World Cup moments: Argentina put Serbia to the sword

Tom Devlin 6 years ago 1.4k
Cambiasso finishes the move. TV

Argentina have won the World Cup twice in their history, scoring some incredible goals along the way, with efforts by Diego Maradona springing to mind. But in 2006, it was a defensive midfielder - Esteban Cambiasso - who scored possibly the best goal in their history.

Maradona gained fame for two goals against England in 1986. The first was the infamous 'Hand of God', where he punched the ball into the back of the net.

The second went down in history as the finest piece of induvidual skill produced by any footballer. It was to be known as the 'Goal of the Century'.

However, while Maradona showed his unique brilliance to lay claim to Argentina's best goal, Cambiasso scored to finish off a sublime passing move that anyone would be proud of. 

The setting for this goal was Gelsenkirchen, during the group stage of the 2006 World Cup in Germany, with Serbia and Montenegro as the opponents. 

As it was, the Europeans were no match for the Argentines who romped to a 6-0 victory. An 18-year-old Lionel Messi even came off the bench to score his first World Cup goal. 

Nevertheless, it was the second goal that captured the minds of many. Hernan Crespo later said, "I have never been involved in a more beautiful goal." It was a work of art. 

Argentina won the ball back in their own half, and embarked on a free-flowing move. All but one of their players touched the ball as they exchanged 24 passes and had possesion for a minute.

The final pass was a delicate backheel from Crespo into the path of Cambiasso, who had continued his run forward. The midfielder slid the ball high into the net, first time, and history was made. 

Cambiasso was off, celebrating wildly - he had just scored a goal that he described as “patience, rhythm, circulation, surprise and football artistry at its best."

Mentioned in the news story

World Cup
Argentina
E. Cambiasso