IN PICS: Kings of Europe prepare for giant homecoming parade

Liverpool players took to social media to show them relaxing on the plane home from Madrid with the Champions League trophy as they celebrate their win.

Players such as Jordan Henderson, Virgil van Dijk and manager Jurgen Klopp were pictured getting on the club tour bus in Spain early this morning, with smiles from ear to ear - and Henderson was caught proudly putting his feet up on the huge cup on the flight back to Merseyside.

The team returned to Liverpool today ahead of a victory parade which will finish down on the waterfront where a wine festival and the Mersey River Festival is also taking place today.

Supporters in Merseyside were ecstatic and were seen jumping on car roofs, straddling traffic lights and scaling buses and bus stops after pouring out of pubs to celebrate their Champions League final win.

The jubilant fans showed no sign of slowing down as they sang and danced their way into the early hours, blocking off main roads in the city centre.

Many were pictured draped in flags, with some even wearing scarfs which had various Liverpool players on them such as Mo Salah.

Most fans however, continued to be in high spirits throughout the evening and into the early hours, and it was smiles all round for fans as many rejoiced in the fact that their team had reached the top spot, with many seen leaving bars and pubs as the sun came up.

Some excited fans were even pictured wearing masks with Jurgen Klopp's face, amid the hustle and bustle of Saturday night in Liverpool.

While other fans struggled to stand up, some were seen wearing flags which said 'Liverpool European Champions', on it.

Many also sat lined against walls and leaning on their friends for support, while others looked to be on their phones, possibly calling other friends and relatives to tell them about the victory.

On Matthew Street, strewn with beer glasses and bottles, Ged Evans, 34, from Wrexham, said: 'This is the greatest night of my life, short of my kids being born.

'If you can't be in Madrid then there's nowhere else on Earth to be tonight than in Liverpool.'

Bare-chested Matty Smith, 23, a student from Liverpool, said: 'This is like Christmas for Kopites. We're going to party until dawn, then go on the parade.'

In Madrid, where many fans had congregated outside pubs and bars, fans were keen to mingle with one another, and were even seen chatting to rival fans.

Liverpool fan Taran Singh, who flew from Hong Kong for the match and paid £1500 for his ticket said: 'It's been worth every single penny. I'm really proud of the team, I can't stop smiling.

'We are the champions of Europe again, it's a great feeling.'

Tottenham fan Brian Moriarty, who had travelled by coach and train from his home in Hull to be in Madrid said: 'I never got a ticket for the game and looking back on it, I'm quite glad that I didn't. The touts have been asking for ridiculous amounts.

'The atmosphere has been fantastic and there's been a lot of banter between the two groups of fans. The weather's been wonderful, it's just a real pity about the result.'

As he finished speaking, Mr Moriarty was embraced by Liverpool fan John Butcher, which summed up the convivial nature of the all English affair.

Mr Butcher, who travelled to the Spanish capital by coach said: 'It's been a long journey, but I've loved every minute of it.

'We've had a great time with the Spurs lads and there's been some great banter. I'm going to buy them a drink and just enjoy this moment. It feels very special.'

Liverpool fan Joseph Hall, 26, from Leeds, said: 'We drove 650km from Barcelona to get here (Madrid) and we watched it outside a bloody kebab shop.

'We underestimated how many people would be here.

'But it's all worth it - it's the best day ever. Party time.'

Many of those who tried and failed to get into the match followed the game on mobile phones outside the stadium.

Danish national Jimmy Andersen, a Liverpool supporter due to the Reds' association with countryman Jan Molby, described the win as 'the longest orgasm ever'.

He said: 'I was in Malaga and was supposed to be on a flight home tonight, but when we beat Barcelona I thought: 'No way man, I'm not missing this.'

'So my friends came over, too.

'This experience, I wouldn't trade it for anything. Christmas? Go home!

'This is the longest orgasm ever.'

But not everyone could be there to celebrate the big win and Liverpool's goal keeper Alisson Becker made sure to include his pregnant wife and child in celebrations.

After joining his team-mates on stage to receive his winners' medal and lift the Champions League trophy, Alisson then made sure to involve his wife and child in proceedings.

He video called them from the pitch, putting the medal in his mouth as he showed off his family to the world.

Alisson Becker's wife, Natalia Loewe, didn't travel to the game because she is pregnant with the couple's next child.

Loewe also posted about the experience on Instagram, putting loving emojis alongside her message of support.

She also posted a picture of her baby bump, while putting a trophy emoji over the top of it in celebration of Liverpool's historic win.

Alisson arrived at Liverpool last summer and has been instrumental in their strong defensive record.

Liverpool lifted the European cup for the first time since 2005 after super-sub Divock Origi and Egyptian star Mo Salah hammered home to beat Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 in Madrid.

The Belgian, who came on as a substitute with half an hour to go, sealed the victory when he drove a low shot into the right hand corner on the 87th minute after Spurs failed to clear a corner whipped in by James Milner.

A third win over Spurs this season has landed them the biggest prize in club football for the sixth time in the club's history, which will surely make up for the loss of the Premier League title in May to Manchester City.

The all-English final was scrappy for most of the 90 minutes, with both teams playing well-below their best and struggling to string passes together despite having an equal share of possession.

Despite the celebrations, Spanish authorities were keen to get ahead of the game, stepping up their police presence during and after the game. An estimated 4,700 police, some of them armed, were on duty for the match while drones were employed to keep an eye on potential trouble makers drinking in Madrid's narrow side streets.

Heavy vehicles were also barred from driving near the stadium and designated fan zones to prevent a 'Nice-style' attack.

As Liverpool fans wallowed in their victory, they also had a word of praise for their Spanish hosts.

'Madrid has done a wonderful job and the people of the city have been very hospitable,' beamed Liverpool fan Derek Evans.

'Both sets of supporters have been very well behaved and it's a shame that one team has to lose. I'm just glad it wasn't us.'

The Reds had originally taken the lead through a Mo Salah penalty within the first two minutes of the Champions League Final after a questionable hand ball decision by the referee.

The Egyptian forward hammered it past Spurs keeper Hugo Lloris, who dived the right way but couldn't stop it.

Referee Damir Skomina pointed to the spot in the first minute after Spurs midfielder Moussa Sissoko unintentionally blocked a pass by Sadio Mane with his arm.

But the decision was somewhat controversial as replays seemed to show the ball bounce off the Frenchman's chest and inadvertently hit his lower arm.

There was a quick referral to the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) before Salah converted from 12 yards to give Liverpool the perfect start.

Salah's goal was clocked at one minute, 48 seconds, making it the second-fastest goal ever in a Champions League final after Paolo Maldini's 50th-second goal for AC Milan against Liverpool in 2005.

At around the 20-minute mark play was stopped when a swimsuit-clad woman invaded the pitch and ran around the players while being chased by stewards.

The woman, wearing a black outfit which read 'Vitaly Uncensored' - a Russian porn pranking website - in white lettering. It is believed the woman is Kinsey Wolanski, the girlfriend of Vitaly Zdorovetskiy who set up the x-rated website.

Players watched in amazement as the bizarre scenes unfolded and the model was escorted out of the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium.

Wolanski boasts more than 300,000 followers on Instagram where she regularly posts scantily clad photographs of herself. Vitaly Uncensored's YouTube channel has 1.6billion views and posts popular x-rated pranks.

Later there were calls for a penalty on the 84th minute when James Milner fouled Danny Rose on the edge of the box. But a quick glance at VAR showed the tackle came just outside.

Liverpool's win takes them a clear third in the all-time list of European cup winners, behind Real Madrid and AC Milan.

'Everyone is happy now,' said Salah as the Liverpool fans rejoiced. 'I am glad to play the second final in a row and play 90 minutes finally. Everyone did his best today, no great individual performances, all the team was unbelievable.'

Right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold who had marauded down the flank all night, added: 'It is hard to put into words. The season we have had, we deserved it more than any other team.'

Tonight's win was redemption for Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp who'd suffered defeats in his last six finals.

At the end of the game, the jubilant German said it was the best night of his life, adding: 'I'm so happy for the boys, I'm so happy for all of these people, I'm so happy for my family.

'Did you ever see a team like this? Fighting with no fuel in the tank any more. And we had a goalkeeper who makes difficult things look easy. Tonight this is going to be great. This may be the best night of my life, professional wise.

'This is so important. We have our owners who never put pressure on us, they only support and say 'you can deliver this'. They are brilliant.'

Asked how he intends celebrating he says: 'I don't know. Normally when I win, 20 minutes after the game I am already half p*****.'

Liverpool's win was reward for an outstanding season in which they picked up a club record 97 points in the Premier League but finished behind Pep Guardiola's Manchester City, falling just short of a first league title in 29 years.

The sixth European Cup takes them ahead of Barcelona and Bayern Munich on the all-time list and means they only trail AC Milan on seven triumphs and Real Madrid with 13.

It was Liverpool's first Champions League triumph since their incredible comeback against Milan in 2005 and, while this victory lacked the blockbuster drama of that night in Istanbul, it was not exactly a smooth ride in a lacklustre affair.

Tottenham manager Pochettino took a bold but ultimately misguided gamble in fielding Kane, who had only returned to full training a week ago after almost two months out with a serious ankle injury and struggled to influence play.

The England striker was far from the only player from both sides who lacked sharpness in a game with few moments of quality, a possible effect of neither side having played any competitive games for three weeks after the domestic season.

Spurs put Liverpool under real pressure in the latter stages as Dele Alli headed over and Son Heung-min and Moura forced impressive saves from Alisson, who also pulled off his best effort to beat away a free kick from Christian Eriksen.

The Brazilian keeper's reliable display was in stark contrast to what happened last year in Kiev, when Liverpool's Loris Karius made two horrendous errors which cost his side two goals in their painful 3-1 defeat by Real Madrid.

When the final whistle went, Alisson was mobbed by his team mates while Klopp ran on to the pitch to embrace Origi, one of the heroes in the stunning semi-final second-leg turnaround against Barcelona, who killed the game with a ruthless finish.

Earlier today, there was a scramble for tickets in Madrid and fans were pictured holding up signs asking for tickets in a last minute bid. Some people have even been seen in t-shirts with 'I need a ticket' printed on the back.

Uefa warned supporters looking for last minute-tickets to be aware of criminals acting as official stewards.

In a statement, a spokesman said: 'The Spanish police has seized fake steward bibs, fake devices for the technical ticket check, as well as fake accreditations.

Hours before the match kicked off, dozens of fans were turned back at security outside the stadium in the Spanish capital.

Police on horseback cleared the Plaza on the approach to security of everyone other than those who say they have tickets.

Two British football fans were arrested for trying to get into the stadium illegally. Policia Nacional said an officer had to be treated by medics after allegedly being assaulted by the suspect.

'This makes us believe that an organised group of people, impersonating genuine stewards or officials might try to act as if they were conducting the visual or technical ticket check, with the aim of stealing tickets during such controls.

'Supporters should therefore make sure they only show their tickets at the clearly marked check zones and not to individuals or small groups of people who could be wearing fake bibs and might approach them on the way to the stadium, outside of the official check zones.'

Graham Owen, from Chester, said he was one of the 'lucky ones' to get a ticket, which cost him 60 euros.