Have you ever had an experience that made you fall in love with something? If you are a football fan, then we are sure you have had one. Be it the old classic head butt from Zidane in the 2006 world cup finals or the last second goal by Sergio Roberto to seal the most epic comeback in UCL history. Football is filled with such moments that make you fall in love with this sport. Now, what can be a better way to make the viewers excited than epic goals. In the last century, we have seen some breathtakingly beautiful goals, goals from near the half line, goals from corners, goals where the entire opposition is dismantled with ease and goals with thunderous speeds. Let us take you through some of the top goals in world football.
List Of Top 10 Best Goals Of All Time
10. Dennis Bergkamp’s god of control Golazo
Bergkamp has scored many wonderful goals like the one he scored in Arsenal colours but the goal that stands out the most is his incredible goal for the Dutch team. A truly amazing ball came from the famous Frank de Boer. Dropping into the opposition penalty area, Bergkamp expertly controlled the waist high ball, managed to take three touches in the opposition penalty area with 3 defenders right on him and then slotted the ball past the Argentine keeper and into the net. That goal ensured a semi-final berth for the Dutch team in the 1998 world cup at the expense of a visibly disappointed Argentinian national squad.
9. Ronaldinho making England pay from half line
No team in the world will ever regret giving a free kick near the halfway line more than England. The English team has been a victim of many a wonderful yet cruel goals and this was one such moment. In the quarter finals of the 2002 FIFA world cup, England gave away a free kick outside the 35 yards and Ronaldinho stepped up to take the kick. He shot the ball high into the air which curled its way into the top left corner of the goal leaving the then England shot stopper David Seaman wrong footed and dumbfounded by what he had just seen. With that goal, Brazil moved on in the world cup and later Ronaldinho claimed that he was aiming for the other side of the net than where it ended up. He also went on to apologise to the England fans for knocking out their team in such a manner.
8. Steven Gerrard keeping Liverpool alive
The Liverpool faithful can be some of the most loving and the most cruel fan base in the world and in the 2006 FA cup final it looked like the Liverpool squad would go on to be burnt at the stake after a 3-2 loss at the hands of Cardiff city. Then came a screamer from Steven Gerrard. Liverpool’s main man picked up the ball with added time in progress and decided to fire the shot from just outside the 35 yards. Within fraction of seconds, the ball was in the net. He not only scored one of the best goals in the world, he also ended up saving Liverpool from a loss in the FA cup final which the side eventually went on to win after penalties and Gerrard cemented his name as one of the greatest Liverpool players of all time.
7. Clarence Seedorf casually scoring from half way line
Seedorf etched his name in the record books along with the hearts of the Real Madrid faithful when he casually scored a goal in the top corner of the net from just inside the half. The keeper had no reason to believe that the maestro is going to score from the area and had entered a very advanced position expecting him to cross the ball to one of his teammates in the penalty area. What happened then was truly magnificent, Seedorf clearly understood what was going inside the keeper’s head. In an interview he said that the opposition keeper must surely be thinking “He is not going to shoot from there” and that is exactly what he did. A right foot shot into the top corner. The goal has truly been the best goal scored in a Madrid derby.
6. Wayne Rooney making sure that Manchester stays red
When we think of Wayne Rooney we think of masterful performances and slotted home finishes. Very rarely does one get to see a flashy goal from such a player who basks in technique and making life hell for the opposition defence. But one day Rooney decided to change all these perceptions. On the night of Manchester Derby, both United and City were evenly matched sitting with one goal apiece and no side able to break the deadlock. And then as he himself says, Rooney scored the most important goal of his United career. Nani crossed the ball into the City penalty area which took a slight deflection from the Man City defence. Rooney capitalized on the same and stunned everyone including the fans and his own teammates with an incredible bicycle kick past goalkeeper Joe Hart and into the net. United went on to win the Premier League in 2011.
5. Wonderkid Lionel Messi shatters the Getafe Defence
A relatively unknown Lionel Messi stepped up big time for Barcelona in a game against Getafe in 2007. The little magician got the name after his display against Getafe defence. Many plaudits believe that this goal is the most beautiful dribbling display in the world till date. Messi got hold of the ball near the half and started his amazing run from the right side of the field. Beating a total of 7 Getafe players by his out of the world agility and masterful dribbling skills, Messi then went on to completely take the keeper out of the equation and slotted the ball into the empty net. No player since then has been able to replicate such level of display not even he himself.
4. Ronaldo thunderbolts one past the Porto keeper
If we talk about powerful strikes than there is no active player better than Cristiano Ronaldo. The generational superstar is known for his prolific goalscoring abilities and his bullet of a strike from the right foot. The Porto team underestimated this and paid the price one fine day. During the UCL tie with Porto in 2009, Ronaldo received the ball just outside of the 35 yards and put his right foot through the ball at such thunderous speed that no one could understand what happened. The ball travelled at epic speeds and into the Porto net just below the top left corner. The goal reminded many of a similar strike by Steven Gerrard just a few years back. This strike announced the arrival of Cristiano to the elite club in style.
3. Ibrahimovic stuns the English team with a gravity defying bicycle kick
Name one player better than scoring crazy goals than Zlatan Ibrahimovic! The number of absurdly difficult to understand goals scored by him far exceed the tally by any other player in the world. One such goal came when Ibrahimovic decided to do something so crazy that he himself could not believe it. In a match against England in 2012, Joe Hart came out of the penalty area to head the ball away from the path of the charging Zlatan. Little did he know the price he would have to pay for this. More than 30 yards out, Ibrahimovic having his back towards the goal attempted the most outrageous bicycle kick recorded to date and to everyone’s surprise, the ball ended up into the English net. Like we said earlier, England is possibly the biggest victim of outrageous goals.
2. Roberto Carlos shows how to curl the ball in style
One of the greatest free kick takers of all time decided to show everyone just how to hit a free kick. When Brazil faced off against France in 1997, they ended up giving a free kick to Brazil having this gentleman in their squad at around 37 yards from goal. Carlos thought why think of this as a free kick, let us just hit this penalty and bang. The ball flew from his boots and into the right side of the net. That day Roberto Carlos defied all the laws of physics with the amount of curve he put on the ball. It was so amazing that no player could ever repeat a similar fate. The free kick is possibly the best ever scored.
1. Diego Maradona scores Goal of the Century against England
If we talk about goals that made history and made jaws drop, then the goal by Diego Maradona against none other than our favourite team England in the 1986 world cup deserves all the praise. We are not talking about the hand of god. What we are talking about was the goal where Maradona received the ball and decides to make a run for it. 1, 2, 3 defenders kept coming towards him and kept trying. Tackles came and went but to no avail. Maradona just kept running and then he put the ball into the net and the entire stadium went crazy at what they just saw. The goal was a testament to the utter domination that the legendary player had over the entire footballing world. It is thus without doubt that this goal by Diego Maradona is our Goal of the Century.
Honourable Mentions
Gareth Bale Epic run past Barcelona Defence
Cristiano Ronaldo bicycle kick vs Juventus
Lionel Messi dismantles Athletic Bilbao
Zlatan Ibrahimovic Taekwondo Golazo
Zinedine Zidane outside the box volley vs Leverkusen
With this we come to an end of our Best goals of the Century. Do let us know which goals according to you deserve a spot in this list.
Here is the List of Top 10 Best Football Goals of All Time:
10. Dennis Bergkamp’s god of control Golazo
9. Ronaldinho making England pay from half line
8. Steven Gerrard keeping Liverpool alive
7. Clarence Seedorf casually scoring from half way line
6. Wayne Rooney making sure that Manchester stays red
5. Wonderkid Lionel Messi shatters the Getafe Defence
4. Ronaldo thunderbolts one past the Porto keeper
3. Ibrahimovic stuns the English team with a gravity defying bicycle kick
2. Roberto Carlos shows how to curl the ball in style
1. Diego Maradona scores Goal of the Century against England
- By Aditya Bharadwaj