In the hands of the Gods?

Athens is set as the stage of tonight's Champions League Final and what a stage. What better city to host such an event? Birthplace of the great philosopher Socrates - tonight's finalists are going to need more than great thinking to power them to victory.

The prize of European greatness has seen both AC Milan and Liverpool turn the streets of Athens into a sea of red over the last couple of days as fans flock to the capital to soak up the intense atmosphere.

Who could forget the last time these two teams went head to head?  The 2005 Champions League Final has surely taken its place in footballing history.  With Liverpool 3-0 down at half time it looked like a sad night for The Reds.  To see them turn it around and win on penalties was a sight for sore eyes and one of those games that makes a neutral supporter swell with pride for English football at its best.

The tabloids have reported how Gattuso has slated the current Liverpool squad, describing them as an Italian side 10 years ago.  There has been much back-biting between Gerrard and Gattuso and, of course, it makes great reading for the punters, but when push comes to shove, the sniping will take a well earned back seat and the action will do the talking.  The majority of the ill-feeling on AC Milan's part is down to their need to set the record straight and prove themselves as the mighty team they are on paper.  Whilst Liverpool long to make this their 6th European Cup triumph.

As reported in The Sun today, Steven Gerrard said "We want to make history, be heroes and come back as winners. To win one final was absolutely magnificent, to do it twice would be really special".

One of the secret weapons up the Liverpool fans sleeves is their arsenal of scarves which were an awe inspiring sight in the Chelsea Liverpool semi final second leg and a definite message of defiance when Chelsea lined up to take their penalties...

Whilst it would have been great for Britain to have an all England final, tonight's match has the makings of an absolute knock out.

BetDirect are offering some great bets on tonight's game. Offers for tonight's Champions League Final with BetDirect include:

Best Odds Guaranteed on First Goalscorer.  BetDirect are top price on every first goalscorer in the Champions League Final.  Available up until kick-off.

Double Strike! - Place a bet on a player to score Anytime in the Final during Happy Hour and if your player scores more than once, they will double your winnings.

Champion for Champion - Place a correct score bet of £10 on the Champions League final and if your bet loses, BetDirect will give you a free £10 bet on the Championship Play-off Final on Monday.

Quadpick Dejavu? - BetDirect have boosted the quadpick for Liverpool to Win or Draw with 3 Goals or more in 90 minutes to 18/5 during Happy Hour.  If you fancy a replay of 2005 get the value for an hour.

100% Asian Handicaps and Goal Line - BetDirect are betting to just 100% on their Champions League Final markets on Asian Handicaps and Goal Lines.  You will not find this value anywhere else.

Enjoy the game!