By Frank Kamuntu
This article will walk you through the eight players who came in as substitutes and affected the game’s outcome.
1. OLE GUNNAR SOLSKJEAR (1999 Champions League final)
Manchester United drew 1-1 with Bayern Munich in the 1999 UEFA Champions League final until Ole Gunnar Solskjear came on as a late substitute with the game virtually gone.
However, Ole Gunnar Solskjear scored an injury-time winner for Manchester United, capping off a fantastic comeback at Camp Nou and helping the Red Devils win the title.
2. GARETH BALE (Champions League final, 2018)
Gareth Bale began as a backup in the 2019 Champions League final between Liverpool and Real Madrid. When the game was tied at 1-1 in the 61st minute, he came on as a substitute.
Real Madrid won the match 3-1. Bale scored a fantastic bicycle kick three minutes after arriving to make it 2-1 and completed a brace after Loris Karius made a mistake, and Real Madrid won the match 3-1.
3. EDINSON CAVANI (2021 Premier League)
After going into halftime with two goals behind, Manchester United was put under pressure by Southampton in the 2020/21 top-quality league season.
Cavani was then substituted in the second half. He started by assisting Bruno Fernandes to make it 2-1, and then scored two header goals to give Manchester United a 3-2 comeback victory.
4. Juliano Bellotti (2006 Champions League final)
Arsenal’s one and only UEFA Champions League final came in 2006, when they faced FC Barcelona, with the match ending 1-1 until Juliano Bellotti was brought in.
In the 81st minute, he scored the goal that Barcelona needed to win the match against Arsenal’s 10-man squad.
5. GIORGINIO WIJNALDUM (2019 Champions League semi-final)
Liverpool entered the second leg of the semi-final with a combined score of 3-0 in favor of Barcelona.
Liverpool were leading 1-0 and were on the verge of being eliminated if the scores remained the same. He did, however, score a couple of quick goals, and Divock Origi added his own to give Liverpool a final qualifying point.
6. EDER (2016 Euro final)
Portugal had a difficult time winning the 2016 Euro in Paris against the hosts, France. The situation worsened when Cristiano Ronaldo was injured in the first half and had to be replaced.
This is the point in Eder’s life when he went from being a commoner to a hero. He came on in the 109th minute and scored a goal to hand the trophy to Portugal.
7. MARIO GOTZE (2018 FIFA World Cup final)
Mario Gotze had a dream of winning the FIFA World Cup, but he never imagined it would come true until he was called in to substitute for Miroslav Klose while the match between Argentina and Germany was goalless.
Gotze grabbed a pass from Andre Schurle on his chest and blasted the ball into the net seven minutes before the final whistle in extra time. Germany won by a score of 1-0.
8. ROBERT LEWANDOWSKI (2015/16 Bundesliga)
Bayern Munich were 1-0 down against Wolfsburg in the 2015/16 Bundesliga match when Pep Guardiola decided to bring on Robert Lewandowski in the second half.
In the 51st minute, Lewandowski equalized, doubled it in the 52nd minute, and completed his hat trick in the 55th minute. He made it four minutes later, and by the 60th minute, he had scored five goals in nine minutes, averaging one minute and eight seconds per goal.
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