If you grew up watching Cristiano Ronaldo play then I warn you that this article will make you feel old. Since his professional debut with Sporting in 2002, Ronaldo held the title as the Lisbon club’s youngest player for nearly 18 years. That record was broken on Wednesday when 17-year-old Joelson Fernandes made his professional debut for the Portuguese club.
Fernandes was only subbed on in the 91st minute and got minimal action, but he can now say he broke a record held by one of the greatest footballers in the world. To narrow it down to the finer details, Ronaldo was 17 years, eight months and two days old when he made his first appearance while Fernandes was 17 years, four months and three days old. To give you an idea of the age gap, Ronaldo made his professional debut before Fernandes was born.
Ronaldo still holds the record as Sporting’s youngest-ever goal scorer. The Portuguese legend scored twice in his 2002 Primer Liga debut.
Fernandes may not have scored, but he has some tricks up his sleeve as well. The youngster has shown his impressive skill and technique with Portugal and Sporting’s youth teams.
17 year old Joelson Fernandes plays for Sporting CP and is expected to make his senior debut soon.
Here he is ripping his opponents to bits for his national team’s youth side. pic.twitter.com/ycQZnBKsDY— Redmen TV Academy (@RedmenAcademy) July 1, 2020
If Fernandes is provided with more action on the senior team, he will have five matches to try to score one goal for Sporting and break another Ronaldo record. It has been rumored that Arsenal is preparing to make a bid for the young winger. Mikel Arteta won’t want history to repeat itself. In the 2002-03 season, former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger expressed interest in signing a young Ronaldo but was denied when Alex Ferguson swooped in and signed him to Manchester United. Arsenal will do its best not to strike out a second time in a row.
