FIFA Puskas Award (goal of the year) 2015

[The_Rev]

I did have a poll typed out and everything so you could vote.  Spent ages writing it, putting the links in and got a "LOL, something went wrong, sorry!" message when I hit submit and lost everything. I still want a thread on the issue so I'm making another one, forgive me if it seems a bit half hearted this time but, you know, I'm not a sucker for punishment. 

I presume most people know the Puskas award is named after the great Hungarian striker Ferenc Puskas who was one of the best players in the world in the 1950s and 60s. He won five league titles, three European cups with Real Madrid, scoring 242 goals in 262 games in the process and he didn't even sign for Madrid until he was 31. Definitely one of the names who always gets mentioned in the list of greatest players to have never won the world cup, I think it's widely regarded that the Hungary team he starred in, the Mighty Magyars, are the best national side who never won the world cup and as a result FIFA have decided to honour Puskas in this way.  It's supposed to be the best ten goals of calendar year 2015 but because the awards ceremony dates don't quite line up it's actually the best ten goals since the last award in November 2014.   The goals can be found here on FIFA's YouTube channel.  Embedding is disabled by request so you have to watch them on YouTube so I've just linked to the page rather than put individual videos up here that you'd just have to click through anyway. 

 

The shortlist of names (in alphabetical order) are: 

David Ball - 29.03.2015, Fleetwood Town - Preston North End, League 1 (England)

Gonzalo Castro – 12.04.2015, Real Sociedad - Deportivo de la Coruña, Primera Division (Spain)

Alessandro Florenzi – 16.09.2015, AS Roma – FC Barcelona, UEFA Champions League

Wendell Lira – 11.03.2015, Atletico-GO – Goianesia, Campeonato Goiano (Brazil)

Carli Lloyd – 05.07.2015, USA – Japan, FIFA Women’s World Cup Canada 2015™

Lionel Messi – 30.05.2015, Athletic Bilbao  - FC Barcelona, Copa del Rey (Spain)

Philippe Mexes – 25.07.2015, AC Milan – Inter Milan, Friendly Match

Marcel Ndjeng – 13.07.2015, SC Paderborn – Bolton Wanderers, Friendly Match

Esteban Ramirez – 02.11.2014, Herediano - Deportivo Saprissa, Primera Division (Costa Rica)

Carlos Tevez – 09.11.2014,  Juventus – Parma Calcio, Serie A (Italy)

There is a streamable video of it here too if you just want to click it and watch the lot in one go. 

It's always hard to call a winner in these things.  How do you even begin to rate them?  Do you pick the most aesthetically pleasing goal?  The most difficult one?  Does the importance of the fixture add any weight?  Do you deduct points if you think there was an element of luck involved?    There are no right answers, obviously, but I've got to go for Messi against Bilbao, he had absolutely no right to score there.  Loving David Ball's effort too, it's lovely. 

 

 

[Chindie]

Mexes, Ndjeng, Ramirez.

Sucker for a quality volley.

Carli Lloyd's effort is the least impressive goal from the centre circle I've ever seen.

[The_Rev]

She chipped a tiny Japanese lady who fell over, but it's from miles out so clearly it's amazing. 

[PongRiddims]

She chipped a tiny Japanese lady who fell over, but it's from miles out so clearly it's amazing. 

I did have a poll typed out and everything so you could vote.  Spent ages writing it, putting the links in and got a "LOL, something went wrong, sorry!" message when I hit submit and lost everything. I still want a thread on the issue so I'm making another one, forgive me if it seems a bit half hearted this time but, you know, I'm not a sucker for punishment. 

I presume most people know the Puskas award is named after the great Hungarian striker Ferenc Puskas who was one of the best players in the world in the 1950s and 60s. He won five league titles, three European cups with Real Madrid, scoring 242 goals in 262 games in the process and he didn't even sign for Madrid until he was 31. Definitely one of the names who always gets mentioned in the list of greatest players to have never won the world cup, I think it's widely regarded that the Hungary team he starred in, the Mighty Magyars, are the best national side who never won the world cup and as a result FIFA have decided to honour Puskas in this way.  It's supposed to be the best ten goals of calendar year 2015 but because the awards ceremony dates don't quite line up it's actually the best ten goals since the last award in November 2014.  

 Embedding is disabled by request so you have to watch them on YouTube so I've just linked to the page rather than put individual videos up here that you'd just have to click through anyway. 

 

The shortlist of names (in alphabetical order) are: 

David Ball - 29.03.2015, Fleetwood Town - Preston North End, League 1 (England)

Gonzalo Castro – 12.04.2015, Real Sociedad - Deportivo de la Coruña, Primera Division (Spain)

Alessandro Florenzi – 16.09.2015, AS Roma – FC Barcelona, UEFA Champions League

Wendell Lira – 11.03.2015, Atletico-GO – Goianesia, Campeonato Goiano (Brazil)

Carli Lloyd – 05.07.2015, USA – Japan, FIFA Women’s World Cup Canada 2015™

Lionel Messi – 30.05.2015, Athletic Bilbao  - FC Barcelona, Copa del Rey (Spain)

Philippe Mexes – 25.07.2015, AC Milan – Inter Milan, Friendly Match

Marcel Ndjeng – 13.07.2015, SC Paderborn – Bolton Wanderers, Friendly Match

Esteban Ramirez – 02.11.2014, Herediano - Deportivo Saprissa, Primera Division (Costa Rica)

Carlos Tevez – 09.11.2014,  Juventus – Parma Calcio, Serie A (Italy)

There is a streamable video of it here too if you just want to click it and watch the lot in one go. 

It's always hard to call a winner in these things.  How do you even begin to rate them?  Do you pick the most aesthetically pleasing goal?  The most difficult one?  Does the importance of the fixture add any weight?  Do you deduct points if you think there was an element of luck involved?    There are no right answers, obviously, but I've got to go for Messi against Bilbao, he had absolutely no right to score there.  Loving David Ball's effort too, it's lovely. 

 

 

She toe-poked it!

[Stevo985]

Mexes, Ndjeng, Ramirez.

Sucker for a quality volley.

Carli Lloyd's effort is the least impressive goal from the centre circle I've ever seen.

It shouldn't be on the list. It's not actually a very good goal. 

She's hit it well, but it's one of those that if the keeper doesn't make a meal of it, it looks like a waste of possession.

[a m ole]

I hate long distance, keeper off the line punts getting into top goal lists unless they're a good volley. Beckham's for example, boring. I've hit the post twice in Sunday league directly after the kick off, it's essentially an open goal if the keeper doesn't hold their position properly. And I'm not very good, so it's not like it's an amazing feat of accuracy.

Ndjengs is absolutely amazing though.

Edited November 7, 2015 by a m ole

[villa4europe]

Think I said at the time that yank woman's goal is every bit as bad as rooneys "world class" goal vs West Ham last season

Mexes for me all day long, then either Castro or ball

The messi goal by any other player and I'd be waxing lyrical about it but there's just something about it which irks me, not sure if it's the keeper being beat at his near post or that it's probably not even in messi's top five goals, I just feel like I've seen him do that sort of goal better before

[sharkyvilla]

Messi for me, you can't be scoring goals like that in a final, though that Ramirez goal is a peach

[HanoiVillan]

Ramirez would be my choice. Messi's is great, but yeah, maybe keeper shouldn't be being beaten at the near post. Anyway, does Messi really need another award?

[KHV]

Carli Lloyds goal should not be on the list because women's football is shit and nobody cares. It's not real football it's **** awful and the only reason it's gets coverage it's because it's the pc thing to do. It should be banned 

[HanoiVillan]

I always wondered if they'd try and bring Alf Garnett back . . .

[Straggler]

Marvellous. I didn't know this competition existed. What a wonderful collection of goals. Thanks for bringing it to my attention. Where is ibra though? I'm sure I heard him say that he is the best and all his goals are better that everyone else's and that he is a footballing God from whoms glory we should avert our eyes. Or is this a runner's up list of some kind?

 

[StefanAVFC]

Njeng for me.

Ridiculous.

[BOF]

It's always hard to call a winner in these things.  How do you even begin to rate them?  Do you pick the most aesthetically pleasing goal?  The most difficult one?  Does the importance of the fixture add any weight?  Do you deduct points if you think there was an element of luck involved?    There are no right answers, obviously, but I've got to go for Messi against Bilbao, he had absolutely no right to score there.  Loving David Ball's effort too, it's lovely. 

The Puskas award was specifically about the aesthetics of the goal.  It was not about the level it was scored at or supposed to give a weighting for the opposition involved.  I say 'was' because it seems to have changed given the most recent recipient and that one of the main justifications was that it was scored at such a high level and in such an important game.   Understandable in making it a 'better' goal, but that's changing the goalposts (pun intended).

[sexbelowsound]

Mexes' goal was my favourite, Excellent technique. Closely followed by Njeng's,

I think if Messi's goal is scored by anyone else other than him or possibly Ronaldo then it's a likely winner. A goal like that though for Messi in particular is reasonably common.

Thought the technique in David Ball's goal was incredible as was the athleticism for Lira's.

That Carli Lloyd goal however is a joke. Fair enough, credit where credit is due for the vision but if that goalkeeper wasn't 4ft tall and falling over then it doesn't go in. By the time it lands it almost bounces on the line.

Charlie Adam's was better than that. 

[CarewsEyebrowDesigner]

Mexes's is the most 'aesthetically pleasing' but Messi's was great & in a game of importance. I don't think you can take the element of pressure out of such a decision because it is far easier to try a mad volley in a meaningless friendly than it is to decide to take on half a team in a cup final.

Edited November 15, 2015 by CarewsEyebrowDesigner

[sexbelowsound]

Too late for this one to be a contender?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/34895687

[Zatman]

Ndjeng goal is good but for me it shouldnt really count as a pre-season friendly actually same as Mexes

For me it be Ramirez, Lloyd and Lira

Also people criticizing Lloyd goal its really not that easy to shoot a moving ball into a net from 50 yards you do need good technique especially in a pressure situation like a World Cup final

[BOF]

On 15/11/2015, 5:00:17, CarewsEyebrowDesigner said:

Mexes's is the most 'aesthetically pleasing' but Messi's was great & in a game of importance. I don't think you can take the element of pressure out of such a decision because it is far easier to try a mad volley in a meaningless friendly than it is to decide to take on half a team in a cup final.

You can if you're trying to give the Puskas award given that it specifically ignores the level scored at.  It really is all about aesthetics.  We could maybe create a new award that takes the scenario into account too.

[choffer]

Mexez, Ramirex, Messi, in that order for me.

Such a great selection of goals though - really enjoyed watching that.