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Real Madrid fans cram city's Cibeles Square as Ancelotti's squad celebrate

  /  autty

Real Madrid's victorious squad have been greeted by adoring fans while parading their Champions League and LaLiga trophies hours after beating Liverpool at the Stade de France to become European champions for a 14th time.

Revered manager Carlo Ancelotti, top scorer Karim Benzema and departing winger Gareth Bale were among the stars in suits and sunglasses taking part in the triumphant ceremony outside the Spanish capital's City Hall.

The team then headed to iconic church the Catedral de la Almudena to carry on the celebrations while thousands of supporters hoped to catch a glimpse of them outside.

Winger Vinicius Junior, whose 59th-minute strike proved the only goal of the final, and former Ballon d'Or winner Luka Modric absorbed the adulation after a sensational campaign for the club.

Madrid strolled to the LaLiga title almost a month before the Champions League final, securing top spot with four games to spare as traditional rivals Barcelona finished 13 points behind Ancelotti's side.

Los Blancos' Champions League campaign at their Bernabeu home began with a shock defeat to tournament newcomers Sheriff Tiraspol.

The Moldovan club caused a huge upset by winning 2-1 at Madrid but their opponents recovered to progress to the knockout stage, establishing themselves as the comeback kings of the competition.

Two Kylian Mbappe goals put Paris Saint-Germain 2-0 ahead against Madrid in the round of 16, only for an 18-minute Benzema hat-trick inside the final 30 minutes of the tie to send his team through.

Dramatic extra-time victories over Premier League giants Chelsea and Manchester City followed, although Madrid were underdogs entering the final against a Liverpool side who had won all of their Champions League games away from Anfield.

Liverpool had only lost twice all season before the final but Vinicius's goal capped an assured display from Madrid as they extended their dominance in Europe's most prestigious club competition.

Bale has now won the Champions League five times since joining Madrid from Tottenham in 2013.

The Wales talisman could return to the Premier League when he leaves the Bernabeu this summer, having been a peripheral figure for Madrid over the course of the campaign.

The 32-year-old was an unused substitute in the final and will now focus on Wales' bid to qualify for the FIFA Qatar World Cup which starts in November.

Wales beat Austria 2-1 to reach the European Qualifiers play-off final for the World Cup courtesy of two Bale goals in Cardiff.

That has given Bale an extra fixture to look forward to on June 5, when Wales will play Scotland or Ukraine in the final.