Boys from Brazil are game for a laugh!
TEN MOMENTS OF WORLD CUP MAGIC
OVER the years since the World Cup was first held in Uruguay in 1930 there has been no shortage of magical moments to enthral generations of fans.
From the emergence of an unknown teenager called Pele at Sweden 1958 to Robin van Persie’s extraordinary flying header against Spain at Brazil 2014.
The wait will soon be over to find out what bewildering brilliance and iconic images lie in wait for us at Russia 2018.
As the curtain prepares to rise on the Greatest Show on Earth this afternoon, Sportsmail recalls ten moments when the World Cup was lit up by true genius.
1 PELE STEALS THE SHOW SWEDEN 1958
A 17-year-old Brazilian striker called Edson Arantes do Nascimento — better known as Pele — announced himself on the world stage.
Pele scored six goals in the tournament, including a hat-trick in the semi-final against France.
He scored two more in the final against host nation Sweden.
The first was a sublime piece of skill and inventiveness, lifting the ball over the last defender and volleying home. The second was a prodigious leap and header.
It was the first of Brazil’s five World Cup wins and so impressive were they in their 5-2 win that the Swedish crowd afforded them a standing ovation.
But Pele had stolen the show in Solna as a new star of world football was born.
2 CARLOS ALBERTO’S GOAL FOR BRAZIL v ITALY MEXICO 1970
The final goal in Brazil’s 4-1 demolition of Italy in the 1970 World Cup final is widely recognised as the finest in the tournament’s history, perhaps even in all football history.
The ball passed through all but two of the yellow-shirted outfield players on its way to the goal’s thrilling denouement.
The move heated up as midfielder Clodoaldo dribbled past four Italian challenges in his own half, before passing to Rivelino, who lobbed it forward to Jairzinho on the left wing.
Jairzinho found Pele, lurking outside the penalty box, and he laid the ball into empty space on his right. Captain Carlos Alberto arrived from nowhere and thumped home an unstoppable finish.
Mexico ’70 was the first World Cup to be televised in colour — and Alberto’s glorious goal has come to symbolise what many regard as the finest international team of all time.
3 GORDON BANKS’ MIRACULOUS SAVE FROM PELE MEXICO 1970
A World Cup-winning goalkeeper in 1966, Banks’ most memorable individual moment in the tournament came four years later.
In a group encounter in 1970, a right-wing cross from Jairzinho was met by the head of the great Pele. The ball hit the ground then screamed towards the top corner.
A goal looked certain until Banks’ lightning reactions and firm hand somehow tipped the ball up and over the bar.
The save, from one of the best players of all time, is considered to be the greatest in history in any competition.
4 ARCHIE GEMMILL’S GOAL FOR SCOTLAND AGAINST HOLLAND ARGENTINA 1978
It may seem impossible to imagine now, given the Tartan Army’s two-decade-long absence from the World Cup. But Scotland arrived with hopes of winning the tournament in 1978, only to be battered by a Peru side inspired by Teofilo Cubillas then struggle to a 1-1 draw with Iran.
But Ally MacLeod’s men exited the tournament in style, beating eventual finalists Holland 3-2 and going out on goal average.
Gemmill’s wonderful winning goal saw him slalom through the Dutch defence before executing a deft chip over outrushing keeper Jan Jongbloed. The moment was later immortalised in the smash hit 1996 movie Trainspotting.
5 MARCO TARDELLI’S GOAL CELEBRATION SPAIN 1982
When Italy’s No14 struck a glorious second goal in his nation’s 3-1 World Cup final win over West Germany, emotion got the better of Tardelli.
Fists clenched, arms wide, eyes bulging and tears rolling down his cheeks, Tardelli set off on an incredible run in celebration of the moment. Forgive us, Roger Milla, Bebeto
et al, but for unscripted, raw emotion Tardelli’s celebration
remains the finest in the history of the World Cup.
6 DIEGO MARADONA’S SECOND GOAL v ENGLAND MEXICO 1986
Just four minutes after opening the scoring with his notorious ‘Hand of God’, Maradona scored the greatest individual goal in World Cup history.
Collecting the ball near the halfway line, he dragged it away from Peter Beardsley, knocked it beyond Peter Reid and burst clear, jinking inside Terry Butcher, outside Terry Fenwick and round Peter Shilton before delaying his shot and poking the ball home.
Just 12 touches spanning 11 seconds, it was a goal with a higher meaning than merely settling a World Cup quarter-final 2-1.
‘When the ball went into the net I knew, in that instant, we were present at a moment of great significance,’ recalled team-mate Jorge Valdano. ‘Maradona had just put on Pele’s crown.’
7 ROBERTO BAGGIO’S BRILLIANCE ITALY 1990
Baggio’s move from Fiorentina to arch-rivals Juventus for a world-record £8million sparked riots on the streets of Florence on the eve of the World Cup finals.
The man known as the Divine Ponytail — due to his flamboyant hairstyle — wasted no time in showing the planet why he was such a big deal in his homeland.
The attacker scored the goal of the tournament in a 2-0 win over Czechoslovakia in Italy’s opening group game.
Picking the ball up in his own half, he swapped passes with Giuseppe Giannini then set off on a 40-yard run before clipping home a right-foot shot.
Baggio inspired Italy to a third-place finish at Italia ’90. Four years later he helped the Azzurri to the final at USA ’94 — but it ended in disaster as Italy’s talisman skied the decisive penalty in the shoot-out against winners Brazil.
8 DENNIS BERGKAMP’S WONDER GOAL v ARGENTINA FRANCE 1998
The Dutch attacker had ice in his veins in the closing stages of a huge match to send Holland into the semi-finals with a goal of rare brilliance.
With the score 1-1 in stoppage time in Marseille, Bergkamp’s magnificent control to kill a long pass from Frank de Boer was followed up by a touch that nutmegged Roberto Ayala.
The coup de grace was a beautiful outside-of-the-foot finish high into the far corner for an instant World Cup classic goal, mixing skill and last-minute drama.
9 ANDRES INIESTA MAKES HISTORY SOUTH AFRICA 2010
It seems a long time ago that Spain were being denounced as perennial flops on the big stage. They reached their first-ever World Cup final in 2010 but found themselves locked in a bad-tempered stalemate with a Holland team who had replaced Total Football with Total Thuggery.
But four minutes from the end of extra-time, Cesc Fabregas, on the edge of the box, played in Iniesta. His first touch saw the ball spin into the air and when it came back down, the midfielder lashed home a beautiful finish for a history-making goal.
10 ROBIN VAN PERSIE’S PERFECT HEADER v SPAIN BRAZIL 2014
Van Persie scored one of the goals of the tournament in a repeat of the 2010 World Cup final.
The Manchester United striker beat the offside trap to run on to a long diagonal ball from Daley Blind. Launching himself into the air, Van Persie made a perfect connection for a stunning goal past Iker Casillas that spawned hundreds of memes on the internet.
Van Persie’s moment of magic made it 1-1. The Dutch went on to win 5-1 in an unforgettable match at the Arena Fonte Nova.
Imperious over the previous six years, winning one World Cup and two European Championships, Spain never recovered from the thrashing and crashed out at the group stage.