Myles Lewis-Skelly nears Nwankwo Kanu’s Champions League semi-final record after starring in Arsenal’s run to the final

Arsenal teenager Myles Lewis-Skelly has moved to within touching distance of a long-standing UEFA Champions League record held by Nigerian football legend Nwankwo Kanu after his standout involvement in the club’s latest European campaign.

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The young midfielder has now started three Champions League semi-final matches, placing him among an elite group of teenagers to feature at such a decisive stage of the competition.

Statistics from Squawka indicate that only former Real Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas and Kanu have recorded more semi-final starts as teenagers, with both players having made four appearances.

Lewis-Skelly’s rise has been described as remarkable, with the 19-year-old playing a key role in Arsenal’s 1-0 victory over Atletico Madrid, a result that secured the club’s first Champions League final appearance in two decades.

The achievement brings him closer to the **Lewis-Skelly Kanu Champions League record**, a benchmark that highlights the Nigerian icon’s enduring legacy in European football.

Kanu’s record stems from his early breakthrough at Ajax in the 1990s, where he quickly became a key figure in the club’s European dominance after impressing at youth level internationally.

The Nigerian forward featured in Ajax’s 1994 Champions League semi-final triumph over Bayern Munich, a tie they won 5-2 on aggregate, before going on to win the competition that season against AC Milan.

He followed that with another strong campaign in 1995/96, starting both semi-final legs against Panathinaikos and featuring in the final against Juventus, which Ajax lost on penalties.

Those appearances took Kanu’s teenage semi-final tally to four, a record that has stood for decades.

Kanu later made 60 Champions League appearances, the highest by a Nigerian player, before going on to play for Inter Milan and Arsenal, where he became part of the famed “Invincibles” squad.

In a separate milestone, Lagos-born forward George Ilenikhena recently surpassed one of Kanu’s records by becoming the youngest African to reach 15 Champions League appearances.

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Lewis-Skelly’s rapid development now places him in rare historical company as Arsenal continue their push for European glory, with comparisons to Kanu underlining the growing impact of young African-linked talent on the continental stage.