Sixteen-year-old Portuguese forward Cardoso Varela etched his name into Europa League history by scoring a dramatic injury-time equalizer for Dinamo Zagreb, becoming one of the competition’s youngest goalscorers.
Varela’s goal came in the 90th minute plus six seconds, securing a 1-1 draw for Dinamo Zagreb against Malmö. He had entered the match as a substitute in the 85th minute.
His late strike made him only the fourth player in the history of the Europa League and its predecessor, the UEFA Cup, to score at the age of 16. Varela is a product of FC Porto’s youth academy.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9g0HwT5l6jY]
Other Portuguese players experienced mixed fortunes in European youth competitions.
Yusuf Chermiti, another Portuguese forward, started for Rangers but failed to score in their 3-0 defeat to Brann. This marked Chermiti’s eighth game of the season without a goal.
Rangers, now under new German coach Danny Röhl, currently sit last in their group with no points.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0f-E6lD5f8]
Ludogorets, coached by Rui Mota, suffered a 3-2 loss to Young Boys, their second defeat in the competition. Meanwhile, Celtic, with Paulo Bernardo remaining on the bench, secured a 2-1 comeback victory against Sturm Graz.