Liverpool edges Chelsea for berth in Champions League final

Luis Garcia has Liverpool headed to Istanbul.

After a scoreless first leg last week in London, Garcia's fourth-minute strike proved the only goal of the second leg as Liverpool edged Chelsea, 1-0, to book a berth in the UEFA Champions League final in Turkey on May 25.

Liverpool faces either AC Milan or PSV Eindhoven, who meet on Wednesday. Milan holds a 2-0 lead after the first leg, which was played in Italy.

It is the first time Liverpool will be in the final of Europe's premier club competition since 1985, when it lost to Juventus, 1-0, in a match overshadowed by the death of 39 Italian fans caused by a stampede at Heysel Stadium in Brussels, Belgium. Liverpool beat Juventus in this year's quarterfinals.

Chelsea beat Liverpool twice during the English Premier League season en route to clinching its first Premiership title in 50 years at Bolton last Saturday. The Blues also rallied for a 3-2 win over the Reds in the Carling Cup final on February 27, a contest in which Chelsea coach Jose Mourinho angered the Liverpool fans by holding a finger to his mouth in a "silence" gesture.

Less than four minutes into this one, Liverpool midfielder Steven Gerrard flicked the ball to striker Milan Baros in the box. Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech only could partially deflect the ball, and Garcia flicked the ball toward the left side of the goal. Chelsea defender William Gallas cleared the ball before it touched the net, but it was ruled to have crossed the line.

Chelsea's best chance to score came in the fifth minute of injury time, but winger Eidur Gudjohnsen missed a sharply angled kick from the right side with Liverpool goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek out of position.