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Salah banished Ramos into history

One hundred and eight seconds.

That's all it took for one swing of Mohamed Salah's trusted left boot to banish all the anger, the doubt, the heartache and the lingering regret of what happened in the NSC Olimpiyskiy 12 months ago.

Salah, his shoulder injured, left the field that night in tears after only half-an-hour following a tangle with Sergio Ramos, able to only watch from the sidelines as Liverpool crashed to a 3-1 defeat to Real Madrid.

The Egyptian's redemption was swift. After just 24 seconds, clever play from Sadio Mane forced a handball from Moussa Sissoko – referee Damir Skomina had no doubt, with VAR then confirming the decision – and thoughts turned to who would take the spot kick.

James Milner, the first-choice penalty taker, was on the bench, unable to wrest the ball from Salah's grasp.

The forward placed the ball. And every one of those emotions from a year earlier could be felt in the power of the shot that beat Tottenham goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, who had dived the right way.

Traditionalists would argue the penalty award was harsh – certainly, under old money, it was pretty ridiculous – but this is 2019. The ball hit Sissoko's chest first at close range, but he was always going to be in trouble when it then hit his outstretched arm and hand.

Salah didn't care. The luck that deserted him and Liverpool in Kiev was with him in Madrid, finishing Liverpool's top scorer again with 27 goals.

Not bad for a one-season wonder – and a European champion.

Alisson proves Klopp right once again

(Image: Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)

As Liverpool's players took it in turns to lift the shimmering, magnificent European Cup in front of the ecstatic travelling Red army, the goalkeepers did something different.

Alisson Becker was joined by Simon Mignolet, Caoimhin Kelleher and goalkeeping coaches John Achterberg and Jack Robinson in raising the silverware together.

If a show of the united work behind the scenes, there was no debate over the key contributor.

Goalkeepers have often been integral to Liverpool's European Cup final efforts.

Read how the match unfolded as Liverpool clinch the European Cup for a sixth time HERE

There were Bruce Grobbelaar's wobbly legs in 1984, Jerzy Dudek's wonder save and penalty stops in 2005 and, more disappointingly, the personal nightmare of Loris Karius 12 months ago.

That evening prompted Klopp to spend big on Alisson, splashing out £65million to take him from Roma in the summer in a similar bold move to that which saw £75m spent on Virgil van Dijk seven months earlier.

As with Van Dijk, it paid off handsomely.

The Dutchman was named man of the match in the Estadio Metropolitano having completely shut down Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane, but it was an accolade that could easily have been shared with the Liverpool goalkeeper.

Alisson, in truth, didn't have much to do for the majority of the match, although his safe handling ensured there were no unnecessary defensive jitters.

But when Tottenham began chancing their arm in the later stages, they couldn't find a way past the Brazilian, who saved from Heung-Min Son, Christian Eriksen, Lucas Moura and Son again.

Alisson even completed more successful passes than any other Liverpool player, such was his solid distribution.

That £65m looks a snip, doesn't it?

Lucky number seven for Klopp

(Image: Getty Images)

With a flourish, a beaming Jurgen Klopp removed the cap from his head and gave the Liverpool supporters a bow.

The Reds supporters inside the Estadio Metropolitano responded with a huge cheer.

His belief in and loyalty to his players, along with his own humility, means he could never admit it.

But this was Klopp's moment. This was the ultimate vindication of everything he has done so far at Anfield.

And if he was a little reluctant to fully milk the moment, there was no such problem with his squad, who, showing their clear bond with their boss, swept the German off his feet and flung him up into the air in jubilation.

On a personal level, this was a special moment for Klopp, ending a run of six successive final defeats – three with Borussia Dortmund, three with Liverpool – that gave his critics something to gnaw at.

No longer. Klopp now joins Bob Paisley, Joe Fagan and Rafael Benitez in winning the European Cup for Liverpool. A trophy inside four years, that job in Switzerland can wait.

No matter what happens next, his legacy has been forever assured. But what happens next is why Klopp and those Liverpool supporters who chanted his name long into a balmy Madrid night will be even more excited.

What a night. What a manager. Jurgen Norbert Klopp.