I’m happy VAR didn’t cancel historic goal – Olayinka

Peter Olayinka has expressed delight after the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) failed to cancel his goal which inspired Slavia Prague to a shock 1-1 away draw against Inter Milan in the UEFA Champions League opener, SportingLife gathered.

The 23-year-old had an unforgettable debut in Europe’s biggest club competition when he tapped home a rebound from close range in the second half to break a 15-year-old record held by former Super Eagles forward, Yakubu Aiyegbeni.

Aiyegbeni scored a hat-trick in his Champions League debut for Israeli club Maccabi Haifa in 2002 and held the record for 15 years until Olayinka’s goal for Slavia Prague against Inter Milan on Tuesday night.

“After my goal, the referee was checking with VAR and I was like ‘Please, Please don’t stop this feeling’ because I was already feeling so excited – then the referee confirmed it was a goal. I feel so happy and fantastic,” the little known Nigerian revealed at the match interview.

“It’s really amazing for me scoring my first goal in the Champions League. I feel so good and it’s unbelievable.

“After the goal, I watched the linesman and I saw that it wasn’t offside but a lot went through my mind, like, wow!

“This is unbelievable. You know as a kid, you watch on TV, games at the San Siro. It’s just great and I couldn’t believe it.”

Olayinka and his Slavia Prague teammates will welcome Borussia Dortmund on October 2 while Barcelona hosts Inter Milan.