Vandevoordt breaks record as youngest Champions League keeper
Genk’s Maarten Vandevoordt has become the youngest goalkeeper to be named in a Champions League starting XI after being selected against Napoli, aged 17 years and 287 days.
The previous record was held by Benfica’s Mile Svilar, who made his debut against Manchester United in 2017 aged 18 years and 52 days.
Vandevoordt has started Genk’s past two matches in the Belgium league and cup.
He makes his European debut ahead of regular starter Gaetan Coucke.
Coucke, 21, has started 21 games for Genk this season – including all five of their Champions League matches – while 34-year-old Australian Danny Vukovic has not played since 26 July because of a ruptured Achilles tendon.
Belgium Under-19s player Vandevoordt, born on 26 February 2002, only made his senior debut for Genk on 24 September and has featured three times for the reigning Belgian champions this season.
Genk are bottom of their Champions League group with one point and cannot qualify for the next round or the Europa League.
Youngest goalkeepers in Champions League
1. Mile Svilar (Benfica) v Manchester United, 18 October 2017 – aged 18 years 52 days
2. Iker Casillas (Real Madrid) v Olympiakos, 15 September 1999 – 18y 118d
3. Nikolay Mihaylov (Levski Sofia) v Werder Bremen, 31 October 2006 – 18y 125d
Read Also:Napoli president fines team €2.5m for mutiny
4. Igor Akinfeev (CSKA Moscow) v Porto, 14 September 2004 – 18y 159d
5. Adrian Semper (Dinamo Zagreb) v Lyon, 14 September 2016 – 18y 245d