Next on my list is one of the greatest goals I have ever seen scored. Yes you have guessed it, it is Paolo Di Canio’s superb volley that he scored against Wimbledon back in March 2000. My words cannot do this goal justice, as it was pure poetry in motion. Anyone who has not seen it and I cannot believe there is any West Ham supporter young or old that has not must view the goal on YouTube. Whilst researching this article I refreshed my memory and watched it about ten times. It is a goal you can never see too often.
The late Marc Vivien Foe picked up a loose ball in midfield. He played a 30 yard, inch perfect pass out to Trevor Sinclair on the right. Sinclair brought the ball under control and hit a 30 yard diagonal cross into the box right in the path of Paolo Di Canio who leapt into the air and volleyed the ball using the outside of right foot back across goal and into the net. I have seen some goals in my time but none to equal that one. If I live to be one hundred, I doubt if I will ever see a better goal scored.
At this stage, I think I should mention a goal that runs Paolo’s goal a very close second. This particular goal broke the hearts of all West Ham fans back in the 2006 FA Cup Final. For this reason, I thought it worthy of a mention. Whilst we are all still smarting because of the cruel way this match was snatched from our grasp, I believe we all appreciate the skill and tenacity Steven Gerrard showed when he scored this fateful goal.
Extra time was drawing to a close and the stadium announcer just put out a public address saying there will be four minutes of added time, We were 2 goals to 1 up and under siege as Liverpool were throwing everything at us in one last ditched effort to equalise. Gerrard was out on his feet; he could hardly stand let alone run. A Liverpool player hit a forward lofted ball into the West Ham box. The ball was half cleared and it looped out towards Gerrard who was in a central position about thirty yards from goal. Gerrard launched himself at the ball and volleyed it past Rob Green and into the back of the West Ham goal. As we all know we lost the resultant penalty shoot out. Though it pains me to say it, it was a great goal scored by a great player.
Now we are right up to date, as the next goal has to be the most important goal scored by a West Ham player in recent times; possibly in our whole history. Some fans might say that the Carlos Tevez goal against Manchester United qualifies for this spot. Personally, I think not as that goal cost us dearly with all the acrimony that came with it and the hefty amount of compensation we had to pay Sheffield United in its wake. This last goal deserves top ranking as it elevated us back to the top flight in English football where we belong. It is the goal scored by Ricardo Vaz Te in the eighty-seventh minute of the 2011/12 play off final.
After ending the first half one goal up through a goal scored by Carlton Cole, the fans all thought we would dominate the second half. Within two minutes of the restart, Ince scored for Blackpool. It was bad enough Blackpool scoring but the son of a West Ham anti-hero really rubbed salt in the wound. Blackpool gained the upper hand and were on top for most of the second half then with three minutes of normal time remaining, Nolan ran on to a pass on the left flank. He ran forward towards the opposition touchline and crossed the ball into the Blackpool penalty box. Cole went for the ball and as he did the Blackpool keeper dived at Cole’s feet in an effort the get the ball. Cole was now off balance and as he went down, he hooked the ball into the path of Vaz Te who drilled the ball into the Blackpool net giving the keeper no chance of making the save.
This goal regained our Premier League Status. In turn, it will help generate much needed revenue through the Premier League payments and revenue from televised games. It has also given the fans the opportunity to see our players and the manager pit their skills against some of the best players and teams in the world. Therefore, in my opinion, Vaz Te’s goal has to be one of the most important goals if not the most memorable goal ever scored by a West Ham player.