During a 2000 UEFA Cup match between Arsenal and Deportivo de la Coruna, former Arsenal striker Nwankwo Kanu scored one of my favorite ever goals.
Dennis Bergkamp tried to control a long ball but the defender got in the way and sent the ball strait into the air. The defender tried to head the ball back to the central defense but dropped it in between the two center backs. Well placed, an onrushing Kanu tapped the ball forward with his head towards the goal.
Clean thru, he appeared ready to play the ball into the right hand corner and as he maneuvered himself the keeper took the bait.
Without ever touching the ball, Kanu fooled goalkeeper Jacques Songo’o so brilliantly with his body that the goalkeeper fell over in a heap as the ball, untouched by Kanu, rolled by him. With the goalkeeper doing his best impression of an overturned turtle, all Kanu had left to do was tap the ball in which he did with typical economy.
While it was not from 40 meters out and 7 defenders were not left for dead in its making, this goal still remains to me as one of the finest goals ever scored because of how little Kanu did to create it:
What a creatively maniuplated goal
ReplyDeletelmao what a class finish
ReplyDeleteMy favourite goal of all time
ReplyDeletewhenever asked for my favourite goal this is it. not mentioned enough in the hall of fames
ReplyDeleteThere are some goals that are pure class, a moment of genius and skill. There are some goals that are pure comedy - usually the result of a mishap of some sort.
ReplyDeleteThis is the only goal I know of that encapsulates both class and comedy so perfectly. Neither Highbury nor the commentators knew whether to laugh or applaud.
Fantastic :-)
Well said... wish I had written that!
ReplyDeleteI think it's one of those moments as a goalkeeper where you are left stumpedfor a whole month, trying to figure out what the hell just happened.
ReplyDeleteYou look at the video and think, why didn't he just attack the ball?
Must have been a super high pressure situation, even Wenger had a good laugh.