Liga de QUITO es el CAMPEON de la Copa Libertadores 2008
RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (AP) -- Goalkeeper Jose Francisco Cevallos was the hero as Liga de Quito became the first Ecuadorean winners of the Copa Libertadores, saving three penalty kicks in a 3-1 shootout victory over Fluminense.
Liga had started the return leg of Latin America's most important club competition with a 4-2 advantage.
They went further ahead before Thiago Neves responded with a hat-trick for the Brazilians -- which tied the overall aggregate score 5-5 in front of 80,000 fans at the Maracana.
In the shootout, Cevallos kept out efforts from Argentine midfielder Dario Conca, playmaker Neves and striker Washington.
Patricio Urrutia, Franklin Salas and Joffre Guerron were on target for Liga, while Cicero converted Fluminense's lone goal in the tiebreaker. Jairo Campos missed his attempt for the Ecuadoreans.
With the victory, Liga earned a spot in FIFA's Club World Cup later this year.
"This is an incredible victory for us," Liga de Quito coach Edgardo Bauza said. "A historic title for Liga and Ecuador."
Liga striker Luis Bolanos opened the scoring just six minutes into the match with a right-footed shot from near the penalty spot.
Fluminense equalized five minutes later, with Neves beating a defender before firing a left-footer from 25 meters.
Neves 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.
"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."
Neves 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, playing in the competition for the first time in 23 years, 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.
Palmeiras will renovate its stadium according to FIFA guidelines in hopes of attracting World Cup matches when Brazil hosts the tournament in 2014, the club announced Wednesday.
Seating capacity at the Palestra Italia stadium -- which will be known as the Palestra Italia Arena -- will increase from 30,000 to 45,000 when the upgrade is complete in 2010, the club said.
The private sector will finance the 187 million- (euro118 million) project, the club said.
For World Cup matches, the arena will accommodate 40,000 fans plus 2,000 journalists, and will meet FIFA guidelines regarding parking and public transportation.
Palmeiras is one of Brazil's most traditional clubs with four national titles. It also won the 1999 Copa Libertadores, Latin America's most important club competition.
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Tags: copa libertadores de america liga deportiva universitaria quito casa blanca paton bauza campeon penaltys soccer
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