Renato Sanches surpasses Ronaldo as youngest ever finalist
Sunday, July 10, 2016
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Named in Portugal's starting XI for the final, teenage midfielder Renato Sanches duly broke Cristiano Ronaldo's record as the youngest EURO finalist and later became the youngest winner.
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Portugal teenager Renato Sanches became the youngest player to appear in a UEFA European Championship final – and then also to lift the Henri Delaunay Cup – at the Stade de France on Sunday night.
Still 38 days off his 19th birthday, the Bayern midfielder was named in the Portuguese starting XI for the UEFA EURO 2016 showpiece, thereby breaking the competition record long held by his captain Cristiano Ronaldo. The latter player had been 19 years and 150 days old when he featured in Portugal's defeat by Greece in 2004.
Youngest to play in a EURO final
18 years 328 days, Renato Sanches (Portugal v France, 2016)
19 years 150 days, Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal v Greece, 2004)
19 years 262 days, Anatoliy Baidachny (Soviet Union v West Germany, 1972)
19 years 354 days, Jovan Aćimović (Italy v Yugoslavia, 1968)
20 years 63 days, Pietro Anastasi (Italy v Yugoslavia, 1968)
An already memorable occasion for Sanches got even better when the 18-year-old ended the evening as the youngest-ever EURO winner – outdoing Pietro Anastasi, a final goalscorer for Italy in 1968.
Youngest EURO winner and scorer
20 years 63 days, Pietro Anastasi (Italy v Yugoslavia, 1968)