Slavia Sofia's Georgi Petkov breaks record

Slavia Sofia's goalkeeper, Georgi Petkov, made history in the Bulgarian top-flight, becoming the oldest player to grace the pitch. This remarkable feat occurred during Sunday's match against Hebar Pazardzhik, which ended in a narrow 1-0 defeat.

Petkov, who had previously donned the Bulgarian national team jersey from 1998 to 2018, seized the opportunity to shine.

In the dying moments of the game, he replaced Nikolay Krustev, who is a mere 26 years old, setting a new age record at 47.

The seasoned goalkeeper even exhibited his prowess by making a crucial penalty save, celebrating with a hushed gesture.

However, the VAR intervened, demanding a retake due to Petkov's positioning off the goal line. In a dramatic turn of events, Georgi Valchev capitalized on the second chance, scoring the winning goal in the 98th minute.

Valchev praised Petkov's experience, stating, "Petkov is a very experienced and cunning goalkeeper. I'm glad that even on the second attempt, I managed to outsmart him. It's no coincidence that he has been in football for so many years.

A big 'bravo'!"This extraordinary achievement echoed Petkov's previous record from August 2018 when he had become the oldest player in the Bulgarian top flight.

On that memorable occasion, he delivered a remarkable man-of-the-match performance in a 0-0 draw against champions Ludogorets.