Minute-by-minute report

1 min The players kick-off as Martin Tyler on Sky prattles on about "what a great occasion this is", while Clive Tyldesley on ITV harks back to that night in Barcelona. Milan won the pre-game toss and decided to play in white, thereby stating that they were not going to think about Istanbul - thinking about Istanbul, in the process.

2 mins First attack is from right to left on my TV screen, which means Liverpool on the offensive (just a coincidence to have Liverpool and offensive in such close proximity). Gerrard floats a pass from left to right, but it's too far ahead of Jermaine Pennant and Dida has a goal-kick.

4 mins Liverpool haven't allowed Milan to swarm all over them like Man Utd did in the San Siro. That said, their latest attack breaks down when Dida comes out to claim Pennant's throw-in. The Milan keeper is surely as much a calamity-in-waiting as Guardian Unlimited's Fiver team going to the local Wetherspoons to watch the game.

5 mins Twice Carragher hurls himself across the box to clear low balls towards Reina's goal. On the second occasion he concedes a corner, but Liverpool defend this first set-piece better than they did two years ago.

7 mins Pennant is seeing plenty of the ball in the early stages, but his crosses haven't been much to bear for the Milan centre-halves.

9 mins FIRST CHANCE OF THE MATCH! But not first goal of the match. Jankulowski's slip allowed Pennant in, he played a sharp one-two with Kuyt, but then Dida saved smartly Pennant's shot low to his right. Excellent stuff from the two players I've just been criticising.

11 mins Jankulowski is again at fault as Pennant receives the ball in 20 yards of space down the right flank. But again his final ball was disappointing, as he fired a low cross at Gerrard, giving his captain little alternative but to try a spectacular left-foot volley.

13 mins Inzaghi curves his run behind the Liverpool back four to perfection, but Pirlo's chipped pass to him is just too long and Reina beats him to it. Carragher and Agger were like statues with their arms in the air, believing Inzaghi was offside - for which you can hardly blame them.

15 mins "Are Steven Gerrard's glorious cross-field passes straight into touch part of an elaborate tactical plan by Rafa Benitez, inspired by Graham Taylor and his 'put it out for a throw-in immediately from kick-off' masterplan?" wonders Ben Fitzpatrick. If it had been from the kick-off, Ben, you might have been onto something there.

16 mins Kaka's first involvement in the final third is an accurate low drive that skips up in front of Reina. The Liverpool keeper - whose father (as I'm sure you know already but I wouldn't be performing my role as a commentator if I didn't tell you anyway) played in the 1974 Atletico Madrid European Cup final team - does well to handle it.

18 mins Foul! The first infringement of the match, I believe, is a bodycheck from Nesta on Gerrard. Unbelievable that with Gattuso snarling his way around the pitch, it's taken 18 minutes for a free-kick to be given.

20 mins It's been a composed start from Liverpool, in that horribly modern-European way in which tactics are totally dominant. Still, Benitez will be pleased with his team - they look even less likely to concede than their opponents.

21 mins Agger is lucky to escape a booking as he blocks Kaka's run after the Brazilian had knocked the ball into the space behind him.

23 mins Quick counter-attack by Liverpool, started by Pennant down the right, and ended by Gerrard on the left. The former's ball to the latter was spot-on, the latter's shot was spot-off. Er, you know what I mean - it was wellied over the bar.

25 mins Gorgeous skill from Kaka, who rolls one foot over the ball and then drags it away from Riise with the other. It was on the halfway line rather than in the penalty box, though, and didn't lead to anything.

27 mins ALONSO SHOOTS WIDE! After a period of frantic Milan defending - scurrying from right to left to right to deny Liverpool's forwards, sorry, forward a shooting oportunity - the ball drops to Alonso 20 yards out ... but the Spaniard bends his daisy-cutting shot a foot or so wide of Dida's right-hand post.

29 mins Interestingly (warning, it's not actually that interesting as it's about tactics, but that is all this game is good for thus far so let's go with it) Gerrard is often Liverpool's most furthest forward player. He is effectively playing as a second striker and, though he's not seeing as much of the ball as he might in central midfield, the matter of who should mark him seems to be confusing the Milan players.

31 mins Riise unleashes his hammer, but he doesn't quite nail the 30-yard shot and it drifts harmlessly over Dida's crossbar.

33 mins I've just glimpsed Clarence Seedorf on my screen - a reminder that he's actually playing in this game. The man who is the most overrated underrated footballer since Claude Makelele ("he doesn't get much credit but...") has done nothing so far.

35 mins Fantastic block from Nesta! Again Jankulowski, who has put up an even more hapless display than Rob Smyth at the last GU "party", mistimed a challenge on Pennant. Gerrard eventually squared to Kuyt on the penalty spot, but Nesta launched himself in the way of Kuyt's angle to goal and the ball squirted away for a throw-in.

38 mins Mascherano is having a decent game in front of his back four. I hesitate to say a "great" game, because all he is doing is shackling Kaka rather than actually adding any creativity to the match - but he is perfoming his role well.

40 mins Gattuso, as widely expected, is the first player to enter the referee's little black book; Mr Fandel took exception to the Italian pit-bull's hack at Alonso. Sadly, that challenge was not the only predictable facet of this game.

42 mins Another timely tackle from Mascherano, sliding in to pinch the ball from Seedorf as the Dutchman was building a head of steam on the left touchline.

44 mins A less than timely tackle from Alonso, who trips Kaka 25 yards from goal. If Pirlo could place the ball anywhere on the pitch for a free-kick, it would be more or less here...

GOAL! Milan 1 - 0 Liverpool (Inzaghi 45) A remarkable fluke. Pirlo hit his shot firmly, but it was heading towards Reina and was at a comfortable height for the Liverpool keeper to save. The striker who does nothing else but score goals, Pippo Inzaghi, ran across the path of the shot, and the ball bounced off his shoulder and wormed its way past Reina's outstretched legs into the middle of the goal.

Half time What a sickener for the Reds. Without exactly dominating, Liverpool have certainly been the better team and can feel hard done by going in a goal down. Then again, Dida has only had one to save in opening 45 minutes, while Reina has also earned his pay packet with just one stop so far. Though this may not be what you expect from an "impartial" British commentator, the goal should make for a much better game - surely Benitez will now whip Zenden off and send on Kewell, and I'd quite like to see the big man Crouchy on for Alonso or Mascherano before long too.

Emails "Handball handball handball," rants Adam John Simpson. "The cheatingest cheats in the whole of cheatingdom do it again."

"The goal looked like handball to me," says Greg. "Inzaghi moved his arm as the ball hit him. Handball. No question. No, no question. No, now stop it. I said no questions and I mean no questions. That Italian man over there with his hand up - please, put it down and behave. Thank you."

"They gonna call that the hand of Milan now?" asks Justin Young bitterly. "That was definitely handball. Liverpool should feel done in by that. Bring on video replay or appeals!" Let's end this now - the ball thudded off his shoulder, it was not intentional handball.

"Now that Milan have scored, what are the odds of the words 'Spirit of Istanbul' being mentioned at least 50 times by the commentators?" asks Arun. You started it, Arun.

"Why are Italian defenders so cool, whereas ours are, well, John Terry and Steve Bruce?" wonders Gary Naylor. In fairness, the Milan defenders are also so old they actually remember the last time Liverpool won the league.

"Is Zenden the most overrated player of all time?" asks Glen Sibley, who clearly seems to think there is someone out there who actually rates Zenden highly. "I can't think a single reason why this man has managed to play at major club and country championships. He's without a single remarkable footballing attribute, it's quite astonishing how utterly ordinary he is." He has a black belt at judo, Glen, and there's not many footballers who can say that.

46 mins Jamie Redknapp, acting like a petulant schoolkid in the Sky studio ("we've been the better team, they don't deserve that goal, and it should have been disallowed"), is silenced by Richard Keys, who sends us back out to the pitch where Milan are waiting to start the second half. At least Liverpool only have one goal to make up this time.

48 mins For the second time, the PA announcer asks for a Curtis Pennant from Nottingham to make himself known to his nearest steward. Jermaine Pennant is originally from Nottingham - if that is one of his relatives you could understand if his performance wasn't up to scratch. As it is he's been the most prominent of the forward-minded Liverpool players - not that there are many of those to choose from, you understand.

50 mins A positive omen for Liverpool: in the last three Champions League finals in which English teams played (1999, 2005, 2006) the side which scored first lost. Not that that is really of any relevance, of course. Anyway, Nesta, who has been faultless up to now, produces a superb lunging tackle on Gerrard to dispossess the Liverpool captain.

52 mins "Does that borderline-handball of a goal mean we'll now be treated to 45 minutes of Gerrard endlessly hacking the ball halfway up the field toward that tree-like figure of Peter Crouch while Inzaghi camps out just inside the halfway line and Dida tries not to drop the ball into his own net?" asks Matt. Not really worth me doing the commentary now, is it? "After all the promise shown against Manchester United, this looks very much like the Milan of old. And Liverpool: toothless."

54 mins Zenden has been dreadful tonight. Here again he wastes a great opportunity to deliver a telling ball into the penalty area, allowing Oddo to recover and block. On the other side of the pitch, Jankulowski is booked for clipping Pennant's heels.

55 mins Revenge isn't limited to the Milan players, with Pennant avenging the foul committed on him by hauling over Jankulowski. The Czech then proceeds to roll around the floor like a 14-year-old rhythmic gymnast.

57 mins Inzaghi is offside. "Nothing newsworthy about that," I hear you cry. Ah, yes, but while Inzaghi was offside, Kaka certainly wasn't, and it was he who ran onto Pirlo's throughball. A mistake from the assistant referee.

59 mins Fresh from another tackle on Kaka as the Brazilian was marauding towards the Liverpool goal, Mascherano scythes down Pirlo and is rightly booked.

60 mins At last! Zenden trots off the pitch and Kewell sprints on. That's the fastest he's moved all season - surely he can't be the one to get Liverpool back in this game?

61 mins And another yellow card, this time for Carragher. He expected his centre-half partner to come and clear Ambrosini's pass towards Kaka, Agger expected him to do likewise, and Carragher was left with no option but to pull the Milan maestro back (no option other than not to pull him back, obviously). Pirlo then curls the free-kick over the wall ... and over the bar.

63 mins GREAT CHANCE FOR GERRARD! But as you'll have worked out by now, the lack of "goal" in big, emboldened capital letters at the start of this update means that Gerrard did not ripple the net. Gattuso carelessly gave the ball away - as Milan players have done so frequently tonight - Gerrard squrimed past Nesta, but then opened his body up in the left channel so he could sidefoot with his right foot rather than fire at goal with his left, and consequently his shot was weaker than a watered-down Kaliber shandy. Even Dida couldn't let that one squeeze under his body.

66 mins The referee penalises Gerrard for handball as he controls Kuyt's cross from the right. There didn't seem to be too much difference between that and Inzaghi's goal, to be honest.

67 mins Riise lets rip another effort at goal, but I mean that description in the loosest sense of the term.

69 mins Sky's commentator Martin Tyler was just setting himself up for a fine pun, pointing out that Kewell starred in the Liverpool players' game of ten-pin bowling yesterday, when Andy Gray nipped in with "he'll be looking for a strike tonight" before Tyler could utter the words. Tyler is going spare. As you can probably guess, it's pretty uneventful on the pitch.

71 mins Kuyt makes a run similar to that of Inzaghi for the goal, darting across Gerrard's shot towards the back post; but despite sticking out a leg, the Dutchman doesn't make contact and the ball skids wide of the post. Liverpool still aren't playing with a great sense of urgency. Surely Benitez has to send on Crouch.

73 mins "Would it be correct that all the Fiver's writers are single??" asks Daire McGeown, twice. "I'm not basing this assumption on their looks, sense of humour (although that couldn't help their cause) but more the fact that they don't seem to return home from work before visiting the local branch of Wetherspoons every night." All I'm going to reveal is that Ambrosini has won a corner for Milan.

74 mins Kaka's set-piece is helped on to the back post, but Seedorf's well-struck volley is blocked by Carragher.

76 mins Crouch is towering above the linesman, waiting to come on. But Benitez elects not to make the substitution until Liverpool have defended another corner ... Kaka fails to beat the first man, and now the change is made with Mascherano making way. Gerrard immediately drops into midfield.

77 mins Ancelotti responds instantly to the fresh aerial threat of Crouch by swapping Jankulowski for Milan's other (admittedly more deserving of the name) Kakha, Kaladze. Jankulowski has given a left-back display of Djimi Traore proportions tonight.

79 mins Inzaghi miscontrols in the box with the goal at his mercy. Oddo clipped a beautifully measured cutback over Carragher's head, but the Italian poacher for once missed his chance to steal whatever remaining limelight isn't already his.

81 mins "Please oh please oh please,"exclaims Lyn Frazer. "Otherwise he will be in a nasty humour for weeks!" She doesn't say about whom she's talking, but then she doesn't need to. (Steven Gerrard, clearly)

GOAL! Milan 2 - 0 Liverpool (Inzaghi 82) That was not what Lyn intended. The first goal was fortunate, the second was a great finish from a natural goalscorer. With the Liverpool midfield getting understandably stretched and with Kaka's minder Mascherano on the bench, the peerless Brazilian has time to slide the ball through to Inzaghi. He keeps his composure, taking the ball to one side of Reina and then rolling it into the net. Even Inzaghi then turned to the linesman to check he wasn't offside, but the flag was not to come to Liverpool's rescue this time.

84 mins Crouch stings the fingertips of Dida with a ferocious volley. The keeper did well to nudge that one over the bar. Pennant's corner is headed clear by Nesta.

85 mins "You've got to feel sorry for Liverpool," says Daniel Tunnard tenderly. "The only two occasions this season that Inzaghi was onside, it was against them."

86 mins Liverpool sub: Finnan off, Arbeloa on. Hard to see what that will achieve.

87 mins Milan sub: Inzaghi off, Gilardino on.

GOAL! Milan 2 - 1 Liverpool (Kuyt 88) Not again, surely! They say you shouldn't make a sub before a corner - though I doubt Inzaghi would have done much to help with the defending of Pennant's cross. Agger flicked it on at the near post and Kuyt nodded in his first goal in the Champions League. I repeat: not again, surely!

89 mins "Forgive me for gloating, but does that picture show Liverpool kissing the cup goodbye?" asks Steve Turner. They have three minutes of added time to reclaim it.

90 mins + 1 Ancelotti wastes a bit more time by removing Seedorf and sending on Favalli. "t's all horrible, awful, ghastly," says Clare Davies, scrolling down the page to read my copy. "Should have bought a new sofa to hide behind. And that goal just makes it all worse! We can't get back from here and it's distressing." It doesn't look good, Clare - they can't get the ball near the Milan penalty area. The Italians are, and always have been, the best at killing a game.

Full time The scores have been settled, but not in the way Liverpool hoped, ie with an equaliser. Milan have their revenge. Benitez is furious that the ref blew the final whistle with 30 seconds of stoppage time still remaining, and is chuntering in Ancelotti's ear about it. Liverpool were the better team across the 90 minutes, but they were impotent in the final third - which isn't surprising given that they had two club-class not first-class wide players, a makeshift striker and a player who had never scored in the competition before as their most likely goalscorers.

A defiant chorus of You'll Never Walk Alone is interrupted by the announcement that Inzaghi is the man of the match, and it is a fair decision - he had without doubt the greatest impact on a cautiously played game. In five minutes or so, Paolo Maldini will lead his team (minus Ronaldo, who is in the stands and looks like he's been enjoying the corporate offerings) in picking up the European Cup, the seventh time a Milan captain has had that honour.

Thanks for all your emails during the season. I'll leave the last words to "the 12th man of Anfield" and, finally, "ecstatic Toffee" Peter Browne:

"This loss is down to the lack of a real 20-goal per season striker. What a shame to have reached the final only to be outdone by our failings in the final third. A younger Robbie Fowler would have destroyed Milan. Full stop."

"For two years I have borne the scars of texts sent at half-time two years ago. Tonight I shall sleep the sleep of pure redemption."

Guardian Unlimited © Guardian News and Media Limited 2007