Cliff Notes – Walsh becomes youngest Englishman in UCL since Wilshere
- Reggie Walsh made history as Chelsea’s youngest ever Champions League player at 17 years old, following a 5-1 victory over Ajax.
- He is now the second-youngest Englishman to feature in the Champions League, only behind Jack Wilshere, who was 16 years and 10 months old at the time.
- Walsh previously set the record as Chelsea’s youngest player in Europe during last season’s Conference League at 16 years and 193 days.
Walsh becomes youngest Englishman in UCL since Wilshere
ESPN
Oct 23, 2025, 03:18 PMEmailPrintOpen Extended Reactions
On a night where Chelsea broke a whole host of records in the 5-1 win over Ajax in the Champions League, there was one that went under the radar.
That of Reggie Walsh, who came on to replace Romeo Lavia in the 65th minute, just two days after his 17th birthday.
That saw him become Chelsea’s youngest ever Champions League player but he was also the second-youngest Englishman to ever play in the Champions League, behind only Jack Wilshere.
Wilshere was 16 years and 10 months old when he came on in Arsenal’s 1-0 win over Dynamo Kyiv in 2008.
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Walsh was already Chelsea’s youngest ever player to play in Europe when he made his European debut against Djugardens in last season’s Conference League, aged 16 years and 193 days.
It is clear then that Enzo Maresca is a fan and earlier in the season, he said of Walsh: “I like all the academy guys but Reggie is the one I like more than the rest.
“I like Reggie because he is doing things that I’m demanding to the other players, but he is doing those things without me asking him to do that.
“I don’t need to ask him to do something. What he’s doing is already what I want from that player.”