Associated Press

Comment

Liga clinched the title of Latin America's most important club competition despite a 3-1 loss in regulation, which tied the aggregate score at 5-5. It had won the first leg 4-2 last week in Quito and could have lifted the trophy with a draw or even a one-goal loss at Maracana stadium. The teams drew 0-0 in extra time.

Cevallos stopped shots from Argentine midfielder Dario Conca, playmaker Thiago Neves and striker Washington.

"This was my last opportunity, I'm 27 years old, I knew this was my last opportunity," Cevallos said. "We know we achieved something historic in international football."

Patricio Urrutia, Franklin Salas and Joffre Guerron netted for Liga, while Cicero claimed Fluminense's lone goal. Jairo Campos missed the only penalty for the Ecuadoreans.

"It's hard to explain this loss," Fluminense coach Renato Gaucho said. "We had our best players in the shootout, but unfortunately it was not a good night for them."

With the victory, Liga also earns a spot in FIFA's Club World Cup held later this year.

"This is an incredible victory for us," Liga de Quito coach Edgardo Bauza said. "A historic title for Liga and Ecuador. It means a lot to us."

Fluminense was boosted by nearly 80,000 fans in the first Copa Libertadores final at Maracana, but the 2,000 or so Liga fans celebrated first after an early goal that put the Brazilian club in an even deeper hole.

Striker Luis Bolanos opened the scoring just six minutes into the match with a right-footed shot from near the penalty spot. Forward Guerron started the play on the right flank, dribbling past a defender and sending a low cross across the area to the unmarked Bolanos.

Fluminense quickly equalized when Neves cleared a defender before firing a left-footer from about 25 meters (yards) in the 11th minute. His well-placed shot found the lower-right corner to beat Cevallos.

And it was Neves again who put Fluminense ahead in the 28th, completing a left-flank cross from midfielder Cicero with a close-range shot that caught the Liga defense by surprise.

Neves, one of Brazil's most-promising stars, added his third goal with a well-struck free kick in the 57th, curling a left-footed shot around over the wall.

"Our players were very tough today," Bauza said. "They kept it together even after going down 3-1, that was very hard to do, but they showed their strength."

The result gave Ecuador its first continental title. Liga rival Barcelona SC twice reached the final, losing to Paraguay's Olimpia in 1990 and Brazil's Vasco da Gama in 1998.

Fluminense had won all six matches at the famed stadium in this year's Copa Libertadores - four of them by two or more goals. The Brazilian club was trying to become the first team to erase a two-goal deficit in the final since Colombia's Atletico Nacional defeated Paraguay's Olimpia after a 2-0 first-leg loss in 1989.

"Our team played better and deserved a better result," Fluminense defender Thiago Silva said. "We are sad with the loss, but the team needs to be congratulated. We did what we could."

Both teams wasted opportunities in a lackluster extra time

"We deserved the title," Liga midfielder Enrique Vera said. "We came here to fight for a positive result and we got it, just like we wanted."

Fluminense was hoping to become the ninth Brazilian club to win the Latin American competition, along with Palmeiras, Sao Paulo, Santos, Flamengo, Vasco, Internacional, Gremio and Cruzeiro, which have 13 titles together.