NEXT week Liverpool aim to end their 20-year wait for the top prize in European football and two fanatical Gwent supporters will be there to cheer them on.

It's costing life-long Reds' fans Russell Angove and Jonathon King, from Newport, £1,100 each to make it out to Istanbul for the European Champions League final.

And it will almost certainly be the footballing trip of a lifetime. Ironically, both have missed out on their beloved Reds' cup glories closer to home, failing to get tickets for any of Liverpool's matches at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff.

"This is probably the only chance we'll get; it's 20 years since they were last in a European Cup final," said Mr Angove, a 40-year-old welder from Ringwood Hill.

"I applied for them before the Juventus game. A lot of people didn't think they'd get through that leg," said Mr Angove.

He said: "Even then, we had only about a 4-1 chance of getting them."

At about £55 per ticket, you might think its a bit of a steal but the guys still had to find flights and accommodation. Combined with ticket cost and accommodation, the trip is costing them nearly £1,100 each.

Mr Angove and Mr King, a 36-year-old businessmen from Newport, are fanatical Liverpool followers.

"We get to Anfield as often as we can. It's ironic really because we've never been able to get to see them at any of the finals they have played at the Millennuium Stadium," said Mr Angove.