Aivi Luik made history in September by becoming the oldest ever player to feature in the league phase of the UEFA Women's Champions League, and proved again last night that age is just a number.
The 41-year-old defender plays for Swedish side BK Hacken, who have just won back-to-back Damallsvenskan league titles.
This adds to a long list of career honours, which includes winning the UEFA Women's Europa Cup last season with BK Hacken, and representing Australia for two FIFA Women's World Cups in 2019 and 2023, debuting at the international tournament at the age of 34.
Amazingly, this is the 16th club she has played for professionally across 10 different countries in her 26-year career, where she is well on her way to approaching 400 career appearances.
Luik's longevity is a testament to her approach to recovery, nutrition and preparation. Her BK Hacken coach, Elena Sadiku, praised the Australian international to Swedish publication Aftonbladet earlier this year that she is "so professional".
Aivi Luik helps BK Hacken frustrate Chelsea in goalless draw
BK Hacken came into the game as underdogs, but they certainly didn't play like it. They frustrated Chelsea and made it incredibly hard for them to create chances.
Aivi Luik proved her veteran status, ending the game with an impressive 17 defensive contributions as well as winning all 8 of her individual duels.
On the rare occasion that Chelsea did breakthrough their defence, BK Hacken's goalkeeper, Jennifer Falk, was there to make sure the Swedish side kept their clean sheet.
Chelsea did have two goals from Wieke Kaptein and Melvine Malard ruled out for offside, but might consider themselves lucking as they could have lost the game late on, with Swedish striker Maja Bodin coming close to snatching three points for the hosts.
What does BK Hacken's draw with Chelsea mean for Champions League qualification?
This result gives the home side a chance to make it into the knockout play-off stage, although with both the English and French league title holders in Manchester City and OL Lyonnes respectively still to play, they would need to pull off something incredible.
Having won the Women's Super League eight times, Chelsea have consistently proven themselves to be one of the best teams in the world, yet they've been unable to translate that dominance over to the Champions League.
After tonight's games, they could realistically fall out of the top four automatic qualification places, and with only two matches still to be played, it looks to be another challenging season for them in this competition.
