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Manchester City’s third-choice goalkeeper Scott Carson was handed a rare chance to impress in Wednesday’s Champions League match against Sporting Lisbon.
Carson was brought on by City manager Pep Guardiola with 20 minutes to go in the second leg at the Etihad, which ended in a goalless draw.
The match was effectively a dead rubber after City’s 5-0 win in Portugal in the reverse fixture.
Guardiola saw fit to give Carson a run out, bringing him on in place of regular goalkeeper Ederson in the closing stages.
The 36-year-old was straight into the action, pulling off a superb save to deny Sporting striker Paulinho.
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He managed to see out the remainder of the match without conceding as City cruised through to the last eight of the competition.
It was Carson’s first appearance in the Champions League since 2005.
His only previous appearance in the competition had come 16 years and 338 days ago for Liverpool against Juventus when he was 19 years old.
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It is the largest gap between appearances for any player in Champions League history.
He is now up to a grand total of two appearances for City, having played just once before for the club - a 4-3 win over Newcastle last season in which he saved a penalty from Joe Willock.
Former England international Carson first joined City in 2019, initially on loan from Championship club Derby County.
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The agreement was extended for a further year before Carson signed a permanent deal at the Etihad in July.
His current contract is due to expire at the end of the season.
Topics: Champions League, Football, Manchester City, Pep Guardiola
Rory O'Callaghan