Underrated Players To Watch Out For In The Champions League Final!

#1 Marco Asensio (Real Madrid Attacking Midfielder)

Asensio will be looking to make the leap from "promising" to "Established threat" in the final

When Real Madrid are playing, the opponents focus their defensive efforts on the fearsome BBC trio, not to mention contributions from the Brazilian duo of Casemiro and Marcelo. However, Asensio's impact as a super-sub and rising go to option cannot be disregarded. The youngster has always made the most of the opportunities afforded to him at Madrid. He has been patient and has worked hard on his game- and the results are beginning to show. Whenever called onto duty as a substitute, he never fails to impress, breathing fresh air into the attack.

He is increasingly being used as a super sub by Zinedine Zidane. When the Madrid attack is faltering, Asensio, more often than not, if utilized as a welcome introduction. He has remarkable stamina and his swift pace comes in handy when considerable time has elapsed in the match. At 60 minutes on the day of the final, if Zinedine Zidane needs a substitute who can breach a resolute Liverpool defense spearheaded by Virgil Van Dijk, Asensio is his man. When time has elapsed, bringing on Asensio makes sense because he can exploit the tiredness of the opposition and use his pace to either score or create assists from team-mates.

Asensio's style of play will also compliment Ronaldo's. As Asensio plays in attacking midfield, he can use his pace to either initiate a breach of the Liverpool defense or draw defenders onto himself before passing the ball to Ronaldo. As Asensio draws the extra defenders, Ronaldo gets space and a precise pass- all that he ever asks for. Being one of the deadliest finishers in the game, Ronaldo, and the entire Madrid attack, will benefit from Asensio's playing style.

Moreover, despite being young, Asensio shows great maturity for his age and can maintain his nerves in crunch time- as was evident in Madrid's second round game against Bayern in the Semi-Finals. In the game, Asensio faced a fearsome Bayern defense delivered a crucial goal for the Los Blancos, coming in clutch when Ronaldo and Benzema were misfiring. After the match, Zidane himself said, "Marco Asensio came on and made the difference". Bayern has accounted for handling Ronaldo, assigning dedicated markers to him for the entirety of the game, but paid the price for not factoring in the value that Asensio adds to the setup as a substitute. Liverpool would be imprudent to do the same.

Lately, Asensio is also being used as a starter for Zidane instead of just a power-sub. He has truly flourished in the role- showing poise, composure and promise when deployed in attack. His versatility was on display in the league when he scored screaming volleys from outside the box in consecutive weeks- one of which came against the force that is the Barcelona defense in the Supercoppa. Should Liverpool prove to be plucky in defense, Asensio is a Madrid's best option for both long ball creation and long range efforts. He is truly the catalyst who can, in an instant contribute and change the outcome of the game.

In the end, whether he is used as a starter or utilized as a power substitute, come final day, as prepared as Liverpool may be to face BBC, they would not want to be caught unaware by the force that is Marco Asensio.