The Champions Cup Final is the pinnacle of European rugby and with Toulon’s departure to the hands one of our finalists we know that come tonight there will be a new name engraved on the trophy.
Racing 92 and Saracens are deserved finalists, the former has spent their euro wisely and the latter has developed as a squad together over the last few years. Both feel that their time is now and both know the magnitude of the challenge that lies ahead of them at the Grand Stade de Lyon.
When it gets to this point in any competition you always hope that along the way there haven’t been too many shock results so that you’ll be watching the best of the best take to the stage for one final time. Ahead of this Champions Cup final we can safely say that this is the case and when you look down the lineups and remember their respective journeys to this point the excitement levels raise up a notch.
Now, it's fair to say that Saracens aren’t everyone’s cup of tea but they have an outstanding knowledge of their own game plan and how they win matches. ‘Boring, boring Saracens’ is the charge that is put towards them yet statistically they are the top performing attacking side in the tournament having made the highest number of average points per game [34.1]. Of course they did have Oyonnax in their group which will have skewed this data slightly but in attack they are much more inventive and creative than they are ever given credit for.
Alex Goode is the form full back in England and his sublime footballing skills ensure that those around him are always in the game and he creates opportunities for himself in the blink of an eye. Chris Ashton’s support lines are some of the best in the business and he’s currently scoring tries for fun. Then you’ve got the flourishing form of Owen Farrell who, over the course of the season, has opened his box of tricks as well as maintaining a steely consistency. In short Saracens have threats galore but boy will they need them.
Racing 92 have the tournament’s best defence having conceded the fewest points per game [12.8] and a whole host of physical athletes in their ranks, in particular Chris Masoe. We saw their defence in all of its glory during their semi-final against Leicester in which they forced the Tigers to make more handling errors in one game than we’d seen from them all season. Then at the heart of their attacking output are two exceptional half-backs, Dan Carter and Maxime Machenaud. Of course Carter is the man that is grabbing all of the headlines and because he can still control a game effortlessly to the highest of standards then every single one is justified. But, Maxime Machenaud will be just as much of a handful for Saracens’ defensive system and he will be as influential on Racing’s contorl of the game as Carter will be. 
This match should be a spellbinding watch for several of reasons. First, the number of outstanding individuals that we will have on the field all taking their individual outputs to the highest level in order to try and win the silverware. Second, the physical intensity at which the game should be played at given the two sets of protagonists. In Europe Saracens haven’t failed to force a team to succumb to their wishes however we’ve seen Racing 92 do the same their opponents and on the Lyon turf only one can prevail. Third, witnessing the set piece arm wrestle. Mark McCall said to me this week that Racing have a ‘monster pack’ and he is right but his side’s isn’t bad either! Which will prevail at the scrummage? Which will adapt to Nigel Owens’ wishes best? And, which will rule the skies? Will it be the outstanding Luke Charteris and his partner in crime Francois van der Merwe or Maro Itoje and George Kruis? All of the above facets will be vital in deciding the outcome of the 2016 Champions Cup final alongside moments of individual brilliance but there's one other vital area - the top two inches. Which side will handle the pressure of a European Cup Final the best? Finals footy does funny things to players and can cause inexplicable moments and reactions. Saracens have been in this position before and failed, but admitted they’ve learned greatly from that. And, although Racing 92 are maiden finalists they have individuals across their pack that have won on the big stage before and shouldn’t be fazed.
In short this has all the makings of being a tense, tight and physical European Champions Cup Final. There is little to choose between the two sides, as their last Champions Cup meeting highlighted and since then both have taken their games forwards. It feels like it could be the unstoppable force meeting the immovable object and to prevail both sides will need to embrace the largest European stage of them all.
Racing 92: 15. Brice Dulin; 14. Joe Rokocoko, 13. Johannes Goosen, 12. Alexandre Dumoulin, 11. Juan Imhoff; 10. Dan Carter, 9. Maxime Machenaud; 1. Eddy Ben Arous, 2. Dimitri Szarzewski, 3. Ben Tameifuna, 4. Luke Charteris, 5. Francois van der Merwe, 6. Wenceslas Lauret, 7. Bernard Le Roux, 8. Chris Masoe Replacements: 16. Virgile Lacombe, 17. Khatchik Vartanov, 18. Luc Ducalcon, 19. Manuel Carizza, 20. Antonie Claassen, 21. Mike Phillips, 22. Remi Tales, 23. Henry Chavancey
Saracens: 15. Alex Goode; 14. Chris Ashton, 13. Duncan Taylor, 12. Brad Barritt, 11. Chris Wyles; 10. Owen Farrell, 9. Richard Wigglesworth; 1. Mako Vunipola, 2. Schalk Brits, 3. Petrus du Plessis, 4. Maro Itoje, 5. George Kruis, 6. Michael Rhodes, 7. Will Fraser, 8. Billy Vunipola Replacements: 16. Jamie George, 17. Richard Barrington, 18. Juan Figallo, 19. Jim Hamilton, 20. Jackson Wray, 21. Ben Spencer, 22. Charlie Hodgson, 23. Marcelo Bosch
