Could Zack Steffen make more Champions League history?
On Tuesday, Manchester City defeated Paris Saint-Germain 4-1 on aggregate to advance to the final of the UEFA Champions League.
Zack Steffen could become the second United States men’s national team player to appear in a UEFA Champions League final after Manchester City defeated Paris Saint-Germain 4-1 on aggregate in the semifinal. The first American to do so, and then collect a winner's medal for Europe’s biggest club trophy, was Jovan Kirovski in 1997 with Borussia Dortmund.
Kirovski never played in the UCL final
The United States men’s national team player made his debut in the group stage coming on as a substitute twice against Atlético Madrid in the 1996/97 tournament. At that time Kirovski was 20 years old and he became the first American to ever play in the Champions League.
Dortmund won both of the games that Kirovski played against the LaLiga side and both teams ended up tied on 13 points at the top of their group, but Atlético had a better goal difference. Kirovski didn’t play any part of the knockout stages and in the final he was not included in the roster that defeated Juventus 3-1 at the Olympiastadion in Munich. Nonetheless, he was granted the medal for his two appearances in the group stage.
Now Zack Steffen has the opportunity to play in the final if Ederson gets injured in the upcoming games that the Citizens have scheduled in the next three weeks. The team managed by Guardiola has four league games left (Chelsea, Newcastle, Brighton and Everton) before the UCL final on 29 May.
Steffen has only played one game in the UEFA Champions League this season, because he is working as second choice to Ederson. His only appearance came against Marseille in the final game of the group stage and he was able to keep a clean sheet in the 3-0 victory.
Pulisic one game away from joining UCL list
Christian Pulisic could join Steffen as a USMNT UCL finalist if Chelsea defeat Real Madrid on Wednesday at Stamford Bridge. In the first leg both teams tied 1-1 at the Estadio Alfredo di Stefano and a 0-0 draw in the second leg would be enough to confirm their pass to the final.