You know a goal is something special when even the opposition fans stand and applaud in awe of what they have just witnessed.
Such was the case with Patrik Schick’s audacious lob, as the Czech Republic beat Scotland in their opening Group D game at Euro 2020. Here we take a look at some other long-range goals that made jaws drop on the terraces.
It is every keeper’s dream to launch the ball the full length of the pitch and to embarrass their opposition counterpart
Asmir Begovic – 2nd Longest Distance Goal Ever Scored
You know something has gone awry when a keeper gets his name on the score sheet. Most fans and sports bettors would expect such an occurrence to only come about from a last-ditch corner or during a penalty shootout.
Not so for Asmir Begovic who showed that Eastern European players have a penchant for upsetting the best laid betting plans, and for notching long range efforts, when he scored from all of 100.5 yards out on a windy day in Stoke. Not only did the wind blow in Begovic’s favour, but a bizarre bounce also helped him deceive the Southampton keeper, who was left flummoxed. The same, of course, cannot be said for David Marshall, who backtracked as fast he could, only to find that Patrik Schick’s lob was inch perfect. With Scotland fans desperate to rebound after being put in Czech mate by Schick, many of you will be looking to take advantage of these offers for your Euro bets. Let’s just hope that there are no more long-range surprises in store, to leave the Tartan Army shaking their heads at their betting apps.
Zlatan Ibrahimović – Not Always the Distance That Matters
Not all long-distance strikes are created equal, because while an unfortunate slip from an opposition goalkeeper or a freak gust of wind might mean a player scores an unexpected goal, that cannot be compared to a goal wrought from pure footballing genius. An example of the latter is the majestic long range bicycle kick effort produced by Zlatan Ibrahimović against England, in a friendly, back in 2012.
With the win seemingly already in the bag for the Swedes (they led 3-2 at the time) a poor headed clearance from Joe Hart appeared to have at least stemmed a Swedish attack, but that was until the AC Milan striker rose from the turf, to unleash an overhead kick that looped into the unguarded net. It capped a performance in which the giant striker netted four times, as well as completing his hattrick in just 15 minutes. He’s no’ bad like!
Pádraig Whelan – Textbook Halfway Net Buster
While Begovic and Ibrahimović were both operating in football’s upper echelons, it can be easy to overlook spectacular goals from lower down the footballing pyramid.
That’s because sometimes goals like the one scored by Pádraig Whelan in 2017 come along, to blow the minds of football fans right around the globe. Whelan was playing for St Patrick's Athletic Football Club in the lowly Irish Premier Division when he unleashed an unstoppable strike from halfway. The hit was so sweet that the ball didn’t even bounce before hitting the back of the net. The couple of hundred people in attendance went wild.
Tom King – Longest Goal Ever Scored
In January of 2021 Newport County’s goalkeeper, Tom King, was confirmed by the Guinness Book of World Records as being the player to have scored the longest goal in footballing history.
The goal measured in at a whopping 105 yards and will be tough for anyone to beat, seeing as it came from a goal kick. Similar to Begovic’s effort, there was plenty of wind at play, as well as some highly questionable goalkeeping from the man between the sticks for Cheltenham Town. Newport actually went on to lose the game, but at least King can rest easy knowing that he created a small nugget of history.
Dejan Stankovic – Champions League Wonder Strike
Manuel Neuer was one of the first goalkeepers to act as a de facto sweeper for his backline, but before he became a Germany and Bayern Munich legend, he was caught out by Inter Milan’s Dejan Stankovic in the Champions League while playing for Schalke.
Neuer raced from his line to clear a through ball with his head and got good distance on the clearance. Unfortunately for him, Stankovic was lurking on the halfway line and unleashed a pearler of a volley that sent the San Siro ballistic.