One thing we can't get enough of here at The18 is a ridiculous bicycle kick. And boy do we have one to share with you. Zach Knudson, a sophomore from Oakland, New Jersey provided us with this gem of a goal as N.C. State tied #4 Notre Dame this past weekend.
An Alexis Sanchez goal in the first five minutes of the match vs Manchester United set the tone for the Gunners as they marched their way to a 3-0 victory in the Emirates this weekend. Alexis Sanchez continued his tear netting this ridiculous back heel to put the Gunners up 1-0. Only a minute late Mesut Ozil added to the tally and the route was on. It was a vintage Arsenal performance as the Gunners played with pace and creativity, while Manchester United looked stuck in the mud. The result was what Arsenal needed after coming off a Champions League loss to Olympiakos.
Is there anything he can't do?! No. Is this his best goal ever? WE DON'T KNOW. This Lionel Messi goal in The Copa Del Rey final just might win the award for the greatest La Pulga goal ever. But what about his goal vs Getafe? Or when he ended Jerome Boateng? And dozens of others that we simply just can't mention because then this post would get way too long. Here's the deal. Messi is the greatest player of the generation. I don't think most players would even try to do what he did in this goal, let alone actually pull it off.
Here at The18, we are fully aware that most people who don’t like soccer can count the tendency of players to “make the most” out of contact among the reasons that they don’t like the game.
You know, someone gets a kick to the back to the leg — a foul definitely, but nothing crazy — and all of the sudden they are rolling 10 feet along the ground. It’s annoying, even for a seasoned fan. So, the following video probably won’t convert many people to the game…
If you have ever seen someone in the middle of a crisis, Jose Mourinho’s post-game interview after his Chelsea side lost 3-1 to Southampton will at be once inspirational, unbelievable, and familiar.
Chelsea were the 14/15 Premier League Champions. Now they are sitting just four places above dead last. His team has no identity; it is in full crisis mode, and so is Jose Mourinho. Losing to Southampton made that crisis unignorable, and forced Jose Mourinho to finally address it after the game.
Sergio Aguero is a frustrating striker for Manchester City fans. He’s ridiculously good when he’s on form, but he just isn’t on form all that often. Injuries have often been to blame, but that doesn’t make him any less inconsistent.
When we were strapping young youth soccer players, our coaches would tell us not to argue with the ref. They were adamant about this: no arguing with the ref, under any cicumstances. No matter how bad the call was, no matter how wronged we thought we had been, we were not allowed to argue with the ref.
Now, we know why. Our coaches probably thought they were teaching us about sportsmanship or something, but they were really teaching us not to get shot, which, we think, is at least as valuable if, not more.
Cristiano Ronaldo just scored the 500th goal of his career. He has scored it during Real Madrid’s match against Valencia.
500 - Cristiano Ronaldo has scored his 500th goal in his professional career (club and country). Proclaimer.
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) September 30, 2015
Scoring an equalizing penalty in the 93rd minute is a big deal.
Scoring an equalizing penalty in thr 93rd minute then chugging a fan's beer is just plain awesome.
That's what happened in Denmark, when Esbjerg fB's Nicki Belle Nielsen, as mentioned before, scored a penalty in the 93rd minute and celebrated by grabbing a fan's beer and chuggung it.
The fan didn't seem to mind, but Neilsen probably owes him or her a replacement. It's just common courtesy, really.
I know that Premier League match atmospheres have a lot going for them. The fans are extremely passionate; there seems to be a song for every single player and every single situation. But, they lack a certain kind of raw power found in the Spanish, Portuguese, and Italian Leagues.
The best example I can give is the way that they celebrate an amazing goal. The crowd doesn’t cheer so much as it collectively looses it’s s***; it’s the difference between yelling “YES!” and “OH MY F***ING GOD!”
Observe the phenomena in the Portuguese first division: