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Kevin-Prince Boateng (Las Palmas) vs Villarreal, La Liga – October 23, 2016
Boateng scored a goal of immense beauty for Las Palmas in their league fixture against Villarreal. And it was not just the finishing touch but the whole build up to it is a thing of beauty.
The assist for the goal was an exquisite back heel volley and the unbelievable leap from Boateng – he almost leapt to the full height of the opposition defender marking him – to apply the finishing touch is a sight to behold. However, FIFA doesn’t seem to care much for team goals for the Puskas Award and that might explain why this effort didn’t make the list.
Dele Alli (Tottenham Hotspur) vs Crystal Palace, Premier League – January 23, 2016
Alli enjoyed a spectacular breakthrough season at White Hart Lane as he went on to score ten Premier League goals through the course of the campaign but none of his strikes were as brilliant as his effort against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.
The 19-year-old received a pass from Christian Eriksen, he controlled it once and then flicked the ball over his head to slot an exquisite volley past the Palace goalkeeper. It was tremendous skill to flick the ball and hit the ball on the turn.
Aritz Aduriz (Athletic Bilbao) vs Marseille, UEFA Europa League – February 18, 2016
Aduriz has been enjoying a remarkable resurgence in form for the last few seasons at Athletic Bilbao and has been scoring goals left, right and centre. One of his best strikes from last season came in the Europa League fixture against French outfit Lyon.
In an extremely simple and efficient move, the Bilbao goalkeeper bypassed midfield and sent in a long ball towards the opposition goal. Aduriz, lurking just behind the defensive line latched on a poor headed clearance and launched a spectacular effort over Steve Mandanda. There is nothing that the poor Lyon keeper could have done to keep that out.
Xherdan Shaqiri (Switzerland) vs Poland, UEFA Euro 2016 – June 25, 2016
Switzerland were a big disappointment at the European Championship in France last summer but amidst their poor display they at least got this fantastic Shaqiri effort to celebrate.
Swiss captain Stephan Lichtsteiner sent in a fairly non-threatening cross in the Polish box and it was poorly cleared. However, the ball fell perfectly for Shaqiri who was lurking on the edge of the box and he scored with a majestic scissor kick to send the Switzerland supporters in frenzy.
Edgar Costa (Maritimo) vs Nacional, Primeira Liga – April 2, 2016
Maritimo are a small club in the Portuguese top division. During their Madeira derby clash against Nacional forward Costa scored a brilliant goal.
With his back to the opposition goal, he controlled a hopeful ball from one of his teammates in the box and unleashed an exquisite volley that landed in the top right corner of the Nacional goal.
Wasi is a keen fan with loads of knowledge about the game. He has written for some of the world’s leading soccer websites and is a major Barcelona and Pune City FC fan. He loves the Champions League and watches 200+ EPL games & La Liga games per season.