Manchester United head coach Marc Skinner named 21-year-old Wales international Safia Middleton-Patel in goal to face Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Women’s Champions League on Wednesday.
It transpired that first-choice keeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce had picked up a facial injury.
And Middleton-Patel revealed to Disney+ after the game that she had found out she was in the team only that morning – to make only her second first-team appearance for the club.
“I’ve been here a couple of times but only to warm up, so today was really special,” she said.
But she said that she did not suffer from butterflies.
“I’ve trained with Phallon and Kayla [Rendell] day in and day out so when you get called on, I’m ready, and I’m not nervous. It’s one of them I’ve trained for. To get this moment is just spectacular.”
She added: “You train for these moments and to pull it off in a game like this at such short notice, I’m really happy with it.”
Middleton-Patel was part of the Wales squad that featured in the Women’s Euros this summer.
Safia Middleton-Patel: player of the match
Disney+ pundit Ellen White was impressed with the way Middleton-Patel had contributed to an important win.
“When you see players go on and shine – 21 years old…their [squad] depth has been so important, especially in this competition,” she said, adding that she thought Manchester United had already booked their place in the next stage of the competition.
“They’ve got nine points on the board and I think they are already now through to the knockout stage. They’ve put themselves in an amazing position.”
And Marc Skinner said that Middleton-Patel was his “player of the match”.
“What you can’t measure is the psychological magnitude she has had to jump,” Skinner said to the media afterwards.
“From that performance [against Newcastle United in the Women’s League Cup] to this, how she has matured over the last year, is credit to her and the staff.
“She was just stood at the tunnel [at full-time] and taking it in. Really well done to her. She deserves to stand out.”
