THIS has been a season for triple celebrations in British football with Manchester City winning every domestic trophy available to them in England and Celtic completing a clean sweep of silverware in Scotland for the third year running.

So it is perhaps in keeping with the mood of a memorable campaign when Steve Nicol, inset, admits he will have three reasons to rejoice should Liverpool overcome Spurs in the Champions League final at the Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid tomorrow evening.

Seeing his beloved Anfield club - who he helped, despite missing the opening penalty in the shoot-out, defeat Roma in Rome to clinch the European Cup back in 1984 - lift the famous trophy for a sixth time will obviously be one of them.

Yet, the Reds great will also applaud the high-risk attacking football that Jurgen Klopp’s team will once again play in their eagerly-anticipated meeting with Mauricio Pochettino’s side this weekend.

And the Scot, who will be at the final working for American broadcasters ESPN, will also acclaim the involvement of his countryman Andy Robertson in the continental game’s showpiece occasion for the second consecutive season.

Nicol played for Liverpool at a time when they were the undisputed kings of Europe – between 1977 and 1985 they reached no fewer than five finals and won four of them.

He has been buoyed to see them overcome the likes of Paris Saint-Germain, Napoli, Bayern Munich, Porto and Barcelona in the last eight months.

However, it is the entertaining fare the Merseyside club have produced as they progressed to this stage of the competition once more that has delighted the former English Footballer of the Year the most.

The Bob Paisley, Joe Fagan and Kenny Dalglish sides that he was a member of were renowned not just for winning but for winning well and he can see definite parallels with the exciting team Klopp has built in the past four seasons.

Another similarity is having a Scot as a key member of the starting line-up; Nicol could count his compatriots Dalglish, Gary Gillespie, Alan Hansen, Graeme Souness and John Wark among his team mates during his time at Liverpool.

The 57-year-old, who is now an outspoken and knowledgeable pundit, believes that left back Robertson allows his old club to take such a dynamic approach to matches whenever they take to the field and will be one of the key players in his side tomorrow.

“It’s been a while since Liverpool have had a Scot,” he said.” It’s great to see Andy doing well. To be honest, I like how positive he is.

“There are too many teams these days in my opinion who are obsessed with keeping the ball. Fair enough, I understand that if you’ve got the ball the opposition can’t hurt you. But the game’s about getting from one end of the field to another to put the ball in the net. There comes a time when you have to look forward.

“In the Liverpool teams I played in, if there was a ball to go forward that’s the one they wanted you to take. It wasn’t about keeping the ball for keeping the ball’s sake.

“That’s what I like about Andy. If there’s a ball to be played forward, whether it’s a pass or whether it’s whipping a ball in behind the back four, then he’ll do it. It’s just positive.”

Robertson, who was outstanding against Cristiano Ronaldo in the Champions League final against Real Madrid in Kiev 12 months ago even though Liverpool lost 3-1, will need to be as effective defensively as he is going forward in the 67,000 capacity stadium in Madrid if his side are to prevail.

Pochettino, whose Spurs side beat City and Ajax in the quarter-finals and semi-finals respectively, can field Dele Alli, Christian Eriksen, Heung-Min Son, Lucas Moura and, if he feels the England striker has recovered sufficiently from the ankle injury which has sidelined him since the start of last month, Harry Kane.

Nicol, who played in every position in the Liverpool rearguard as well as in midfield and even, on occasion, up front, has been as impressed with how Robertson has acquitted himself at the back since he joined from Hull City for £8 million back in 2017.

“When Andy started at Hull he spent most of his time defending, which gave him a good grounding in the Premier League,” he said.

“Then of course he progresses into the Liverpool team and says: ‘You know what? I belong here, I can actually go forward more instead of just defending’.

“Two weeks out of three with Hull all he did was defend. It is the complete opposite at Liverpool. He spends his time looking forward and being able to go forward. But that’s what we all want to do.

“At the end of the day, when you’re a kid you play because you want to score a goal. But not everyone can play centre forward. Some end up at the back, some end up in goal. But we all want to either score or make goals.

“He is getting the opportunity to get forward every time he gets on the field which is fantastic. But he understands the defensive side of the game as well.”

Nicol added: “We have seen on numerous occasions since he has moved to Liverpool that he is comfortable defensively as well as dangerous in attack. He made that crucial tackle on Ronaldo in the final last year.

“Andy isn’t daunted by anything. You can see the determination on his face whenever he plays. He is an old-fashioned player in many respects.”

Nobody will be happier than Steve Nicol if a Scot like Andy Robertson can roll back the years and help Liverpool win the Champions League tomorrow.