Patrik Kristal

Patrik Kristal (born 12 November 2007) is an Estonian footballer who plays for Meistriliiga club Paide Linnameeskond. In July 2022 he became the youngest-ever player to appear in Estonia's top league.

Club career
As a youth Kristal began his career with Harju JK before moving to Tallinna Kalev in 2017. In the 2014 Summer Cup held in Pärnu he scored for Harju against Nõmme Kalju FC with the goal being compared to James Rodriguez's 2014 FIFA World Cup goal against Uruguay by local media. For the 2021 season he also played for the Estonian under-15 national team in the under-17 league. He scored 17 goals during the season while serving as captain.

In January 2022, Kristal moved to FCI Levadia Tallinn. On 15 July of that year he made his senior debut as an 81st-minute substitute for Zakaria Beglarišvili in a 3–0 victory over Tartu JK Tammeka. In the process, he became the youngest-ever player to appear in a Meistriliiga match at 14 years 11 months and 2 days old. The record had previously been held by Andrei Tjunin since 1994.

International career
In October 2022, Kristal scored in a friendly against Northern Ireland U16 played in Finland. He captained the team in the match. The next day he scored again in a 2–6 friendly defeat to the hosts. Later that month, he was named to Estonia's squad for 2023 UEFA European Under-17 Championship qualification.

In April 2023 he captained the national under-16 team again, this time for an UEFA under-16 development tournament held in Malta. In June 2023 Kristal scored and assisted on three goals in a 4–2 victory over Lithuania in the Under-17 Baltic Cup, again serving as captain. In Estonia's next match of the tournament, Kristal scored two goals in a 3–3 draw with Latvia.

Personal
Kristal is the son of former Estonia international Marko Kristal.