Watch these insane goals and choose the best goal of 2015 if you can
Lionel Messi's strike against Bilbao is the frontrunner, but he has incredible competition.
Lio Messi’s incredible mastery of the ball is in full show in the video above as he starts from the half-way line near the touchline, dances past defenders, makes his way into the box and calmly finishes it off from a position at which no one else would have even considered trying to score. This was for Barcelona against Athletic Bilbao in the 2015 Copa Del Rey final. All in a day’s work for the Atomic Flea.
The FIFA Puskas Award, named after the former Hungarian great to select the most aesthetically significant goal of the year, has just announced its shortlist for 2015. It's now down to three out of eleven entries. On January 11, 2016, one of these three will be chosen the Best Goal of 2015.
Before you pick your favourite, take a few moments to watch the goal that won the award in 2014: Colombian Jamie Rodriguez’s stunning 25-yard shot from a volley against Uruguay at the FIFA World Cup.
Now on to 2015. First up, here are two extraordinary entries from the shortlist of eleven which did not make it to the final three. Carlos Tevez can consider himself unlucky for missing out on the final three after this magnificent effort against Parma in November 2014 where he started from the half-way life, skipped past three defenders and buried it in the bottom corner (just be sure to lower the volume to avoid the commentator's frenzied screams of excitement!).
Then there’s this incredible 50-yarder from the United States’ woman’s team’s Carli Lloyd against Japan. What made this goal even sweeter was that it came in the final of the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
Both unlucky to miss out, but then there is some serious quality in the final three. And even Lionel Messi has tough competition. In the Brazilian league, Wendell Lira for Goianesia behaved like jelly to pull off an unbelievable bicycle-kick from a chipped pass.
But in terms of sheer distance, it’s tough to beat Alessandro Florenzi’s massive 60-yard screamer for AS Roma against Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League semi-final.
May the most stunning goal win!
