Man City's Phil Foden Sets New Champions League Records After Making First Start
Manchester City talent Phil Foden set two Champions League records on Wednesday night as he made his full debut for the club after starting the 2-1 defeat away to Shakhtar Donetsk.
City had already secured top spot in the group ahead of matchday six, so manager Pep Guardiola opted to name Foden in the starting lineup in Ukraine, along with fellow academy graduate Tosin Adarabioyo. Brahim Diaz also featured from the bench.
Already the fourth youngest English player to appear in the competition following his debut as a substitute last month against Feyenoord, Foden is now the youngest Englishman to actually start a Champions League game, at the age of 17 years and 192 days.
He played the full 90 minutes, breaking the previous record held by former Chelsea midfielder Josh McEachran. Now with Brentford in the Championship, McEachran set the mark in November 2010 in a similar 'dead rubber' game against Slovakian side MSK Zilina.
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But not only is Under-17 World Cup winner and Golden Ball recipient Foden the youngest Englishman to start a Champions League game, he is also the first player born in the 21st century to start a game at this level, a second record and one that can never be broken.
Juventus starlet Moise Kean famously became the first player born in the 21st century to play in the Champions League when he made a substitute appearance for the Italians last season, but Foden actually starting a game is even more of a significant achievement.
With two senior European games under his belt, what now awaits Foden is a domestic debut. That is unlikely to come in Sunday's Manchester derby, but he certainly won't be waiting too much longer during the bust festive period in the coming weeks.
