Olympique Lyonnais' Rayan Cherki becomes youngest to play in Champions League knockout round

17-year-old Cherki made history when he came off the bench in the 73rd minute as a substitute in Lyon's 0-3 loss to Bayern Munich in the Champions League semi-final match.

Image courtesy: Rayan Cherki Instagram

 Lyon striker Rayan Cherki became the youngest player to ever take part in a Champions League knockout-round match after coming on as a substitute against Bayern Munich on Thursday.

With his team trailing 2-0 in their semi-final encounter, Cherki came off the bench in the 73rd minute in place of defender Fernando Marcal as the Ligue 1 side chased the game.

It was still a history-making cameo for Cherki, who only turned seventeen on Monday. The teenager is only the fourth 17-year-old to appear in a Champions League semi-final after Bojan, David Alaba and Julian Draxler, Goal.com reported.

Previously, the youngest player to appear in a Champions League knockout-round match was Kenneth Zohore, who set the mark for FC Copenhagen in February 2011.Lyon faced a 3-0 defeat against Bayern Munich as Serge Gnabry scored a brace in the first half and Robert Lewandowski headed the third goal in the final minutes of the game.

Cherki made 12 senior appearances and scored three goals for Lyon`s senior team in this season prior to Thursday`s game.

On Tuesday, Paris Saint Germain had defeated RB Leipzig 3-0 in the first semi-final of the Champions League. Bayern Munich will face Paris Saint-Germain in the finals of the tournament on Sunday, August 23.