The Official Site of Landon Donovan

Mon, Aug 17th 2009, 10:23

Donovan's wonder strike against New England impresses his peers

Before it happened, Shalrie Joseph knew what was about to unfold.

The New England Revolution midfielder was about 10 yards away when the goal was struck, but he knew what the end result was going to be. It was the 21st minute of the New England-Los Angeles tilt on Aug. 8 and the Galaxy’s David Beckham found teammate Alan Gordon on the right flank. Taking a touch to the inside, Gordon sent in a weak cross with his left foot, a hopeful ball in search of Jovan Kirovski. The Revolution’s Darrius Barnes touched a poor clearance that fell to Landon Donovan on the right side of the box.

Conventional wisdom said to settle the ball and then control with the stronger foot, which for Donovan would be his right. Conventional wisdom, however, does not make highlights.

Instead of settling, Donovan one-timed the poorly cleared ball with his left foot. The ball dipped and curved, knuckling through the Foxboro air.

The Revolution’s Matt Reis, perhaps the league’s most unheralded goalkeeper, sprawled for the shot. The ball tucked neatly inside the post. A hush came over the stadium.

“As the ball came down, I had mixed thoughts about whether to shoot or not but decided to pull the trigger,” Donovan said. “I knew I had hit it perfectly but from my angle, I wasn’t positive that it was going to go in.”

Joseph just looked on, not sure how to respond.

“When I saw him touch the ball, I knew it was going in,” Joseph said. “It was brilliant. It was the perfect shot. Everything about it was just right. It was pure brilliance.”

The movement of the ball was the the stuff of legend. The shot swerved and curved, reminiscent of the bending free kick taken by Roberto Carlos in the Tournoi de France in 1997. Except Donovan’s strike was in the run of play with the weaker of his two feet. It was, in one word, amazing.

Of course, it came with some controversy.

There was some question as to the ball striking New England’s Emmanuel Osei en route to finding the back of the net. In postgame comments and according to members of the Revolution organization, the ball did not deflect or graze Osei. Joseph thinks it did but even if it did, he said the contact would not have significantly changed the shot, sentiments Donovan also shares.

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