T is for...

As uefa.com Action's A to Z countdown to the UEFA Champions League final on 25 May continues, it is time for some great Ts.

One of the main men behind Chelsea FC's remarkable rise to the Premiership title was John Terry. His season got off to a memorable start when new coach José Mourinho pulled him to one side on the club's pre-season American tour to tell him he wanted the England defender to wear the captain's armband.

The Professional Footballers' Association Player of the Year led by example in the Champions League, scoring three goals in the group stage including the opening goal for his side in the competition against Paris Saint-Germain FC. His most important strike came 14 minutes from the end of the last-16 clash with FC Barcelona to send his side through to the quarter-finals.

Although Chelsea lost in the semi-finals to Liverpool, Terry has Premiership and English League Cup winners' medals to show for his efforts this season.

Tactics are what make a great coach, but while Champions League managers strut around inside their technical areas frantically trying to get their plans across to their players, the majority of their tactical work has been done long before kick-off on the training ground.

With a network of scouts feeding information back to coaches about their opponents, pre-match training often hinges around deciding on the right formation and detailing players to carry out individual tasks as coaches aim to get one over on their opposite numbers.

However, all tactics are doomed to failure without good defending, and the Champions League - as the world's premier club football tournament - boasts the best tackles on the planet.

While goalscorers may get the bulk of the attention, there are few things that football supporters value higher than a saving tackle, which is why the best defenders are increasingly as valuable as the best forwards. With defensive talent of the calibre of Paolo Maldini and Sami Hyypiä, this year's Champions League finalists - AC Milan and Liverpool FC - have found that they really cannot lose.