The level of football in China, millions of dollars spent on foreigners not withstanding, is not quite up to par with some of the top soccer leagues in the world. As evidence, may we present to you Oscar, a Brazilian midfielder who had a decent spell at Chelsea but absolutely annihilated the near non-existent defense of Guangzhou Evergrande on Saturday while playing for Shanghai SIPG in the Chinese FA Cup semifinals.
Michelin, a club in Belgium’s First Division, secured a point on Saturday after scoring in the 92nd minute to salvage a 2-2 draw with Royal Excel Mouscron. The goal was scored by defender Elias Cobbaut, but it was all down to the extended work of goalkeeper Colin Coosemans.
The 25-year-old shot-stopper came up on a Michelin corner as his side went in search of an equalizer and found himself on the ball near the edge of the box. A clever step-over and turn almost skinned a defender alive, but Coosemans was unable to use his pace to get around his marker.
With only three matches remaining in the regular season, the Seattle Sounders are looking to gain a bit of momentum heading into the 2017 MLS Cup Playoffs — the same formula that saw them lift the 2016 MLS Cup. Seattle has dropped only one of their past 13 games, but they’ve also drawn five over that period.
Goalkeeper assists are an extremely rare commodity. In fact, in the history of the Premier League, goalkeepers have registered less than 60 assists in total. While keepers can play wonderful roles in the buildup to goals (see Barcelona’s Marc-Andre ter Stegen), it’s uncommon to see a goal scored directly after the goalie relinquishes possession.
The USWNT steamrolled New Zealand 5-0 at Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati last night in front of an announced crowd of 30,596. Goals from Lindsey Horan, Mallory Pugh, Lynn Williams and a brace for Alex Morgan saw the States claim their second victory over the Kiwis in the space of five days following their 3-1 win in Commerce City, Colorado last Friday.
Ricardo Quaresma, the pioneer of strictly passing with the outside of your boot and facial tattoos in football, has scored one of the finest goals of his illustrious career only eight days before he celebrates his 34th birthday.
Like most Portuguese footballers, Quaresma had an excellent 2016-17 season beginning with his triumph at Euro 2016. Quaresma also helped club side Besiktas win back-to-back Super Lig titles in Turkey, and that fine form has obviously carried over into the new campaign.