Liverpool win Champions League title, beating Spurs 2-0

By Fatih Erel

ISTANBUL (AA) - In an all-English rivalry, Liverpool have won the UEFA Champions League title after beating Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 in the final on Saturday.

The fans at Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid saw a dramatic start to the final as Liverpool led Tottenham Hotspurs within two minutes to the match, Mohamed Salah converted a controversial penalty decision into the net.

Salah made history, he became the first Egyptian to score in a European Cup final. Salah scored the earliest penalty goal in Champions League since Johan Micoud of Werder Bremen, back in 2006 when he scored the penalty kick at 1 minute and 40 seconds against Panathinaikos.

Liverpool did not let Tottenham find any dangerous chance in the first half with tight defense. In the second half, the Spurs tried many shots at Liverpool goal, but could not equalize the match.

In the 87th minute, Divock Origi -- who came in as substitute -- doubled Reds' lead and crushed Spurs' hopes, bringing his club 6th European trophy.

Origi scored with each of his 3 shots in this Champions League season.

A sub has scored in 5 of the last 6 finals: Marcelo, Carrasco, Asensio, Bale and now Origi.

There were no cards shown by the referee in the final.

Tottenham and Liverpool met for the third time in a UEFA competition. Liverpool beat Tottenham 1-0 at home and were defeated 2-1 in an away match in the 1972-73 UEFA Cup semifinals advancing to the final with an away goal.

Liverpool is a six-time winner of the UEFA Champions League Cup, while Tottenham aimed to win the title for the first time.

It was the second UEFA Champions League Final between two English clubs. Manchester United played against Chelsea in the UEFA Champions League Final in 2008.

With Liverpool and Tottenham meeting in the Champions League final in Madrid and Chelsea and Arsenal having played against each other in the Europa League final on Wednesday, this season marked the first time in history that both the Champions League and Europa League finals were contested exclusively by English teams.

Chelsea won the UEFA Europa League cup after beating Arsenal 4-1 in the final on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, a moment's silence was observed at the final in Madrid in memory of José Antonio Reyes who died in a traffic accident on Saturday.

Spanish footballer Jose Antonio Reyes on Saturday passed away in a car accident in southwestern Utrera district of Seville city in Spain.