Chelsea’s 4-1 victory over Betis in the UEFA Conference League final made headlines not just for the scoreline but also for age-related records.
Idman.biz reports that Betis head coach Manuel Pellegrini set a new record as the oldest coach to appear in a European club competition final. At 71 years and 254 days old during the match, Pellegrini surpassed Raymond Goethals, who was 71 years and 231 days old when coaching Marseille in the 1992/93 Champions League final.
On the other side, Chelsea marked a unique milestone with their youthful squad. The London club fielded no players aged 27 or older in the final lineup. The oldest starter was 26-year-old Marc Cucurella, and none of the substitutes exceeded that age.
Chelsea became only the second team in European club final history to compete without any player aged 27 or above. The first instance was Red Star Belgrade in the 1978/79 UEFA Cup final against Borussia Mönchengladbach.
Idman.biz
