A teenage sensation on the goal line and a painful coming-of-age lesson — Kairat opened their Champions League campaign with a 1:4 defeat to Sporting, yet the central figure of the first half was 18-year-old Sherkhan Kalmurza. In only his second senior appearance he saved a penalty and produced several more stops, keeping the contest alive until the middle of the second half. The finale came abruptly — three goals conceded in three minutes erased his heroics.
Penalty as the Boiling Point
The 20th minute became the turning point. Aleksandr Mrynsky, trying to clear the ball, clipped Luis Suarez’s leg — a needless foul with no clear goal threat but with all the consequences of a penalty.
Up stepped Morten Hjulmand, whose experience from the spot was modest. He went down the middle — and Kalmurza blocked it with his trailing leg! The young keeper not only read the attempt but kept his concentration: almost immediately he clawed away another dangerous strike from Geovani Kenda. That spell gave Kairat a breather and belief they could hang in Lisbon.
First-Half Hero Under xG Pressure
According to advanced expected-goals data, Sporting generated close to three goals by halftime — around 2.91 xG. That made Kalmurza’s string of saves even more valuable; the scoreboard stubbornly held. Only on 44 minutes did the hosts finally break through: Francisco Trincão drilled one from outside the box, the goalkeeper reached it and got a touch, but couldn’t steer it wide. Despite conceding, it was Kalmurza who headed down the tunnel as Kairat’s first-half hero — he had kept his team alive.
Three Minutes That Changed Everything
The minimal deficit lasted until midway through the second half — then the game ran off the rails. On 65 minutes Trincão found space at the edge of the area and rifled into the top corner. Two minutes later Alisson Santos struck from the D, and a deflection left Kalmurza with no chance. Another minute on, Kenda toyed with defenders in the box and picked out the far corner. Three shots — three goals — three minutes that sealed Sporting’s victory. Kairat pulled one back late, but it didn’t change the picture: 1:4 and a stinging lesson in the tempo of the Champions League.
Record Note: A Place in the UCL Record Book
The saved penalty made the match special not only emotionally but historically. At 18 years and 95 days, Kalmurza became one of the youngest goalkeepers to save a penalty in the Champions League — only Mile Svilar was younger in a comparable moment, when he denied a spot-kick at Old Trafford in 2017. The young Almaty native thus nudged Iker Casillas out of the top three for youngest debutants with such a feat — a notable line in the tournament’s goalkeeping annals.
How the 18-Year-Old Ended Up in Goal
The answer lay in a personnel emergency. Kairat’s first-choice keepers Aleksandr Zarutskiy and Temirlan Anarbekov were sidelined by injuries, and the academy graduate got his chance. Before the UCL tie, Kalmurza had only one senior outing — a few days earlier he replaced Anarbekov early against Aktobe (a 1:0 win) and became the club’s youngest goalkeeper to keep a clean sheet. On the eve of the Sporting match he admitted: “I’m preparing and I believe in myself.” On the biggest stage, he proved it.
Context for the Lions: A Vital Win After a Rough Run
For Sporting, this was their first Champions League victory in seven matches — since the memorable 4:1 over Manchester City they had endured four defeats and two draws. Now the Lisbon side pulled the emergency brake on the stats, while Kairat received serious homework: rebuild transition defense, reduce second-phase gaps, and learn to ride out stormy spells without damage.
Takeaways for Kairat and for Kalmurza
For the team — discipline without the ball and a cool head after conceding: the collapse between minutes 65–68 cost the result. For Kalmurza — experience you can’t buy: saving a penalty at this level in only his second senior match is rare. The journey is just beginning, but the way he stood up under the weight of xG and the José Alvalade atmosphere is a statement of intent for major goalkeeping growth.
