Park's big night ends on a low note

By Mike Collett

ROME (Reuters) - South Korean Park Ji-sung became the first Asian to play in the Champions League final but his memorable night ended on a low note as Manchester United were beaten 2-0 by Barcelona and deposed as European champions.

Park, 28, was named in the starting line-up by coach Alex Ferguson a year after he was left out of last season's Champions League final against Chelsea.

He had an early chance to score in the second minute in Rome when he reacted first to a rebound off Barca goalkeeper Victor Valdes after a free-kick from Cristiano Ronaldo but before he could shoot a superb tackle from Barca captain Carles Puyol forced the ball away for a corner.

He failed to make much of an impact after that as United were largely outplayed by the opposition midfield before being replaced by Dimitar Berbatov in the 66th minute.

(Editing by Miles Evans)