They aren’t paid to score goals. They aren’t paid to play defence-splitting passes and they aren’t paid to cross the ball. Defensive or holding midfielders get paid to break up play and shield their defences. The best holding midfielders in the game have great positional sense, and can fill in at the back when a member of the back four goes forward. But they’ll occasionally get ambitious, and have a crack at goal. More often than not, the result is ugly. But sometimes, just sometimes, it goes wonderfully right. Here’s a reminder of some of the very best goals by players normally not allowed to cross the halfway line.
Javier Mascherano (Liverpool vs. Reading)
There’s a lot to like about Javier Mascherano’s first goal for Liverpool. He gets the opportunity to shoot after a long and patient build up, it’s a smart piece of play to give himself the chance to shoot, and it’s a spectacular strike, but perhaps the best part of the goal is Mascherano’s reaction. He sprints off in the direction of the Liverpool fans, and even the most casual of lip readers will see, he uses strangely inappropriate language to celebrate such a great goal!
Nigel De Jong (Manchester City vs. Liverpool)
Goals in semi-finals are always important. They can give a team a lead, or extend it, or bring the scorer’s team back into the match. Nigel De Jong’s strike against Liverpool levelled the tie in the second leg of the Carling Cup semi-final, after Liverpool had won 1-0 in Manchester. It seems unlikely that De Jong intended to hit the ball the way he did, as he slipped just before taking the shot, but the ball swerved into the top corner, giving Pepe Reina no chance.
John Jensen (Arsenal vs. QPR)
While Arsenal fans recently celebrated the return of a legendary goalscorer in the shape of Thierry Henry, John Jensen was legendary for the opposite. Despite scoring the opening goal of the final when Denmark won Euro 92, John Jensen was far from prolific. But his inability to score made him a cult hero, with cries of ‘Shooooooot!’ whenever he touched the ball. After almost 100 games, he finally scored against QPR, and it was a beauty, as he curled the ball into the net from 20 yards, and Highbury erupted.