Champions League final: Liverpool dealt pre-match blow as AZ Alkmaar snub friendly with Reds ahead of Tottenham clash

Champions League final: Liverpool dealt pre-match blow as AZ Alkmaar snub friendly with Reds ahead of Tottenham clash
Liverpool’s hopes of playing a friendly before the Champions League final have been dashed, according to reports in the Netherlands.Jurgen Klopp hoped to prepare for the June 1 showpiece in Madrid by keeping his playing squad fresh with a pre-match fixture against Dutch side AZ Alkmaar.Getty2

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However, Dutch sources say Alkmaar told Liverpool to ‘abandon’ the plans as much of their first-team squad will be on holiday, as they have no more football to play with their 2018/19 campaign ending earlier this week.The Alkmaar players not sent on holiday will be representing their countries on the international stage, to further decimate the Eredivise outfit’s squad.Liverpool wanted to play the friendly in Spain roughly a week before the final, the reports claim.The Reds take on Tottenham at Atletico Madrid’s Wanda Metropolitano stadium in a bid to be crowned European champions for the sixth time. Both clubs have criticised UEFA over the governing body’s decision to allocate just 16,613 tickets apiece for the showpiece fixture, despite Atleti’s ground holding almost 64,000 spectators.Liverpool group Spirit of Shankly and the Tottenham Hotspur Supporters’ Trust have issued a statement asking commercial partners to gift tickets back to the clubs.The statement read: “Spirit of Shankly and Tottenham Hotspur supporters’ Trust – the independent official fan groups of LFC and THFC – are calling on the main sponsors of the UEFA Champions League to return a proportion of the tickets they have received for the Champions League final to the pot for supporters of both clubs.

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“We ask Nissan, Playstation, Gazprom, PepsiCo, Banco Santander, Mastercard, Heineken and Expedia Group to help redress the balance in the current unfair allocation that means fans of both competing clubs receive less than 25 per cent of available tickets.“As major sponsors of the UEFA Champions League, your companies appreciate the passion and dedication of the fans who follow their teams and make every game a spectacle.“But many of those fans who have followed their club throughout this season will miss out on the biggest game of all. As will thousands more loyal supporters.getty2

The Wanda Metropolitano in Madrid will host the Champions League final

“SOS and THST believe such a gesture by the sponsors would help lift the occasion by increasing the number of passionate fans inside the stadium, and increase each brand’s standing on a global scale.“We also ask that each sponsor lobbies UEFA to allocate tickets for future finals on a fairer, more equitable spilt that has supporters benefit.”

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