Teenage sensation Felix Afena-Gyan notched up a late brace to catapult Roma to a crucial 2-0 win away to Genoa on Sunday night. The 18-year-old joined the fray as Jose Mourinho’s wild card and spoiled Andriy Shevchenko’s managerial debut in Serie A with a breathtaking, match-winning performance.
After suffering back-to-back league defeats on the eve of the international break, Roma headed to the Stadio Luigi Ferraris under tremendous pressure. Though an out-of-sorts Genoa side looked like a seemingly routine task at first glance, it turned out to be quite the opposite.
A managerial shift during the international window seems to have sparked Genoa’s spirits as they put on a fight for a large portion of the game. Roma had several decent chances to hit the front before half-time, with Eldor Shomurodov squandering the best opportunity of the first half in the 29th minute.
Genoa players dropped deep in the second half, trying to defend a goalless draw, but to no avail. When it looked like Shevchenko could snatch away a point right under Roma’s noses, Mourinho made a game-changing substitution, withdrawing Shomurodov in favor of Afena-Gyan with 16 minutes left to play.
The Ghanaian whizz-kid, who registered a couple of cameo Serie A appearances before tonight, stole the spotlight with a stunning late impact. The prodigious forward latched onto Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s through ball to break the deadlock in the 82nd minute, making his Serie A breakthrough.
Roma were on the cusp of claiming a narrow win at Genoa when Afena-Gyan produced a moment to remember. The youngster picked up the ball far away from Salvatore Sirigu’s goal and didn’t think twice, unleashing a devastating long-range shot into the top far corner.
During the post-match interview, Afena-Gyan thanked Mourinho for handing him the opportunity to impact the game at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris and fulfill his dream.
“Mourinho is a great person, a great manager, and a great coach. He gives you the motivation to learn every day. I am very happy he is here,” he said, as relayed by TUTTOmercatoWEB.
“Tonight is a dream come true. It was my first goal, I was hoping for a very long time. I want to continue my performance, prove myself and do more in the future.
“I thank God for this opportunity he gave me, the team, the coach, the fans, players for their amazing support. I also want to say thank you Mom, she is in Ghana, I love you.“