[Anca]

The WC2002 official site has a poll where you can see and vote 3 from 10 handsomest goals of the World Cups ever, every week. After three weeks they will choose the 6 top goals and make another poll. The link is:

http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com/en/pf/h/gotc/launch.html#

from where you choose the button 'Vote now'. The first selection is Hagi's goal against Columbia, in World Cup '94!

I think the system is harder to beat than the UEFA.com one, but worth giving a try .

 

[Anca]

The first part of the voting has closed and Hagi's goal has been selected among the best 10 goals ever . Now we should vote to bring it on the top! Thanks! Voting until the 30th of May.

 

[Lupi]

here you have the results from www.onlinesport.ro

1. Diego Maradona ( VS England, 1986) 18.062 votes

2. Michael Owen (VS Argentina, 1998) 10.631
3. Pele (VS Sweden, 1958) 9.880
4. Diego Maradona (VS Belgium, 1986) 9.642
5. GHEORGHE HAGI (VS Colombia, 1994) 9.297
6. Saeed Owairam (VS Belgium, 1994) 6.756
7. Roberto Baggio (VS Czechoslovakia, 1990) 6.694
8. Carlos Alberto (VS Italy, 1970) 5.388
9. Lothar Matthaeus ( VS Yugoslavia, 1990) 4.191
10. Vincenzo Scifo (VS Uruguay, 1990) 2.935






5th place, not bad! huh?!

 

[MariusDeDracul]

Owen's goal was great, but not as spectacular as Hagi's (in my opinion anyways)
Maradona's goal against England (in 86) deserves to be #1. He took the ball from the midfield, dribbled past 4 defenders, made them all look like pylons and scored. The best piece of individual effort ever, undoubtably (although he scored another with his hand, in the same match!)

Hagi's goal has to be the most spectacular long-range shot ever, not only because it was from about 35 metres away, but also because it was at a 45-degree angle. His vision and execution were perfect...
I remember that right after that game, some people thought that he wanted to actually center the ball - Retards! - there were no Romanian players in the box!!! He saw the goalie was way out of the net and he new he could score. He actually had a similar chance minutes earlier but the goalie barely deflected his shot in the corner...

 

[MironN]

I remember that right after that game, some people thought that he wanted to actually center the ball - Retards! - there were no Romanian players in the box!!! He saw the goalie was way out of the net and he new he could score. He actually had a similar chance minutes earlier but the goalie barely deflected his shot in the corner...

You're perfectly right, not only that there were no players in the box, but that is surely not a cross. You don't cross the ball that way. From the trajectory of the ball, it is clear that it had one purpose: to fall into the goal.

And look at the brilliance. Hagi got the ball from Dorinel Munteanu, at instead of passing it back, he took a quick look at the goal, and suddenly (only one player out of millions can do this) in his brain, he took the decision to try and surprise the goalie, which he did. And look at the replay from the side of the goal, and you'll see that the ball practically fell in the far left corner. Even if the goalie was in a good position, it still would have been pretty hard (almost impossible) to stop it.