Goalie apologises after stunning with late equaliser

Barcelona’s João Félix, Manchester City’s Julián Álvarez and Paris Saint Germain’s Kylian Mbappé all scored as their teams made winning starts in the Champions League.

But the wildest celebrations of the night came in Rome, where Lazio goalkeeper Ivan Provedel headed in the team’s equaliser in the fifth minute of injury time to earn a 1-1 draw with Atlético Madrid. It was the last action of the game.

Young Atlético midfielder Pablo Barrios put the visitors ahead in what was a heated game, but the biggest drama came at the end, when Provedel left his area to add support in attack and managed to score with a header to Luis Alberto’s cross.

Watch football's biggest clubs and best players in the 2023-24 UEFA Champions League, streaming ad free, live and exclusive on Stan Sport

Provedel didn’t know where to run as the stadium erupted around him.

"It's a night I'll remember all my life," Provedel told UEFA.com. "I'm happy especially because we managed to level a game we didn't deserve to lose. It hasn't sunk in; later, I will realise that I scored in the Champions League.

"Football is sometimes about moments and not performance. I am sorry that we had to equalise at the last second. I hope the point gives us momentum as motivation and enthusiasm."

Also in Group E, Feyenoord had two goals ruled out by VAR for offside and saw a penalty saved in its 2-0 win over Celtic.

READ MORE: 'Utterly moronic' decision costs World Cup star big

READ MORE: Farcical Tigers changes revealed after meeting

READ MORE: NRL's Vegas plan to avoid 'public relations disasters'

Calvin Stengs broke the deadlock in first half injury time but the home team had to wait until the 76th minute for Iran midfielder Alireza Jahanbakhsh to get the second goal.

Celtic defender Gustaf Lagerbielke was sent off with his second yellow card as he conceded the penalty, and substitute Odin Thiago Holm followed him off with a straight red for a dangerous lunge at Mats Wieffer.

The group stage began without either Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo for the first time since 2002-03.

Be the first to comment

Leave a Reply