Manchester City cruised to another win in the UEFA Champions League last night against Sevilla, yet it was the English champions’ opening goal from Rico Lewis that has stolen all the headlines.
The 17-year-old defender was given his first professional start for City after making numerous appearances off the bench, and Lewis took his opportunity with both hands, scoring a brilliantly-finished goal that lead to wild celebrations from the teenager and the Etihad Stadium.
The moment was one of pure bliss and a snapshot into why football is such a brilliant sport. And for City, it was a new milestone in their club history as Lewis’ goal meant that the fullback had become the Manchester giants’ youngest-ever scorer in Champions League history. And the moment has inadvertently vindicated Pep Guardiola.
Rico Lewis goal showed why Oleksandr Zinchenko was sold to Arsenal
Cast your minds back to the summer where City were going a little bit crazy in the selling department. When the dust had settled, the reigning Premier League champions had recorded a record total for outgoing players, with Oleksandr Zinchenko’s £32m move to Arsenal one of the biggest deals the Manchester side completed.
With the Ukrainian going on to flourish at Arsenal and City’s fullback options being stretched due to injuries, the decision was initially met with confusion from supporters. However, the rise of Lewis and the potential the England youth international has shows why Guardiola was right to offload the 25-year-old to the Gunners.
City’s youth academy is beginning to produce some real talents following the success of Phil Foden, with Cole Palmer also starting with Lewis this week against Sevilla. And Guardiola’s decision to give the 17-year-old a real shot of breaking into the first team has proved the right thing to do based on his record-breaking goal.
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