Get ready for Saturday’s Champions League final with theScore’s comprehensive preview package.

How to watch

• Who: Chelsea vs. Manchester City
• When: Saturday, May 29 at 3:00 p.m. ET
• Where: Estadio do Dragao (Porto, Portugal)
• Referee: Antonio Mateu Lahoz (Spain)
• TV: CBS, TUDN (U.S.)
• Stream: Paramount+ and fuboTV (U.S.), DAZN (Canada)

Analysis

Tactics, key questions, and more heading into Saturday’s tilt.

Further reading

Dive deep into some of the storylines surrounding the contest.

Injury news

The latest updates on the key lineup questions.

Possible lineups

Chelsea (3-4-2-1): Mendy; Rudiger, Silva, James; Chilwell, Jorginho, Kante, Azpilicueta; Mount, Pulisic; Werner

Manchester City (4-3-3): Ederson; Walker, Dias, Stones, Zinchenko; Fernandinho, Gundogan, Silva; Mahrez, De Bruyne, Foden

By the numbers

Comparing this season’s Champions League statistics for the two finalists.

And looking into some advanced metrics.

What they’re saying

Pep Guardiola: “I am so confident in my team. You cannot imagine how confident I am in my team and what we have to do. … They have beaten us in two games, congratulations, but this is a different competition and a final and we will see what happens.”

Thomas Tuchel: “(City) are the benchmark in Europe and in this league, and we are the guys who want to hunt them and want to close the gap. The experience (of beating them twice) helped. It gives you, not an advantage, but it helps us to arrive with confidence, to be well aware of what is needed to have a chance to beat them.”

Mateo Kovacic: “(Tuchel) came in and from the first minute, the players felt a great connection with him, from the first meeting. It was like he had been here for two years so it came quite naturally, everything … I think the team completely changed, how we approach games, like we were more confident, solid at the back, not conceding anything in the last two or three months.”

Kevin De Bruyne: “We understand the magnitude of (the match). If you win, you’re a hero, and if you don’t you’re almost a failure, even though you are not. … Obviously, it’s been one of the goals of the club and one of the players to be here and perform on the highest stage in the world. It’s a privilege. Everyone understands the pressure.”

Prediction

After so much Champions League disappointment at Manchester City, Guardiola finally delivers the big-eared trophy the club’s brass so desperately craves. Tuchel has made Chelsea sturdier and far more resilient, but, after two victories against City this season, the German tactician won’t be able to mastermind one final triumph. Superior talent will win out.

Final score: Manchester City 2, Chelsea 1

Premier League rivals Chelsea and Manchester City have battled plenty of times before, but there’ll be more at stake than ever Saturday when they clash for the Champions League title in Portugal. Below, we examine the key individual matchups to watch in the all-English final.

Mount vs. Fernandinho

Despite Mason Mount being in the infancy of his career, the Chelsea academy graduate could eventually become a club legend if he can cap off his breakout season with a Champions League trophy.

The 22-year-old English international has been sensational throughout the competition – scoring against Real Madrid in the last match to help Chelsea reach the final – and he possesses the type of knowledge and vision usually reserved for players well beyond his age.

Those skills will be put to the test when Mount goes up against an already-established City legend in Fernandinho. The wily midfielder will be happy to end Mount and Chelsea’s season on a sour note in order to lift the Champions League trophy in what could be his last game with Manchester City.

Mahrez vs. Chilwell

It could be a tough day at the office for Ben Chilwell if Pep Guardiola gives Riyad Mahrez a chance to flourish down the right flank. It’s a tactic that’s caused the Chelsea full-back headaches in previous meetings against his former Leicester City mate.

While with the Foxes in 2019, Chilwell said Guardiola’s game plan to exploit the wings – using Mahrez and others – during a City win against Leicester made it “a very challenging game for us as full-backs, especially when it’s for 90 minutes.”

If Guardiola goes the same route, Chilwell can expect another healthy dose of Mahrez – City’s joint top scorer with four Champions League goals – cutting in from the right and causing havoc, just as he did in the semifinals against PSG.

Werner vs. Dias

It doesn’t get much bigger than the gap between Timo Werner’s and Ruben Dias’ debut campaigns.

The German striker’s reputation as a prolific scorer is in tatters due to his inconsistency in front of goal this season. Meanwhile, City have displayed significantly greater defensive cohesion with Dias, as Guardiola’s team has conceded just four goals in 12 Champions League games. The Portuguese stalwart has arguably been the player of the year in the Premier League, too.

Despite the contrasting resumes, there’s still plenty of intrigue. Just imagine the scenes if Werner can somehow end the campaign on a high with a Champions League-winning goal against a City side that’s yet to taste defeat in the competition this season.

De Bruyne vs. Kante

The prospect of watching two of the best ply their trade against one another for the most coveted trophy in club football should excite every fan of the sport. Just how often Kevin De Bruyne and N’Golo Kante actually cross paths remains to be seen, though.

The Belgian could be deployed higher up the pitch as a false nine on Saturday, which would bring veteran center-back Thiago Silva and Chelsea’s stubborn defense into the equation.

But regardless of position, marking De Bruyne – a proven superstar who’s been influential in guiding City to their first Champions League final appearance – is about as challenging as it gets. It takes multiple players to slow him down. Wherever De Bruyne lines up, the indefatigable Kante will be one of a handful of those tasked with containing him.

Bonus: Guardiola vs. Lahoz

The two Spaniards have plenty of history, and while Guardiola has dismissed the prospect of any potential conflict with the referee ahead of Saturday’s tilt, if things go sideways for City, there could be some fireworks between the emotional bench boss and the match official.

“Mateu Lahoz is a special guy, he likes to be different, he likes to be special,” Guardiola said after being sent off by his compatriot in 2018.

Lahoz isn’t shy about brandishing his cards. Will Pep be on the receiving end of one this weekend?

Cristiano Ronaldo has raised doubts over his future at Juventus after saying he’s met his personal targets in Italy and thanking fans “who took part in this journey.”

There’s one year remaining on the Portuguese superstar’s contract in Turin. He was surprisingly benched for his team’s season finale against Bologna on Sunday.

“This year we couldn’t win Serie A, congratulations to Inter for the well-deserved title,” Ronaldo wrote in an Instagram post. “However, I have to value everything that we achieved this season at Juventus, both in collective and individual terms. The Italian Super Cup, the Italian Cup, and the Serie A top scorer trophy fill me with happiness, mainly due to the difficulty they carry with them, in a country where nothing is easy to win.

“With these achievements, I reached a goal that I had set myself since the first day I arrived in Italy: to win the Championship, the Cup, and the Super Cup, and also to be best player and the top scorer in this great football country filled with tremendous players, giant clubs, and a very own football culture.”

Despite listing his personal accomplishments, Ronaldo insists football is a “collective game” and he doesn’t chase individual achievements. The 36-year-old became the first player to finish as the top scorer in England, Spain, and Italy when the 2020-21 term ended over the weekend.

“… I don’t chase records, records chase me,” he wrote.

Ronaldo scored 29 goals over 33 appearances during the latest Serie A season while Juventus finished fourth, ending their nine-year run as Italian champions. However, Andrea Pirlo’s side collected silverware in the Coppa Italia and Supercoppa Italiana.

FC Porto eliminated the club from the Champions League during the round of 16.

“Nothing compares to the feeling of knowing that I’ve left my mark in the countries where I’ve played, and that I gave joy to the fans of the clubs I represented. This is what I work for, this is what moves me, and this is what I’ll always keep chasing for until the last day,” Ronaldo wrote.