Can a penalty be a great goal? It can be, when it's the greatest penalty ever taken.
For all it's audacity and courage, it's worth considering the aesthetic effect the Belgrade Continental D's which smothered the shot, have played in making this penalty so memorable.
Compare and contrast with the following Panenka penalties:
ZIDANE
Zidane's penalty, 5 minutes into the 2006 World Cup final is certainly audacious, but has the ball not striking net reduced it's impact on the collective memory?
PIRLO
Much of the commentary resulting from Pirlo's peerless kick focused on Joe Hart sprawled on his backside rather than the kick itself. Might this have something to do with the ball hitting the net like a ball against a wall in training?
Contrast with the nets at Birmingham City's St Andrew's in the early 1980s. How's this for absolutely perfect ball retention?! http://youtu.be/_TlgrOqkR8k
ReplyDeleteThank for your comment Richard, and for the link to Birmingham. Magic nets at Birmingham in the 1980's. Perfect nets and perfect ball retention. For all the violence on and off the field, how much more pleasingly on the eye the game was then.
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