Ezzeldin Bahader, 75-year-old Egyptian footballer, scores on debut

Ezzeldin Bahader, an Egyptian player, who is seeking to become the oldest professional footballer ever, scored on his debut — at the age of 75.

Bahader, a former amateur player, who is a father of four and grandfather of six, scored his team’s only goal from the penalty spot on Saturday.

The match between 6th October, his club side, and Genius, another team in the Egyptian third tier league division, ended in stalemate.

“I became the oldest professional footballer scoring a goal in an official game,” he said, according to BBC Sports.

“This is something that was achieved in the last minute of the game that I thought I wouldn’t achieve. I was injured and all what I hoped for was to continue for the full 90 minutes and play the next game.”

Bahader is expected to play two full games to qualify as an entry in the Guinness World Records book.

When the grandfather takes to the field of play for his second game on March 21, he will displace Isaak Hayik, the current record holder.

In April 2019, Hayik had played for Ironi Or Yehuda, Israeli fourth-tier side, at the age of 73.

Meanwhile, Kazuyoshi Miura, who plays for Yokohama FC, J-League in Japan, is the current oldest professional player at 52. He recently signed a contract extension with the club.