This was not just a unique goal but the uniquest goal; a goal more unique than all other goals that are also uniqueIn September 1994, Leeds United beat Manchester United – the first time they had done so since February 1981 – with David Wetherall and Brian Deane their scorers in a 2-1 win. Which is a strange place to begin a piece about a Roberto Carlos goal, but please bear with me: the seamless segue will soon reveal itself.A couple of days later, I returned from school to find a letter addressed to me – a rarity, given I was 15 – so ripped open the envelope in characteristically clumsy manner to discover what can only be described as...
Brazil is unsure whether to host the Copa América and attending Euro 2020 will be arduous but it is the way for nowIt was one of the more remarkable episodes in a PGA Tour season. Jon Rahm, having stepped from the 18th green on completion of his third round at Muirfield Village, put head in hands after being spoken to by tournament officials. His caddie batted aside a camera crew as they pursued what was evidently a breaking story. The simple inference was that Rahm had been told that someone close to him was seriously ill; or worse.As it transpired, Rahm had tested positive for Covid‑19. It had been a complex process, instigated by him being identified as a contact...
The England legend, with one flick of his right hand, mystified Pelé a half-century ago and glamourised his craft from then onPerfection means different things to different people. To some, its pursuit invests life with rich meaning, nobility even, while others merely see a misery-inducing, distinctly Sisyphean, obsession.Most regard it as subjective but, just occasionally, the rarest of moments offer an objective definition. Fifty years ago on Sunday Gordon Banks’s split second of sheer brilliance melded flawlessness, completeness and excellence in one single gravity-defying save from Pelé. Related: Gordon Banks on his famous Pelé save: 'I didn’t even realise I’d made it' Related: From the archive: England 0-1 Brazil, World Cup match report (1970). By Albert Barham Continue reading...
For years I thought I hated a goalkeeper for denying Bruno Bellone and it seemed a black-and-white case. Until I met himFootball can give you completely the wrong idea about people. One incident in one match can skew the perception. For years I thought I hated Carlos, the Brazil goalkeeper who pulled back Bruno Bellone after the France forward had gone round him in the 1986 World Cup quarter-final and somehow went unpunished.How, four years after Harald Schumacher’s horrendous assault on Patrick Battiston, could that glorious France – Platini! Tigana! Giresse! – be cheated once again by a goalkeeper? Carlos’s offence had nothing like the raw violence of Schumacher’s, but it was cynical. And so, for compounding the injustice of...
The thought that VAR may end dispute over decisions has proved laughably misguided, if anything football is more controversial than everThere was a time before VAR. There may be a time after VAR. But this is the age of VAR and nothing can ever happen but that VAR is central to the discussion. The thought that VAR may end controversy has proved laughably misguided; if anything it has made the controversies worse because incidents that would have been seen as a referee making an understandable call in a difficult situation are perceived as being part of a wider failure of process, which is a small step from all-out conspiracy.Once upon a time, not so very long ago, Brazil’s 2-0 win...