AC Milan teenager Francesco Camarda thought he had become the youngest Champions League goalscorer in history. But then the VAR intervened.

The 16-year-old Camarda threw off his jersey in celebration as he wheeled away after heading in a Tijjani Reijnders cross late on in Milan's match against Club Brugge on Tuesday. He then stood in front of the Milan fans with his hands cupped to his ears before being hoisted onto his teammates' shoulders.

Camarda's mother and his girlfriend were shown in the stands wiping away their tears. However, the goal was then ruled out by the video assistant referee for offside. To add insult to injury, Camarda was shown a yellow card for taking his shirt off.

“It was emotional, I think the best feeling of my life but then the VAR played a trick on me,” Camarda said after the match. “I'm really disappointed but these are things that happen, especially in modern-day football.”

Camarda would have become the youngest Champions League scorer at 16 years and 226 days. The is held by Ansu Fati, who was 17 years and 40 days when he netted for Barcelona against Inter in 2019.

Instead, he had to settle for just one record: becoming the youngest Italian debutant in the competition when he was brought on in the 75th minute as the San Siro crowd chanted his name.

“The record gives me a lot of pride, honestly, but now it pushes me to give more to improve and ensure that these nights happen more often,” said Camarda, who added that it was “absolutely” the best night of his career.

He was fiercely hugged by his father pitchside after the match, which Milan won 3-1.

Milan coach Paulo Fonseca said substitutes Noah Okafor and Samuel Chukwueze changed the game in their favour. It was Milan's first Champions League win of the season.

"The credit goes to the players and mainly to those who came on," Fonseca told a news conference. "Obviously, in the first half, we didn't do things well," Fonseca said.

Reuters