A mind-boggling year of football excellence loaded with unbelievable comebacks, record-breaking feats, and heartbreaking tears. 2017 has been an astounding year in the world of football, giving us unforgettable moments to cherish.
When we glance back at 2017 there are a few moments that are unforgettable that influence us to ponder about the beautiful game, giving us goosebumps each and every time. These were not simply unforgettable moments, but rather unforgettable experiences.
Paris Saint-Germaine Ruin Transfer market
Barcelona insisted Neymar Jr is staying put, neutrals were persuaded that any move would break FIFA Financial Fair Play rule but none of that made a difference when PSG invoked Neymar’s €222m release clause, making the Brazilian international the most expensive footballer in football and has forever ruined the transfer market.
Egypt Qualify For Russia 2018 World Cup Since 1990
Egypt qualified for the FIFA World Cup 2018 for the first time since 1990. An unforgettable moment was written in the history books as star player Mohammed Salah scored a penalty with 60 seconds remaining to secure a 2-1 win over Congo, guaranteeing a berth in Russia 2018 World Cup.
Keeping in mind the hopes of a country riding on him, Salah fires the ball into the net picking up a status of a national legend.
Indeed, even the match commentator couldn’t keep down his tears, such as the impact this moment had on the nation. Mo Salah rejected a gift of an extravagance villa, rather requesting that the funds be diverted to the hometown he grew up. An exemplary character on and off the pitch.
Los Blancos Clinch Twelfth European Cup
Los Blancos’ cleared Juventus to the other side in Cardiff to be named the champions of Europe for the second year running. Having now won their 12th UEFA Champions League Cup title, clinching the European Cup under the leadership of Zinedine Zidane, who has won the Cup both as player and coach, two times consecutively.
Barcelona Epic Come Back ( 6-1)
Every football fans cherish a comeback triumph and the UEFA Champions League may never witness such unimaginable event again. The Catalan giants came back from a 4-0 deficit on an epic night at the Camp Nou, with Sergi Roberto’s goal scripting his name into the football hall of fame.
Kylian Mbappe ( The Young Lion )
Kylian Mbappe declared himself to the footballing world in 2017 with his mix of pace, power, and technicalities that prompted correlations with legendary strikers, for example, Thierry Henry and Ronaldo and Paris Saint-Germaine rushed to pay Monaco €180m to secure the services for the French youngster.
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King Leo Silence The Bernabeu
Barcelona star Lionel Messi gave the football world this destined-to-be iconic image subsequent to scoring a late winner to give the visiting Blaugrana a sweet victory over old adversary Real Madrid at the Bernabeu.
Azzuris Miss Out On Russia 2018 World Cup
60 years after their last inability to qualify, the second most successful national team in history missed out on a great opportunity to qualify for the 2018 World Cup in the wake of being beaten by Sweden in a two-legged play-off. ‘Azzurri’ legend Gianluigi Buffon was forced to use his gloves to clean tears, as his dream to feature in next summer Mundial was ruin.
Cristiano Ronaldo, The Achiever
Aside from Ronaldo poor run of form and Madrid’s blip this season, 2017 couldn’t have gone much better for the Portuguese forward, with Ronaldo helping Los Blancos to five trophies and also being named FIFA Best Player Of The Year and lifting his fifth Ballon d’Or.
Harry Kane Eclipsed Messi & Ronaldo, Surpass Shearer
For the first since 2009, a player has scored a bigger number of goals in a calendar year than Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane was the man to break the mastery of the two best players in world football, as he ravaged 56 goals for both England and Spurs in 2017. He also scored 39 Premier League goals in 36 games in 2017, beating the previous record held by Shearer, who netted 36 in 42 appearances for Blackburn Rovers in 1995.
Pep Guardiola ( The Record Breaker )
Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City side kept on setting a new record for most Premier League wins in succession – the count is currently at 18.
Yet, a significantly greater record was set when City beats Newcastle. The previous record was also set by a Pep Guardiola side, Bayern Munich in 2013-14 (18 wins, 2 draws), a record he has now broken with his ‘Shark Team’. You need to backpedal to 1987-88 and look outside of the top 5 European League to locate an opening 20 matches keeping pace with City’s, in the form of Guus Hiddink’s PSV Eindhoven.
Bonus
Plateau United Makes NPFL History
Plateau United Football Club of Jos completed the list as one of the unforgettable moments in the historical backdrop of Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) by winning the League title for the first time in the history of the club.
They accomplished this historical feat by beating the defending champions Enugu Rangers football club in Jos to take their points haul to 66 at the Rwang Pam Stadium.
