Following his debut with the Albania national team, Stavros Pilo has recorded another important milestone in his career. The AEK Athens defender scored his first Champions League goal, beating Gianluigi Donnarumma away at Manchester City, although the Greek side lost heavily 5-1.
2026 is proving to be an important year for Stavros Pilo. After his debut in the red-and-black jersey, the Albanian footballer has also found the net for the first time in Europe’s most prestigious club competition.
Pilo was a key player in AEK Athens’ difficult away game in England, where Manchester City triumphed 5-1. The Albanian defender left his mark at the Etihad Stadium, scoring the only goal for the Greek side. It was the 52nd minute when the 26-year-old took advantage of the opportunity to beat Donnarumma with a diagonal shot, temporarily narrowing the gap to 2-1.
The goal holds special value for the 26-year-old, who can now also add his first Champions League goal to his career record. However, the goal was not enough to change the fate of the match, as the English side continued to dominate and secured a heavy victory.
After the match, the Albanian footballer did not hide his disappointment with the result, despite his personal achievement.
“I cannot be happy about my first goal in Europe. Now we must focus on the next league match, because that is where we want to achieve something.
The truth is we were competitive. We tried to fight, to build our play and play our own football. In matches like this, the details matter and you have to be 110 percent focused. We knew it would be very difficult,” the Albanian defender said.