Liverpool crowned European champions after seeing off Spurs

Liverpool have won the Champions League after beating Tottenham 2-0 in the final in Madrid.

It capped an extraordinary year for English clubs in European football after Chelsea beat Arsenal in the Europa League final on Wednesday.

After the final whistle Liverpool forward Mo Salah, who scored his team’s first goal from the penalty spot, said “everyone is happy now”, while defender Trent Alexander-Arnold said the win was “hard to put into words”.

He added that Liverpool “deserved it” after the season they had had, which included coming second in the Premier League.

Image: Mo Salah celebrates after scoring his penalty for Liverpool

Asked whether he was now a Liverpool legend, Alexander-Arnold, 20, said it was “hard to think of myself” that way.

“I’m just a normal lad from Liverpool whose dream’s just some true,” he said.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp was unable to contain his excitement as he asked: “Did you ever see a team like this?”

“What a night,” he added, saying that his family “suffer for me”, and “deserve it more than anybody”.

But Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino remained defiant, saying that “when you live this experience you want to repeat it”.

He added: “It’s the best game in the world after the World Cup and we want to be there in future.”

Image: ‘What a night,’ said Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp

The first goal came just two minutes into the game.

Tottenham’s Moussa Sissoko was judged to have handled the ball in the penalty box and Salah stepped forward for the Reds.

Divock Origi added their second in the 87th minute.

Liverpool fans go wild after final whistle

Liverpool have now won the Champions League – or the European Cup as it used to be known – six times.

Their most recent success was in 2005 when Rafael Benitez was manager.

In the hours before the match got under way, Liverpool fans turned central Madrid into a sea of red, partying and singing You’ll Never Walk Alone.

Image: Harry Kane started for Tottenham after returning from injury

It was the third time Klopp had led a team into the Champions League final – and his first win.

His Reds team lost to Real Madrid in Kiev last year. He was also a runner-up when he was managing Borussia Dortmund in the 2012-13 season.

It was the first time Tottenham had played in the final of Europe’s top club competition.

Both teams had come through dramatic semi-finals.

Liverpool beat Barcelona 4-0 in the second leg of their semi-final after going into the match 3-0 down on aggregate.

Tottenham went through on away goals after coming back from 1-0 down in the first leg to draw 3-3 with Ajax in Amsterdam.

Source : Sky News : http://news.sky.com/story/liverpool-beat-tottenham-to-win-champions-league-final-11733110