History-maker:  Ilenikhena breaks 7,574-day Nigerian record held by Obafemi Martins after goal v Barcelona

Royal Antwerp super kid George Ilenikhena was one of the heroes for the reigning Belgian champions as they registered a 3-2 win over Barcelona at De Bosuil on matchday six of the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday night. 

Marc Guiu thought he had snatched a point for Barcelona in the first minute of second half stoppage time when he headed in a Gündoğan free-kick for a late leveller, but substitute Ilenikhena responded almost immediately as he grabbed the game-winning goal a minute later.

The Lagos-born center forward suddenly found himself in space and slotted home to seal a dramatic win for Antwerp. 

By finding the net against Barcelona, Ilenikhena entered into the history books as the youngest Nigerian-born player to score in the UEFA Champions League, aged 17 years and 119 days. 

The previous record holder was Inter Milan icon Obafemi Martins who scored for the Nerazzurri  in a 2-0 win against Bayer Leverkusen during the 2002-2003 season at the age of 18 years and 142 days.

Martins's record stood for more than 20 years, specifically  7,574 days, before it was broken by Ilenikhena. 

Ilenikhena also became the second youngest player to score in Champions League history behind Barcelona striker Ansu Fati who was aged 17 years and 40 days when he netted his first Champions League goal against Inter Milan on December 10, 2019.

Ifeanyi Emmanuel 

Photo Credit: uefa.com

Copyright ANS

All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express written permission from allnigeriasoccer.com