enrique said.
Grant McCann hails ‘outstanding’ response as Doncaster close on play-off spot
Grant McCann was a proud man after Doncaster won 4-1 at Colchester to register a 10th straight victory and move into the play-off places.
Colchester took a ninth-minute lead through Jayden Fevrier, who converted Tom Hopper’s cross at the far post, but remain in relegation danger after Rovers’ emphatic comeback.
Luke Molyneux equalised after collecting Jamie Sterry’s short free-kick and scoring with a low 25-yard shot and Doncaster took a 22nd-minute lead through Harrison Biggins, who netted from close range from Molyneux’s delivery.
Tom Anderson netted a third in the 76th minute at the near post from Hakeeb Adelakun’s pass, and Joe Ironside sealed victory when he converted after Sam Hornby had tipped James Maxwell’s shot onto a post.
A point on the final day against Gillingham will seal a play-off spot regardless of results elsewhere and McCann said: “I’m really proud.
“Obviously conceding early wasn’t ideal for us but the response was outstanding.
“We scored two very good goals, the first one from Mols (Molyneux) and the second one was another very good goal and something we knew could help us in the game, Biggo’s (Biggins) runs from the centre circle in between the posts after good play by Mols.
“In the first half, we were a little bit edgy and it was a little bit even Steven in the game.
“But in the second half, we were really comfortable and scored another couple of really good goals.
“We always play for more goals; we never sit tight and take what we’ve got – that’s just the way we like to go about things.
“We came up against a team that’s obviously down the wrong end of the table and we knew it was going to be tough.”
Fevrier had Colchester on track to secure survival but they go into Saturday’s final game just three points above the drop zone, with their goal difference superior by four over Sutton.
Colchester boss Danny Cowley said: “It was a tough night for us.
“We have the ability to self-harm, to self-destruct, in a game where we let four terrible goals in.
“For 75 minutes, it was 2-1 and they’ve had three shots at goal, two from 30 yards, and somehow they’re winning the game.
“We were 2-1 down at half-time where we felt we shouldn’t have been, as we’d done a lot right.
“We were in total ascendency and they don’t even want to score any more goals, they want to hang onto what they’ve got and we gift them another two goals.
“I’ve just looked back at the goals and they’re very hard to defend.
“We actually played well box to box but you can’t say you’ve played well when we’ve conceded the goals that we have.
“It’s a damaging night and I’m really angry. We just did the basics so poorly.”
Barrow must stick together in quest to secure play-off spot – Pete Wild
Barrow boss Pete Wild stressed his side must stick together to secure a League Two play-off spot on the final day of the season.
The Bluebirds suffered a fifth defeat in a painful six-game winless run with a last-gasp 2-1 loss to Bradford.
It means they have to get a result when they host promoted Mansfield on Saturday.
Bobby Pointon opened the scoring with a great strike in the first half before Kian Spence levelled with a free-kick after the break.
But former on-loan Barrow forward Tyler Smith came off the bench to score a bruising stoppage-time winner against his old club.
And Wild said: “We didn’t do anything with or without the ball. We were frustrated at half-time. I told them ‘we’ve got to have a go and try to get over the line’.
“We played really well second half, had a go, came out fighting and got the goal, but it wasn’t enough.
“We were on the front foot. We kept trying to throw subs on to put impetus into the game and you get hit by a sucker punch at the end.
“We had four chances to clear the ball and that’s been the month hasn’t it. There have been key moments in game, chances and opportunities with the football and we’ve not done that.
“We weren’t getting a glove on them and we had to try and be braver, second half.
“I will never make it about them, it’s about us. We’re all a collective. We will win together and lose together and that’s how we’ve gone through the season.
“What we have to do now is just stick together and try to keep going.
“Across the last four games you have seen glimpses of us, but not enough of us across a full 90 minutes to get over the line.”
The Bantams were indebted to Sheffield-born Smith’s late winner for their fourth-straight win.
Boss Graham Alexander said: “I’m pleased that the players have once again showed character and personality to once again get a win from a game we should never have been drawing anyway.
“We were brilliant in the first half and should have been two or three up. But we weren’t and a good team like Barrow are going to come back into it and have a spell of pressure and momentum.
“Ultimately they got a goal from it. From our perspective it’s a poor one to concede going through the wall.
“Our performance became a bit flat after that. They had real quality and gained chances.
“The subs that came on halted their momentum.
“They were going for it as well and it was going to be (down to) who had that quality to score.
“To be fair to Tyler, he would have been under massive pressure in his own head, but he stuck it in the corner so fair play to him.”
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