The first Champions League final in England also became the first Champions League final without a goal. The smart pundits had predicted such an outcome from the moment it was known two Italian teams had reached the final and unfortunately they were right.

It was a fantastic occasion and atmosphere at the Theatre of Dreams - only the match failed to live up to the billing.

Still, the Champions League is an event - and this was no different, with or without a goal.

There were plenty of the prawn sandwich brigade at Old Trafford - no change there then - but also a crackling noise. Milan fans with massive red and black flags may have been marginally outnumbered than those from Juve but they were winners in the battle of sound and colour.

England's contribution to the evening, apart from the venue, were Atomic Kitten. The three Liverpool girls wiggled their way through "I want the night to last forever" and it proved a fairly prophetic message.

 
The Italian fans seemed a bit bemused by the appearance of Jenny, Natasha and Liz - maybe they knew the group's association with Everton or perhaps the music was better than they are used to back home.

A couple of Union Jacks among the Milan supporters was a good way to win over any neutrals in the crowd. In contrast, Juve, known as the Old Lady, seemed phased by being back in England where they had already lost in the Champions League to Newcastle and Manchester United this season.

The Serie A champions from Turin looked second-best in the opening 45 minutes, perhaps missing their key creator Pavel Nedved - out suspended.

They were lucky that Rui Costa had strayed offside when Andriy Shevchenko's shot hit the back of the net at speed. And they were grateful to goalkeeper Gigi Buffon for an elastic stop to keep out Inzaghi.

 

The relationship between Juve and Milan is a bit like that between Manchester United and Liverpool. United are the No.1 club in terms of tradition and support across the country, but Liverpool are the team with the European pedigree.

Juventus had only won the European Cup/Champions League twice - Milan five times, a record bettered only by Real Madrid.

The black-and-white stripes of Juve did shade the second half on points but apart from an Antonio Conte header which hit the bar, their goal threat was negligible.

By extra-time, the intention of both teams were clear - don't concede.

Milan used all three substitutes but left Rivaldo on the bench. When Roque Junior pulled a muscle and became a mere spectator, Juventus had a chance to take advantage. They never even tried to score a silver goal, shuffling the ball from one defender to another.

Any English or Spanish supporter would have torn their hair out in frustration about such a negative approach. The Italian fans though loved it, the last thing they wanted to see was their team take a risk in extra-time.

 

Alessandro Del Piero, the Golden Boy of Italian football, failed to live up to the hype yet again. He had a late glimpse of glory and thrashed the ball over the crossbar with the composure of a Sunday League hacker.

Perhaps Juve would have pushed men forward if they had known what their penalty-taking was like. David Trezeguet may once have been valued at £20million but Mrs Trezeguet would have hit the opening penalty of the shoot-out harder than her fella.

Dida made the save and went on to make two more. Shevchenko, whose 'goal' had been ruled out long before, was to ultimately take the glory with his decisive penalty giving Milan the trophy for the sixth time.

 

The celebrations were more entertaining than the match. Inzaghi threw his shorts into the crowd, Captain Fantastic Paolo Maldini was carried everywhere on piggyback. Dutch star Clarence Seedorf was in tears after making history - the first man to win the Champions League with three different clubs; Ajax, Real Madrid and now AC Milan. "I can't believe it," he said.

UEFA President Lennart Johansson could look back on a job well done, the setting and organisation were first-class. You can't blame UEFA for a nil-nil.

Even so, the big man did regret that an English side weren't there to compete at Old Trafford. No, not Manchester United. "I am grateful people haven't reminded me this week of my soft spot for Arsenal," said Johansson.

A touch of Thierry Henry's va-va-voom wouldn't have gone amiss.

By Joe Bernstein at Old Trafford.

AC Milan win the Champions League, beating Juventus 3-2 on penalties after a 0-0 draw...Click here for a full match report