1) Both FC Barcelona and Manchester United have won 3 UEFA Champions League titles in football history. The winner at the Wembley Stadium on May 28 will therefore surpass the runner-up in the rankings of the contest’s top winners since its start.
2) The old Wembley Stadium, which hosted 5 European finals, was the arena in which Pep Guardiola lifted the European Cup, 19 years ago. The current Barca coach—then a player—was in the Catalan side that defeated Sampdoria 1-0 on 20 May 1992, in front of roughly 70,000 spectators.
3) Lionel Messi enters the Champions League final as the competition’s present top scorer with 11 goals. He is 7 goals ahead of Manchester United’s top scorer Chicharito.
4) Lionel Messi enters the Champions League final as the competition’s most active and accurate forward, having made 31 shots of target in total up to now. This makes him approximately twice more effective than Manchester United’s Wayne Rooney, who has 15 attempts on target in his name so far.
5) Besides being the 2011 Champions League’s top scorer and most accurate player in front, Messi is also the most fouled player, with 30 fouls suffered in 12 appearances. This is 9 more than Manchester United’s most fouled player, Nani.
6) Barca and United are the Champions League’s most dominant sides this season. The Catalans come first with an average ball possession rate of 62%, while the Red Devils come in second place with a rate of 58%.
7) Barcelona are the side having scored the most goals in this season’s Champions League. They have placed the ball at the back of the net on 27 occasions, whilst Manchester United have netted 25 goals overall. Should the 2011 final at the Wembley end in a 2-0 result just as in 2009—but in favour of the British titans—then they would be equalling their Spanish challengers in the goalscoring standings.
8) Barcelona are the Champions League’s most dangerous side, being the club with the most shots on goal. At 86 attempts, they share their pole position with Real Madrid, who also have an average of 7.17 goals per game. Manchester United come third with 68 attempts, and share their place with German side Schalke 04.
9) Manchester United have received no red cards in this season’s Champions League, unlike their final opponents. Barcelona needlessly entered the list of punished sides after their second-choice keeper Pinto allegedly misbehaved against Real Madrid on May 27.
10) Manchester United have conceded twice less goals than Barcelona in the Champions League this season. The Catalans have allowed 8 goals in 12 games, while United have allowed only 4.
Need information, updated statistics and text commentary for the 2011 Champions League final? Follow Barcelona vs Manchester United live on Live Soccer TV, on May 28.
