I hate snow. I was really looking forward to the Man United vs. Chelsea game last Sunday, and the extended highlights of Blackburn vs. West Ham and Sunderland vs. Bolton games on MOTD didn’t make up for the lack of fixtures. When the highlight of the weekend is a great save, you know it’s been snowing (but I must add - it was an incredible save by Craig Gordon).
Alas, no football means not much to discuss. But the lack of excitement has inspired me to choose my top five favourite goals ever: the goals that have made me get out of my chair and dance around the room, or forced a very loud noise out of me.
So here we go, from 5 to 1, starting off with a Brazilian.
5. RIVALDO - Barcelona vs. Valencia, 2001
You might notice a pattern emerging with these goals: most of them happened right at the death. I love late goals - the drama beats anything you can watch in a cinema, and this goal wasn’t just late in the match, but also late in the season; the last game of the season to be precise. To add to the drama of it, a winner for Barcelona would ensure qualification for the Champions League. And if that wasn’t enough, the former World and European player of the year, Rivaldo, was on a hat-trick after scoring two stunning goals. 90 seconds left of normal time, Valencia were set to hold on to the 2-2 draw and finish fourth, clinching the final Champions League place. But then, Holland’s Frank De Boer chipped the ball towards the Brazilian on the edge of the area, who, facing away from goal, chested it, and then hit the most glorious left footed bicycle kick into the bottom corner. Surely the greatest hat-trick every scored, but also one of the most important goals ever scored - failure to qualify for the Champions League would have been a big financial problem for the Catalan giants.
4. STEVEN GERRARD - Liverpool vs. Olympiakos, 2004
In the 2004/2005 season, it must’ve been great to be a Liverpool fan. Still to this day, I can’t believe they won the Champions League - with a team full of unbelievably mediocre players like Djimi Traore, Vladimir Smicer, and Igor Biscan. Not only that, but there were so many points along the way that they could have got beaten and knocked out. This team had amazing spirit though, and the success of 2005 will always be remembered by that incredible night in Istanbul. Incredible performances, amazing drama - the greatest final ever. But without a certain Steven Gerrard goal, Liverpool wouldn’t even have reached the knock-outs. I’m sure he’ll be remembered as Liverpool’s greatest ever player - it’s a tragedy he hasn’t won more trophies, but his ability to inspire his side through adversity is something that separates him from other great players. He most famously did that in the final, but he also did it in the group stages, against Olympiakos. It started badly: the Greeks went a goal in front thanks to, Rivaldo of course, meaning the Merseysiders needed three second half goals. Liverpool legend Florent Sinama Pongolle equalised, Neil Mellor scored a second, and one more goal was needed. In the final minute, Mellor cushioned a header out to Gerrard, who hit a memorable half volley into the corner from 25 yards. It was so good, commentator Andy Gray quite right observed that it was a “beauty”. And it wasn’t a fluke, Gerrard did it again in the FA Cup final against West Ham a year later.
3. RONALDO - Barcelona vs. Compostela, 1996
I love long range goals, but I also think it’s easier to score a wonder goal from 30 yards than running past half a team with immense pace, skill and strength, before calmly slotting it home. I remember when I played for my under 13’s team, I played up front with a lad called Daniel. He was a really awful footballer - he hardly ever scored, and when he did, he used to bundle them in, or the keeper would spill one of his rubbish shots into the net. Then, one day, he picked the ball up from 30 yards out, and smashed an unstoppable shot into the top corner. Even he looked surprised. My point is, if you hit a ball sweetly, you might get lucky and it’ll go where you want it to go. But to do what the original Ronaldo did against Compostela in 1996 takes something very special and involves almost zero luck. Ronaldo was an amazing footballer - if you’re talking about the greatest players of the last fifteen years, I’d put him at the top, above Zidane, Ronaldinho, and even Messi. He had everything, and what I really liked about him, was that he was capable of scoring all different kinds of goals. At Barcelona, he scored 34 goals in 37 appearances, and a lot of them were wonderful. The one against Compostela was the best, because it had everything - strength, pace, skill, and finish. He picked up the ball inside his own half, got fouled about four times, but stayed on his feet. He then ran past two players like they weren’t there, before running towards goal and, the best bit, somehow managing to avoid being tackled by two players as he was sandwiched in the penalty area. The rest was a formality - placing the ball into the corner. Barcelona’s manager at the time was Sir Bobby Robson, and when the goal was scored, he put his hands on his head in disbelief. A wonderful goal scored by a wonderful player; what a shame injuries prevented him from becoming the greatest player ever.
2. DAVID BECKHAM, England vs. Greece, 2001
This goes in at number two because it was an amazing moment for English football. It’s not much fun being an England fan; how many great performances have we witnessed in the last 15 years? I would say three: Holland in Euro 96, Germany in 2001, and Argentina in 2002. The performance against Greece was really poor, but David Beckham was at his brilliant best. A draw was needed for Sven’s men to qualify for the World Cup in Japan/South Korea, but twice Greece had gone in front thanks to strikes from Angelos Charisteas and Demis Nikolaidis. It was quite embarrassing really; some of the defending was suicidal. Greece probably should have scored more than two, but thankfully they didn’t, and in the 93rd minute, Teddy Sheringham won England an extremely soft free kick. Beckham had had a few chances already from free kicks, and Sheringham looked interested in taking it, but it was the captain who placed the ball. Just as well. Beckham’s scored some great free kicks in his time, but this was his best. The swerve was deceptive; the keeper moved to his left before realising it was curling to his right - and then he didn’t move. It was unstoppable, and even better because it was practically the last kick of the game, and sent England through to the World Cup. I can’t remember enjoying a goal as much as that one.
1. DENNIS BERGKAMP, Holland vs. Argentina, 1998
The 2010 World Cup final was horrible. Dutch legends were genuinely upset at the way their team approached the game against Spain. It was a small miracle for Holland that Nigel De Jong and Mark Van Bommel didn’t get sent off that night, but thankfully, whilst the Dutch were physically attacking their opposition, Spain continued to play football, and were rightfully crowned ‘Campeon del Mundo’. Now that Spain have finally won it, Holland are without doubt the best team to have never lifted that famous trophy. Not this year of course, but certainly in previous World Cups they would have been worthy winners. Everyone points to the 1974 World Cup for the best Dutch team ever - Cruyff et al and ‘Total Football’. Unfortunately I’m too young to have witnessed that, but the team of ‘98 were pretty good: Kluivert, Stam, Cocu, Overmars, and of course, Arsenal’s Dennis Bergkamp. But with all these great players, the goal that Bergkamp scored against Argentina was so simple - I think that’s why I love it so much. It was the last minute of the quarter final; 1-1, Claudio Lopez’s goal had cancelled out Patrick Kluivert’s opener. Holland were capable of some terrific football, but sometimes you can hoof the ball forward and something will happen, especially if you’re hoofing it towards Dennis Bergkamp. Once again it was Frank De Boer on the ball (funnily enough he got the assist for two goals on this list!), inside his own half, launching the ball forward to Bergkamp. And then three perfect touches of the ball. The first one to pull the ball out of the sky, the second to play it inside the defender, and the third to place it past the Argentine keeper Carlos Roa. There’s a wonderful moment just after he scores it, where he puts his hands over his eyes in disbelief that he’d just won the match. It was an emotional moment, a historic moment for Holland, through to the semi final of the World Cup. They played Brazil in the semis, and lost on penalties - a cruel exit for a team who probably would have offered more in the final than Brazil did. Although Holland didn’t win the tournament, a moment of magic from Dennis Bergkamp will always be remembered.
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