There were some milestones reached by Nigerians in Europe this weekend, though not all of them ended with a smile.
England
Wilfred Ndidi was shown a 61st-minute red card -- for two bookable offences -- on his 21st birthday as Leicester City were hammered 3-0 at home by Crystal Palace. Probably not the card he would have wanted on his big day.
Victor Moses was on for 82 minutes as Chelsea defeated Southampton 1-0 at Stamford Bridge. The wing-back made his 200th Premier League appearance, a landmark milestone after eight seasons.
Alex Iwobi was in action for 72 minutes as Arsenal beat Newcastle United 1-0 at the Emirates Stadium. The attacking midfielder was subbed after picking up a knock and the Gunners will hope he is available for the busy festive schedule.
In the Championship, Sone Aluko saw 77 minutes of game-time for Reading, who lost 2-0 away at Ipswich Town, while Ola Aina featured at left-back for struggling Hull City, who were edged 1-0 at high-flying Cardiff City.
Italy
Orji Okonkwo played 70 minutes of Bologna's 3-0 home defeat to Juventus.
Spain
Olarenwaju Kayode played the final 15 minutes on his return from injury for Girona in a 1-0 home win against Getafe.
France
Chidozie Awaziem was a 76th-minute substitute -- his second successive exclusion from Nantes starting line-up -- in a 1-0 win against Angers.
Netherlands
Bartholomew Ogbeche failed to score for a sixth consecutive league game for Willem II, who lost 3-2 at home to PEC Zwolle. Kingsley Ehizibue was on for 83 minutes for the winning team.
Tyronne Ebuehi played the entire match for ADO Den Haag, who were hammered 3-0 away at PSV Eindhoven.
Germany
Leon Balogun was subbed at halftime with Mainz 05 trailing; a tactical substitution by his coach in an eventual 2-2 draw away to Werder Bremen.
Victor Osimhen was an 81st-minute substitute for Vfl Wolfsburg, who lost 1-0 away to bottom club Cologne.
Super Eagles hopeful Noah Sarenren-Bazee featured for the last seven minutes of Hannover 96's eight-goal thriller against Bayern Leverkusen, which ended 4-4.
Belgium
Taiwo Awoniyi lasted the distance for Royal Excel Mouscron, who were 1-0 winners against Oostende. Joseph Akpala was a 76th-minute substitute for the losing side.
Four Nigerians were in action across both teams when Standard Liege were held to a 0-0 draw by Gent. Uche Agbo continued to be ever-present in the Liege midfield, while Moses Simon, Anderson Esiti and Samuel Kalu made the Gent line-up.
Former Flying Eagles captain and current Kortrijk midfielder Abdul Ajagun was in action for 71 minutes in his side's 2-0 home win against KV Mechelen.
Both Dennis Bonaventure and Henry Onyekuru were introduced as 74th- and 58th-minute substitutes for Club Brugge and Anderlecht respectively, a game which ended 5-0 in favour of Club Brugge.
Portugal
Oghenekaro Etebo was substituted in regulation time after receiving an 83rd minute booking, as Feirense were 1-0 winners at home to Vitoria de Setubal.
Scotland
2013 AFCON winner Efe Ambrose had a day to forget when Hibernian were defeated 4-1 away at Aberdeen.
Austria
Ibrahim Alhassan played the final 26 minutes of Austria Wien's 1-0 win against Sturm Graz.
Switzerland
Stephen Odey earned a third successive start for FC Zurich in a 45-minute outing which ended in a 5-1 hammering at the hands of Lausanne. Turkey Kenneth Omeruo made the Kasimpasa line-up and was on from start to finish, while international teammate Emem Eduok was a 68th-minute substitute as the Apaches battled to a 0-0 draw away to Genclerbirligi.
Elderson Echiejile, for a second successive weekend, made the Sivasspor bench in a 1-1 draw against Alanyaspor, a sign of full recovery from an injury sustained on international duty against Zambia in October.
William Troost-Ekong played the full match for Bursaspor on a day they lost 1-0 away to Trabzonspor, who had Ogenyi Onazi benched for the match duration, his first exclusion from the line-up in seven games.
Okechukwu Azubuike saw 80 minutes of game-time for Yeni Malatyaspor, managed a 2-1 upset against Galatasaray.
Raheem Lawal and Aminu Umar were both in action in the 5-1 defeat Osmanlispor suffered in the hands of Besiktas.
Cyprus
Abdullahi Shehu, the man at the centre of Nigeria's latest FIFA sanction, lasted the distance for leaders Anorthosis in a 2-0 away win at Aris Limassol.