A Brazilian born Roberto Firmino 99th minute goal broke the jinx for the reds at the 2019 FIFA Club World Cup final in Doha.
For over three decades, South American clubs have been a torn in Liverpool FC flesh when it come to tournament such as this.
In the Intercontinental Cup final that was played in December 1981, Zico led Flamengo side defeated the Liverpool team that had Graeme Souness, Kenny Dalglish and co, and was managed by Bob Paisley.
Zico was the player with the magic in that team as the game was practically sealed after the Brazilian side raced to a 3-nil upfront within 40 minutes of the first-half.
The reason for flamengo's superiority in the game was their quality, as Nunez scored a brace and Adilio's goal put a gloss on the scoreline.
Liverpool had refused to participate in the Intercontinental Cup after winning the European titles in 1977 & 1978, worried about the potential brutality on the part of the South Americans.
In 1984 an Argentinian side, Independiente beat Liverpool by a lone goal to win the Intercontinental cup. And in 2005, Sao Paulo defeated the merseyside giant in the newly found FIFA Club World Cup.
Now in 2019, the current European club champion got a win that has so far eluded them for decades. After going through 90 minutes of regular football without a goal on either side against the Copa Libertadores champion Flamengo, their Brazilian import scored in the first-half of extra time to claim the title for them.
The title win is their third trophy in six months and made them the first English club to hold the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup at the same time.
On the European scene, Liverpool have won 6 UEFA Champions League titles (1977 ,1978, 1981, 1984, 2005, 2019); with only Real Madrid and AC Milan having won more.
Congratulations to the latest World Champion in club football.
Fabiyi Ridwan
Sports Writer and Analyst
