Sensational – but not the best goal ever scored
Cristiano Ronaldo brought the house down in Turin the other night with a quite sensational goal for Real Madrid against Juventus.
Whether it’s the best goal of all time, however, I very much doubt.
BT commentator Darren Fletcher and summariser Steve McManaman got carried away with the moment, obviously influenced by the standing ovation 40,000 Juve fans afforded the Portuguese.
In retrospect, these supporters were also over the top in their appreciation – probably to cover up the way their team was being outplayed!
Make no mistake, the goal sparked a huge debate over whether it’s the greatest-ever.
That comes down to personal opinion, and I’ve seen several goals over the years that matched, and probably bettered, Ronaldo’s.
So to keep the debates going, here are ones that quickly come to my mind. I’m sure you’ll have many of your own.
Ronaldo’s current manager Zinedine Zidane’s goal for Real against Bayern Leverkusen in the Champions League Final at Hampden in 2002 was certainly better.
Zizou’s bicycle-kick was more difficult to execute, and was also further from goal.
Archie Gemmill’s against Holland in the 1978 World Cup Finals in Argentina was officially FIFA’s best-ever at one stage.
Beating four opponents before calmly slotting it beyond the keeper was some achievement.
Davie Narey’s ‘toe poke’ against Brazil at the World Cup Finals in Spain four years later never received the credit it deserved, probably because of Jimmy Hill’s description.
Tommy Gemmell’s missile against Inter Milan to set up Celtic’s European Cup Final triumph in Lisbon, just when it looked like they might never score.
Scotland’s joint-top scorers at international level, Denis Law and Kenny Dalglish, obviously have many in their lockers. Yet the two I remember most didn’t lead to Scotland winning.
Law scored a magnificent header against England at Hampden in 1966 but couldn’t prevent a 4-3 defeat.
Dalglish also scored a tremendous goal against Belgium in Brussels in 1982, outfoxing three defenders before curling the ball into the far corner with his left foot, but Scotland lost 3-2.
James McFadden’s classic against France in Paris did result in a fantastic 1-0 Scotland victory.
And who will ever forget Davie Cooper’s goal against Celtic in the 1979 Drybrough Cup Final? He lobbed the ball four times over defenders without it touching the ground before beating Peter Latchford.
My all-time favourite, however, is Alan Gilzean’s winner against England at Hampden in 1964.
‘Big Gillie’ rose above Bobby Moore and Maurice Norman to beat Gordon Banks with an unbelievable twisting header from a Davie Wilson corner.
Oh happy days!