When goalkeepers turn into strikers | OneFootball

Eighth minute of stoppage time, Benfica has its last chance. A free kick from the right, and the Portuguese coach José Mourinho sent everyone forward, including the goalkeeper, in a desperate attempt to score the goal that would take the Lisbon team to the Champions League playoffs. The miracle happens.

The Ukrainian goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin jumps higher than everyone and, with a header, beats the Belgian goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, securing Benfica's 4-2 victory over Real Madrid at the Estádio da Luz in Lisbon.

This is not just any goal. With it, the ‘Eagles’ secured their place in the playoffs for a spot in the Champions League round of 16 — thanks to goal difference — the same stage that Real Madrid will have to play after this defeat in Portugal.

Trubin, the most unlikely of heroes, was not the first goalkeeper to score a header — much less from a penalty or a free kick — but perhaps his goal on Wednesday night against the giant from the Spanish capital can be considered one of the most important of the tournament, given the significance of this match.

“It was unthinkable that he would get into the box and head the ball like that. We deserved a win like this, as we had a tough month,” celebrated Benfica’s Argentine defender Nicolás Otamendi, speaking to ESPN.

From the legendary Brazilian Rogério Ceni, idol of São Paulo, who with 132 goals (in official matches and friendlies) is the highest-scoring goalkeeper in football history, to the Paraguayan José Luis Chilavert, who scored memorable goals for Vélez Sarsfield and the Paraguayan national team in the 1990s, several players in this position have already found the net.

Here are some memorable goals scored by goalkeepers:

Palop, Sevilla’s hero

The Spanish goalkeeper Andrés Palop made history for Sevilla by scoring a crucial goal in the campaign that led the club to its second Europa League title in 2007.

The Andalusian team was losing to Shakhtar Donetsk in the second leg of the round of 16, in Ukraine, on March 15 of that year, and was on the verge of elimination in its ‘favorite’ competition — Sevilla is the club with the most titles, seven in total — until, in the 94th minute, Palop headed the ball into the net after a corner taken by Dani Alves, tying the match.

Palop’s goal took the game to extra time, in which the Uruguayan Javier Chevantón scored the winning goal for Sevilla, who would then eliminate Tottenham (quarterfinals), Osasuna (semifinals), and Espanyol in the final.

“When the corner was taken, everyone was waiting for me, and then I saw the ball coming my way and knew it was my chance, that I could shoot for goal without any opposition,” recalled Palop. “I experienced incredible sensations that I had never felt before. Now I know what a teammate feels like when he scores a goal.”

Chilavert, Paraguayan scorer

José Luis Félix Chilavert became famous for scoring free kicks and penalties in the 1990s, playing for Vélez Sarsfield and the Paraguayan national team.

Among his most frequent victims were Germán “Mono” Burgos, from River Plate and the Argentine national team, Oscar Córdoba, from the Colombian national team, and Carlos Navarro Montoya, from Boca Juniors.

One of his most memorable nights was on June 16, 1996, at the José Amalfitani Stadium in Buenos Aires.

Vélez hosted Boca Juniors, who had Navarro Montoya, Claudio Caniggia, and the legendary Diego Armando Maradona.

After starting behind with a goal from Caniggia, Vélez ended up winning 5-1, with two goals from Chilavert: the second for his team, a magnificent free kick into the top left corner, and the third, from the penalty spot.

Maradona was sent off by referee Javier Castrilli, and Vélez played brilliantly and won their second consecutive national title.

Higuita, goal in Libertadores semifinal

Few understand madness better than René Higuita.

Among his memorable plays, the extravagant Colombian goalkeeper recalls a spectacular free-kick goal he scored in the semifinal of the 1995 Copa Libertadores, when he played for Atlético Nacional de Medellín.

With millimetric precision, ‘El Loco’ (The Madman) placed the ball in the top corner of the goal defended by another long-haired player, ‘El Mono’ Burgos, at the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires.

Atlético Nacional won the first leg 1-0 with that goal and lost by the same score in the return match in Colombia, but advanced to the final on penalties, where they ended up being defeated by Grêmio.

Tim Howard, from goal to goal

Although goals scored by a goalkeeper with a header are uncommon in football, scoring a goal from one end of the field to the other is even rarer, though it has happened on a few occasions.

One such case occurred on January 4, 2012, when the American national team goalkeeper, Tim Howard, scored a historic goal in the Premier League for Everton against Bolton Wanderers at Goodison Park in Liverpool.

Taking advantage of a strong wind, his kick from inside his own box flew over the opposing goalkeeper, Adam Bogdan, in the 62nd minute, and Howard became the fourth goalkeeper in Premier League history to score a goal. However, Bolton ended up winning the match 2-1.

*With content from AFP

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