Madrid, June 9 (ONA) - Madrid Mayor Jose Luis Martinez-Almeida expressed his “full and absolute support” for its candidacy to host the Champions League 2020 final, in a move he wants to show the Spanish capital recovering from the impact of the new coronavirus.

Almeida expressed his support for the Madrid bid as a host city for the final, saying: “I know that there are steps in this direction and I would like, on behalf of the city council, to show my full and absolute support to bring the Champions League final to Madrid.”

He added that hosting the final “will show, in the current circumstances, Madrid's ability to recover in a very short period from the dramatic situation that we witnessed due to the spread of the new coronavirus.”

The Spanish capital hosted the Champions League final for the 2018-2019 season, which ended with Liverpool defeating its compatriot Tottenham (2-0) at Atletico Madrid's Wanda Metropolitan Stadium in June 2019.

The final match was scheduled to be held at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul on May 30, before the football continental federation (UEFA) announced last March the suspension of the competition, which had reached the eighth final, until further notice.

UEFA has not yet announced officially any modification in the place of the final match, and press reports indicate that UEFA is considering completing the competition in a modified format next August, which may notice playing the remaining stages in the form of a final tournament.

(ONA)