Thalapathy's Blog :p :D

#10  Lionel Messi(Argentina)  Vs Nigeria:

                  A goal scored from a direct free-kick is hard to leave out from a list of best goals. Few minutes before half-time, Argentina got a free-kick in a dangerous position. Messi had a shot on goal. His aim was true and the ball was heading towards the top corner. But the goalkeeper Enyeama managed to pull off a spectacular save. A minute later (one minute into extra-time before half-time.), Argentina got another free-kick in a similar position. Again it was Messi over the ball. This time he struck it with a little less power than before but with more dip & swerve. The shot left the Enyeama stranded and Messi got his second goal of the match.                

#9  David Villa(Spain) Vs Australia:

                   Two players of a highly spirited Atletico Madrid squad combined with devastating effect for this goal. Villa in the penalty box unmarked,  Juanfran was released on the right wing by Iniesta. Juanfran then cut the ball back for Villa. Seems straight-forward and simple, right? If only football was that easy. Villa's close proximity to the goalkeeper meant that he has only time for one touch before he pounces on him. Villa’s positioning left him with few choices, one of which was – To let the ball run between his legs finish it with his heel. And he did so elegantly and effortlessly. It is a tricky technique that. You could hit the ball ten times like that & succeed once (Atleast that’s the case with me.) So, Kudos to Villa for pulling it off with élan.

#8  Haris Seferovic(Switzerland) Vs Ecuador:

                  The kind of end-to-end action that took place in the dying moments of this match were so breathtaking that it could never have been scripted by the most talented screenplay writers of suspense movies.  Ecuador got close to scoring a winner when Valon Behrami of Switzerland won the ball in his own box. The Swiss broke forward with pace. They were fouled but the referee played advantage. Ricardo Rodriguez after being released by Valon got into a crossing position on the left flank and got the ball into the box. Substitute Seferovic made no mistake in front of goal and Switzerland won this thriller two goals to one.

#7  Mathieu Valbuena(France) Vs Switzerland:

                  The French were tearing the Swiss apart but it was one of the rare moments in the match when Switzerland forayed forward. They were dispossessed. Benzema passed to Varane who carried the ball forward and released Giroud on the left with a perfectly weighted through ball. Giroud crossed the ball on the ground across the face of goal & the magnificent Valbuena ghosted in at the far post to tap it home. This was a ‘counter-attack’ worthy of the name. This goal finds itself on the list because of the accuracy and pace with which the ball was moved by Les Bleus before the move was finished off with consummate ease. This was a true team goal.

#6  Claudio Marchisio(Italy) Vs England:  

                                Italy & England both had their fair share of possession and attacks but the two goalkeepers where up to the task.  Then Italy won a corner. They took it short and laid it off to Pirlo who did a wonderful dummy. The English were frozen. They couldn’t realize what happened fast enough. The ball rolled off to Marchisio and the bewilderment & confusion of English defenders gave him ample time to pick his spot and put the ball well out of Joe Hart’s reach on the bottom corner of the goal. Italy took the lead and the cagey encounter came to life with this goal.

#5  James Rodriguez(Colombia) Vs Japan:

  James Rodriguez got on the end of a fine through ball. He moved forward towards the goal with confidence. He threw in a few step-over dummies to confound the defender Maya Yoshida jockeying him and then broke free. The goalkeeper Kawashima charged forward. Rodriguez steadied himself and chipped the ball expertly over the goalkeeper to seal the victory for the Colombians in the last minute of normal time. This goal is an example for the perfect blend of team play and individual brilliance.

#4 Xherdan Shaqiri(Switzerland) Vs Honduras:

                  The Swiss came into this match after a 5-2 drubbing in the hands of France. But they got down to business straight away. Shaqiri, the wonder-boy from Bayern Munich cut in from the right flank and let one rip. The goalkeeper was well beaten from approximately 25 yards. Switzerland got into score just six minutes after the match started.  The morale of the Swiss was lifted by this great goal and Shaqiri went on to score a hat-trick thus securing Switzerland’s place in the Round of 16.

#3  Tim Cahill(Australia) Vs Netherlands:

                  The Socceroos were 1-0 down after a wonderful solo goal by Robben. After re-start of play, The ball was floated in towards the Netherlands’s D-box from the half-line. Tim Cahill lost his marker, positioned himself and hit a venomous volley that rustled the top of the net. It is best volleyed goal in this WC till now and it was hit by Cahill’s “weaker” left foot.  One minute after Robben’s goal, the Australians equalized and were right back in game looking more threatening by the minute. This goal also reinforced the old saying – “You’re most likely to concede right after scoring a goal.”

#2 Lionel Messi(Argentina) Vs Bosnia-Herzegovina:

                  Argentina were leading 1-0 by half-time courtesy of an own goal. But by no means were they looking convincing. They lacked proper penetration with a 5-3-2 formation which was changed to 4-3-3 after the break. They then played a bit better but were looking susceptible at the back. Messi took a free-kick that flew over the crossbar and the Argentinean crowd started turning against him.  Then Lionel Messi made one of his runs were typical of him in the glory days of Barcelona. He danced his way around the Bosnians and left two defenders on the ground who collided with each other. His left boot then did the talking. The ball hit the post and went in. The goalkeeper couldn’t do squat about it. As the commentator rightly said “This is the goal the world wanted to see”. Messi scored his second in the World Cup(the first in this edition) after  8 years.  The same crowd started praising him. Messi had finally started proving his worth for his country.

#1 Robin Van Persie(Netherlands) Vs Spain: