Carson comes off bench in first Champions League game in 17 years

Manchester City's third-choice goalkeeper Scott Carson was handed a rare appearance as he came off the bench in their Champions League clash with Sporting Lisbon.

Carson came off the bench with 20 minutes to go in the second leg which ended as a goalless draw - though City advanced to the quarter-finals with a 5-0 aggregate victory.

It was the first time that the 36-year-old has been involved in a match for City since their 4-3 victory over Newcastle last May - when the Premier League title had already been wrapped up.

But remarkably it was just his second Champions League appearance ever and his first in 6,182 days.

His one and only appearance before this came for Liverpool in a 2-1 quarter-final first-leg victory over Juventus at Anfield back in 2005 - when Carson was just 19 years old, 

He received a Champions League medal that season after Liverpool's famous comeback victory over AC Milan in Istanbul.

Against Sporting, Carson was brought straight into action, pulling off a superb save to deny striker Paulinho. 

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Manchester City fans took to social media to comment on the quality of Carson's save.

A number of users wrote: 'What a save Scott Carson,' while another commented: 'Scott Carson body on the line.'

Manchester City fan Tommy posted: 'Scott Carson best GK in the world.'

Another fan described him as the greatest of all time, while Jack wrote: 'Gotta love a bit of Scott Carson.'

Carson initially joined Man City on a loan from Derby in the summer of 2019, before the deal became permanent last year.

Since his arrival, his start against Newcastle last season, and the cameo against Sporting on Wednesday, are the only two times he's played