Faustino Adebola Anjorin made his Champions League debut for Chelsea to help the Blues claim a 1-1 draw against Krasnodar at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday night.
The youngster becomes the fifth Nigeria-eligible player to play for Chelsea in Europe’s premier competition, following in the footsteps of John Obi Mikel, Celestine Babayaro, Victor Moses, and Dominic Solanke.
The England youth international logged 80 minutes before making way for Olivier Giroud and he was impressive as Frank Lampard’s men finished their Champions League Group E fixtures without a loss.
Impressed with Anjorin’s performance and football attributes, Lampard told reporters at the post-match press conference:
“In training, he’s shown since last season a real ability to step straight into the level. He showed it today, the way he moves the ball quickly and his physical attributes.”
Elsewhere at the Stadio Olympico, Emmanuel Dennis was benched throughout while David Okereke was an 84th-minute substitute as ten-man Club Brugge fought out a 2-2 draw with Lazio.
But the result was not enough to lift the Belgian champions into the next round of the UEFA Champions League.
Brugge finished third despite losing only two matches during the group stages and will be playing their remaining continental games this campaign in the Europa League.
In Russia, Borussia Dortmund secured a comeback 2-1 win against Zenit St Petersburg in a match that saw kid wonder Youssouf Moukoko break Celestine Babayaro’s 26-year-old record to become the youngest ever player to debut in the Champions League.
Despite missing the services of star forwards Edison Cavani and Anthony Martial, manager Ole Gunnar Solskjær left Nigeria’s Odion Ighalo on the bench for the entirety of Man United’s 3-2 loss at Leipzig.
Needing at least a point to guarantee safe passage to the knockout stage, United shockingly conceded two quick Angelino and Haidara goals within the first fifteen minutes before Kluivert added a third in the second half.
The Red Devils fought back through a Fernandes penalty and a Konate own goal but couldn’t get the all-important equaliser on an exciting night at the Red Bull Arena.
A PSG win or draw in Paris against unfancied Istanbul Basaksehir on Wednesday – a match abandoned and rescheduled due to an altercation with a racist match official on Tuesday – will see Manchester United continue their European adventure in the Europa League.
