Nigerian forward Victor Olatunji made UEFA Champions League history on Wednesday in Sparta Prague’s 3-0 win over Austrian club RB Salzburg at the epet ARENA in Prague, Czech Republic.
The Sokoto-born forward scored the host’s second goal and assisted the third to become the first Nigerian player to score and assist on their Champions League debut, and just the third African to do so, joining Gabon’s Daniel Cousin and Serge Aurier of Ivory Coast.
What a night for Sparta Praha 💙💛❤️#UCL pic.twitter.com/TeJ3hKWuyL
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) September 18, 2024
Playing in their first Champions League game since a goalless draw against Thun in December 2005, Sparta crept into an early lead through Finnish midfielder Kaan Kairinen, whose volley off a rebound found the back of the net inside the first two minutes.
Olatunji opened his Champions League account with the host’s second goal in the 42nd minute. The 25-year-old latched onto a loose ball over the top of the Salzburg defence before launching a volley into the bottom corner, leaving the goalkeeper helpless and rooted to the spot.
3 – Victor Olatunji is the third African player to score and assist on his UEFA Champions League debut, after Daniel Cousin in 2007 (for Rangers vs Lyon) and Serge Aurier in 2015 (for PSG vs Shakhtat Donetsk). Indeed, he’s the first 🇳🇬 Nigerian player to do so. Eagle. pic.twitter.com/BhSQeW09oo
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) September 18, 2024
Albanian midfielder Qazim Laci got the third and final goal for Sparta in the 58th minute after he was teed up by Olatunji. After the Nigerian profited off an error from the Salzburg’s defence and squaring the ball in to box, Laci met the pass, turned three defenders and slotted the ball into an empty net.
The victory was Sparta Prague’s first in the Champions League since a 1-0 win over Lazio in December 2003 as their 14-game winless run in the competition came to an end
The Czech club also won their opening match in the competition for the first time, and condemned Salzburg to their first defeat in a Champions League opener.
