Barcelona was lacking that killer instinct for much of its LaLiga opener. Fortunately for the reigning champs, they’ve got the world’s best player on their side, and a Lionel Messi goal vs Alaves on a sneaky free kick sparked Barcelona to a 3-0 win at the Camp Nou on Saturday.
Like a certain fellow Washington D.C. resident might put it, Wayne Rooney is YUGE right now. This past weekend against Orlando, the former Manchester United man effectively broke the greater soccer world with one play. Rooney sprinted full speed — nearly half the length of the field — to track down a player, made a clean tackle and then hit a dime — nearly half the length of the field — to Luciano Acosta on the back post, who headed the ball home to give DC United the win in the 96th minute.
Remember when Alexandre Pato was the shit in FIFA? A stunning Alexandre Pato free kick against Shanghai SIPG reminded us just how good he used to be.
Back at the turn of the decade, AC Milan was a powerhouse in FIFA. Alessandro Nesta and Thiago Silva at center back, the speedy Ignazio Abate at right back, a midfield of Andrea Pirlo, Clarence Seedorf, Gennaro Gattuso and Kevin-Prince Boateng and a forward line of Zlatan Ibrahimović and Alexandre Pato. It was nuts.
Last World Cup gifted fans 169 goals in 64 matches. Over three million users voted on FIFA.com and the fans named Benjamin Pavard’s volley the World Cup Best Goal. Relive it here.
The Benjamin Pavard goal vs. Argentina was voted the World Cup best goal.
The splendid strike took place during the France-Argentina match in the Round of 16.
Legendary right-sided midfielder David Beckham had some hugely memorable moments for England, including the free kick that sent the nation to the 2002 World Cup and the free kick that sent England to the quarterfinals in ’06. But the “Bury Beckham,” Kieran Trippier, has perhaps already eclipsed Golden Balls on the world’s biggest stage.
The application of VAR has contributed to officials awarding a record number of penalty kicks during the 2018 World Cup. The 28 penalty kicks awarded thus far shattered the previous record of 18. In addition to identifying fouls in the box, VAR could be used to improve penalty kick rules by making them more nuanced.
If you thought Team Cavani vs. Team Neymar was one helluva little squabble, just wait until you see Juventus players standing over a free kick this season!
The 2018 World Cup has seen a ton of goals scored via a set piece. Is it enjoyable to watch? Heck yeah it is. If you are a casual fan of the World Cup, you might be asking the question — what on earth is a set piece?
Well, here’s a mini crash course guide to set pieces in soccer.
A set piece happens when play needs to be restarted from either the ball going out of play for a corner kick or a throw in, and a set piece can also happen if there is a foul.
This was not the start Russia was looking for against the grizzly bear trap that is Uruguay. 10 minutes into Monday’s match, Luis Suarez buried a free kick from just outside the box by going low around the wall and just inside Igor Akinfeev’s far post.
The goal was greatly aided by Russian T-34 tank Sergei Ignashevich. You can tell that the 38-year-old was only trying to aid his keeper by clearing Edinson Cavani out of his sight lines, but it really just made an almighty clusterfuck in front of goal while Suarez curled in his precise finish.