Age is just a number! Real Betis veteran Joaquin shows no signs of slowing down as he becomes oldest scorer EVER in the Europa League, with the former Spain star netting a sublime effort against Ludogorets aged 41 years and 56 days old
- Joaquin broke the record as the oldest scorer in the history of the Europa League
- The Real Betis forward made it 2-0 with a stunning curling effort into top corner
- Joaquin is 41 years and 56 days old and has beaten Daniel Hestad to the top spot
Real Betis winger Joaquin has become the oldest goalscorer in Europa League history after scoring a stunning strike against Ludogorets on Thursday.
At 41 years and 56 days, Joaquín is now officially the oldest player in the competition to find the back of the net.
The Betis wideman never seems to show any signs of winding down his career and after Luiz Henrique had nodded Betis in front, Joaquin curled in magnificently into the top corner to make it 2-0.
Real Betis’ Joaquin has established himself as the oldest scorer ever in Europa League history
Joaquin’s top-corner stunner means he has overtaken Norway’s Daniel Hestad in the record books.
Hestad scored for Norwegian side Molde in November 2015 at the age of 40 years and 98 days, which has now been beaten by Joaquin.
Jorge Molina at the age of 38 years and 324 days for Getafe ranks third behind Joaquin and Hestad.
AEK Larnaca’s David Catala – 38 years and 224 days and Walter Samuel, then of FC Basel at the age of 37 years and 333 days, complete the top five.
The 41-year-old made it 2-0 to Real Betis against Ludogorets to clinch top spot in the charts
His stunning strike found the top corner and he has now beaten Daniel Hestad to the top spot
It is not the first record that Joaquin has been able to toast from this competition. Back in February he was crowned the oldest player to ever assist a goal in the Europa League – then 40 years and 211 days old.
Joaquin graduated from Betis’ famed youth academy in 1999 and he remained part of the furniture with Betis until 2006 when he departed for Valencia.
Spells at Malaga and Fiorentina followed before he returned to Betis in 2015 – and he has continued to deliver in big moments for them. On Thursday It turned out to be far from straightforward for Betis on the night in the end.
First, Ludogorets’ Kiril Despodov reduced the deficit by one just before half-time before Brazilian star Rick set up a grandstand finish after Sergio Canales had put Betis 3-1 up.
Joaquin (right) already holds the record as the oldest Europa League player to grab an assist
