CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
Santiago Giménez, second Mexican to debut with Champions League goal
There were lots of eyes on the Feyenoord forward as he finally took his place on club football’s biggest stage in UEFA top competition.
Mexican footballer Santiago Giménez continues to shine with Feyenoord. On Wednesday, the Aztec forward made his debut in the Champions League with his team after serving the two-match suspension he had carried over from the previous Europa League. The former Cruz Azul academy player started the match against Lazio, and his influence was pivotal from the outset.
How long did it take Giménez to score in UCL?
Not very long at all, is the answer. It came in the 31st minute, when Giménez received a pass from Mats Wieffer inside the penalty area, and, although being marked by Alessio Romagnoli, he turned and unleashed a powerful low shot towards the right-hand post of Ivan Provedel. The goalkeeper could do nothing to prevent the ball from nestling in the back of the net.
Things got even better.
In the 73rd minute another chance came the way of Giménez and he made no mistake. What a way to present yourself to a bigger audience, although many eyes have been closely watching his impressive progress.
With that he became the fourth Mexican to get a brace in a Champions League game, after Carlos Vela, Javier Hernández (who did it three times) and Raúl Jiménez. None of them did it on their debut though. (Let’s not forget Hugo Sanchez who did it in the old European Cup).
Giménez follows in Álvarez footsteps
With this goal, Santiago Giménez became the second Mexican player to debut with a goal in the group stage of the Champions League. Prior to this Wednesday, Edson Álvarez was the only Mexican to achieve this feat. ‘Machín’ accomplished it during the 2019-2020 edition while playing for Ajax, facing APOEL from Cyprus.