The truly greatest goals are not measured by their number, but by their ability to stand the test of time. It has been no easy task selecting eleven goals for this list and I do not not expect any agreement with my final list. Football is a game of opinions after all, however to compile the list I needed criteria and for me what makes a truly great goal is not only how spectacular it is, but how difficult it is. All the goals on here are stupendously difficult to do, but some are made that little bit more special due to the opposition and the situation and perhaps what happened following the goal. I also tried to avoid tired cliché, which is why you will not find Carlos Alberto’s goal or Diego Maradona’s dribble against England topping the chart.

 

11. Steven Gerrard (Liverpool V Olympiakos)

 

So why does this goal make the list? Gerrard has scored better goals, but when you consider the situation, the atmosphere and what transpired after this, then I feel that Gerrard’s blockbuster against Olympiakos deserves to sneak in at number 11 on the list. 1-0 down at half time to the Greek side thanks to Rivaldo’s deflected free kick, Liverpool not only needed to win, but they also needed to win by two clear goals to progress to the knockout stages of the Champions League. A stirring second half fightback led by youngsters Florent Sinama-Pongolle and Neil Mellor’s goals, pulled the reds in front, but with time ticking away, their Champions League future looked somewhat bleak. Urged on by the kop Liverpool thrust forward again, Carragher flicked the ball into Mellor who cushioned the header into the path of his captain Gerrard to crash home an unstoppable shot. A shot which sent Liverpool into the knockout phase, completed a remarkable comeback and set the foundation for the most remarkable European Cup Final in modern times when Gerrard inspired Liverpool from 3-0 down to defeat Milan on penalties.

 

 

10. Trevor Sinclair (Q.P.R V Barnsley)

 

I’ll be honest, it feels very strange to include Trevor Sinclair on this list alongside some of the greatest footballers ever to pull on a pair of boots, but that is what scoring a goal like this can do for you. The then Q.P.R winger scored this incredible goal in an FA Cup tie against Barnsley. While the quality of the goal cannot be denied there is an almost surreal sense that it is Trevor Sinclair that has scored it. Surely I am not alone in feeling that a goal this good should have been scored by Maradona, or Pele or Cruyff? But no, it’s Trevor Sinclair. Sometimes football obeys its own laws and what shouldn’t happen, happens. It is what makes the game infuriating, but it is also what keeps coming back because, you never know, at the next game you go to, something like this could just happen.

 

 

9. Lionel Messi (Barcelona v Getafe)

 

This is the goal that caused a sensation when aired and led to a plethora of You Tube videos showing why Messi’s goal against Getafe was almost the same as Maradona’s was against England. They are similar in many respects and while it is entertaining to compare the two, it does somewhat take the gloss of Messi’s achievement to call it simply Maradona’s magic goal mark II. Messi’s strike differs in two key ways, firstly it was against far inferior opposition in a much lesser tournament and secondly it initiated rather fortunately for Messi when a tackle against him broke his way, rather than going the way of the Getafe defender. That said, what followed was truly incredible and proof if it were needed that Messi is going to be a huge talent for many years to come. A deserving entry on the list, but still some way short of the best goal ever.

 

 

8. Roberto Carlos (Real Madrid V Tenerife)

 

An American mathematician has spent a gleeful ten minutes or so on You Tube proving that this goal was actually impossible to score. Therefore by his mathematic rationale, this goal actually cannot exist. As such I’d urge all lovers of football to click on the link and enjoy it before it vanishes out of existence. While many may feel Roberto Carlos deserves inclusion on this list for his Le Tournoi free kick, I feel this goal is markedly better in many ways. Firstly there is the angle he has to hit the ball at to get it in the goal, secondly it is a moving ball running out of play, thirdly he is running at full pace to catch the ball and lastly he has to hit the ball in such a way to impart the pace and curve on it to beat the keeper. Roberto Carlos not only did all of those things, but also fully expected to do so. An incredible strike and one often overlooked on lists such as this.

 

 

7. Rivaldo (Barcelona v Valencia)

 

Let me set the scene. Barcelona are playing rivals Valencia and need to register a victory in order to qualify for the Champions League next season. The score is delicately poised at 2-2 as the game enters its final minutes. Barcelona’s star man, Rivaldo, had already scored two outstanding goals to give the Nou Camp side a chance of winning the game when he received a delicately chipped pass to him from defender Frank De Boer. What followed was a moment of football perfection as the Brazilian chested the ball into the air before delivering the coup de gras with an astonishing over head kick that flew past Canizares into the bottom corner of the net from the edge of the penalty area. They estimated that the goal would be worth at least $40 million to Barcelona. In football terms however, it is priceless.

 

 

6. Diego Maradona (Argentina V England)

 

You can call me biased if you wish, but Maradona’s wonder strike against England only manages sixth place on my list. In my humble opinion it isn’t Argentina’s best goal either. That said, it is still one of the few pieces of true individual football genius. To do what Maradona did was simply breathtaking. However the curly haired midfielder had already punched the first goal in so probably felt he had to do something else to justify his moniker as the best player in the world, however this was showing off just a little. It is genius, it is incredible, but it isn’t the best.

 

 

5. Steven Gerrard (Liverpool v West Ham)

 

Steven Gerrard has an unerring habit of turning up at the right time for Liverpool. You can bet that if the team need a goal, as proven in his earlier entry in this list for the striker against Olympiakos, then there is going to be one man in red who steps up to the plate to get it. Even by Gerrard’s high standards however this goal was incredible. The most entertaining FA Cup final of modern times, the showpiece game of the season for the English season shown across the world, had seen underdogs West Ham build a 3-2 lead against Liverpool. The scousers were out on their feet and indeed moments before this clip, Gerrard had been down having treatment for cramp. The game entered injury time with four minutes displayed as Liverpool launched another hopeful punt into the box which the fantastic Hammers defenders cleared. Gerrard was 35 yards out, tired and still in pain from the cramp as the ball bounced towards him. What followed was simply astonishing and was the sole reason why Liverpool went on to win the cup on penalties. The greatest goal scored in ANY game at Wembley bar none.

 

 

4. Esteban Cambiasso (Argentina V Serbia)

 

History can often lead to over eulogising certain goals. Carlos Alberto goal for Brazil against Italy in the 1970 world cup being a fine example of this. It was a wonderful goal, a brilliant team effort but it was against a tired, defeated and demotivated Italian side. It capped a fantastic world cup and summed up the beautiful attacking way Brazil played the game in that era. However this effort from Esteban Cambiasso from the Argentina – Serbia clash in the 2006 World Cup Finals in Germany is better than the Alberto goal in every sense. 25 passes of clinical precision moving the ball all over the field involving almost every outfield player before Cambiasso raced onto the flick to hammer the ball home. Utterly outstanding and as a team goal, just as beautiful and as difficult to score as any on this list.

 

 

3. Marco Van Basten (Ajax v Den Bosch)

 

It is rare to think of a skill being executed to perfection. Technically, the experts will be able to look at a player performing a skill, break it down into the most simplest of terms and be able to spoil our enjoyment of where the player could have made things even better. With this strike by Marco Van Basten for Ajax against Den Bosch, they cannot do that. This is the perfect execution of the overhead kick. What makes it all the more incredible is that not only is the skill executed with technical perfection, but that Van Basten manages to place it right into the top corner of the net whilst falling backwards trying to reach a ball coming over his shoulder, widely regarded by professionals as one of the most difficult skills to master. No club goal has bettered this and I doubt if one ever will. It is perfection. It is genius from one of the most underrated players, even given his outstanding reputation, of his generation.

2. Nelinho (Brazil v Italy)

 

I remember seeing this goal as a young child and thinking how fortunate the Brazilian winger was to see his rather poor attempt at a cross deflected past the keeper by the Italian defender. I thought nothing more of it until seeing it a few years later. There have been many left footers who can strike a ball with the outside of the foot well, for some reason there are far fewer right footers who can produce moments like this. What foot Nelinho did this with is irrelevant however. What is worth nothing is that this is against Italy, against Dino Zoff, arguably the best goalkeeper in the world at the time and with one of the best defences in the world at the time in front of him. What is also worth noting is that of all the goals on this list, this is one of only two that I can say I have never seen another that is even remotely close to being as good as this. It’s rarity making it even more special. The only reason this isn’t number one, is that it came in a third place match. Had this game been the World Cup Final, which it could easily have been, then the argument for which is the Greatest Goal of All time would have been settled many moons ago.

1. Marco Van Basten (Holland v USSR)

 

I told you he was special. Choosing between the last three goals has been almost impossible for me, but in the end the fact that Van Basten did this in the final of the 1988 European Championship probably just influenced me enough. I cannot even begin to state how difficult a goal like this is to score. It is difficult enough to kick a ball alone, under no pressure from that angle and get it to go into the goal. To do that against Rinat Dasayev, from a high dropping cross from Arnold Muhren, on the volley in the final of the European Championship is just the mark of genius. A word too often bandied around today when someone scores a decent goal. You know when you see true genius. Commentators, players and managers pause afterwards because they cannot believe what they are seeing. Instinct takes over. Watch Vanenberg’s reaction to the goal. He cannot believe what he has seen, neither can the commentator or manager Rinus Michels. The only person who believed he could do that was Marco Van Basten. The only player who perhaps could have done that, was Marco Van Basten. That’s why this goal is for me, regardless of how you wish to measure it, the greatest goal of all time... kind of...read on to find out why something equals it...

1.Pele’s Dummy (Brazil v Uruguay)

 

I know, it isn’t a goal, the Brazilian legend somehow contrived to drag his shot wide of the left hand post after a piece of breathtaking skill, audacity and total genius that has yet to be bettered. The greatest compliment that can be paid to this clip, is that Pele’s thinking, skill, execution of the dummy at pace is so innovative, surprising and utterly beautiful that it didn’t actually matter that he didn’t score the goal. This one moment sums up football for so many; utterly compelling, beautiful, emotional, dramatic, wondrous and yet still flawed. The greatest goal of all time it may not be, but it is the most beautiful moment and the equal of any of the outstanding goals on this list.

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