AC Milan teenager Francesco Camarda thought he had become the youngest goalscorer in Champions League history. But then VAR stepped in.
The 16-year-old Camarda celebrated by taking off his jersey after heading in a cross from Tijjani Reijnders late in Milan’s match against Club Brugge on Tuesday. He stood in front of the Milan fans with his hands to his ears before being lifted onto his teammates’ shoulders.
His mother and girlfriend were seen in the stands wiping away tears.
However, the goal was ruled out by the video assistant referee for offside. To make matters worse, Camarda received a yellow card for removing his shirt.
“It was emotional, I think the best feeling of my life but then the VAR played a trick on me,” Camarda said after the match. “I’m really disappointed but these are things that happen, especially in modern day soccer.”
If the goal had counted, he would have become the youngest Champions League scorer at 16 years and 226 days. The current record is held by Ansu Fati, who was 17 years and 40 days old when he scored for Barcelona against Inter Milan in 2019.
Instead, he had to be content with one record: becoming the youngest Italian debutant in the competition when he came on in the 75th minute as the San Siro crowd chanted his name.
“The record gives me a lot of pride, honestly, but now it pushes me to give more to improve and ensure that these nights happen more often,” said Camarda, who added that it was “absolutely” the best night of his career.
He received a warm hug from his father on the sidelines after the match, which Milan won 3-1.
Camarda, seen as one of Italy’s top prospects, holds the record for being the youngest player in Serie A history, achieved when he played against Fiorentina last season at just 15 years old.
He had only played one other match for Milan, also last season.
