Malay Midfielder to Score FIFA Puskas Award

BetVictor has framed a market on the FIFA Puskas Award and one candidate stands out from the rest now that the public vote is in its second round and there are three options.

Established in 2009, at the behest of former FIFA president Sepp Blatter, the FIFA Puskas Award honours the player who scores the most aesthetically significant or beautiful goal of the year and, of course, it is named after Ferenc Puskas, the striker who starred for Honved and Real Madrid.

Cristiano Ronaldo was the first FIFA Puskas Award recipient, picking up the prize for his UEFA Champions League goal for Manchester United against Porto. The other FIFA Puskas Award winners have been Hamit Altintop, Neymar, Miroslav Stoch, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, James Rodriguez and Wendell Lira.

This year’s FIFA Puskas Award short list comprises Daniuska Rodriguez, Marlone and Mohd Faiz Subri. Rodriguez scored her great goal for Venezuela versus Colombia in the CONMEBOL U17 Women’s Championship, a tournament that her team won on home soil. Marlone netted his wonder strike for Corinthians in its CONMEBOL Copa Libertadores match against Cobresal. And Faiz attracted recognition for his free kick versus Pahang while playing for Penang in the Malaysian Super League.

No female player has won the FIFA Puskas Award and, while that trend in itself is insufficient to put a pen through Rodriguez, the combination of that fact and the quality of her goal are enough for one to rule out the Venezuelan. Rodriguez collected the ball on the right-hand side of the penalty area, used a mixture of trickery and persistance to shake off two defenders and unleashed a powerful left-footed shot that flashed past the goalkeeper into the roof of the net. Critics of women’s football will say that the defending was poor and, also, they will point out that Rodriguez’s blast beat the Colombia goalkeeper on her near side.

Marlone’s goal was the end product of a sweeping Corinthians move. Marlone was positioned just inside the D when, while under pressure from two Cobresal defenders, he controlled a cross on his chest, using the upper part of his body to propel the ball upwards before volleying it spectacularly into the net from the edge of the penalty area. Marlone deserves his place on the FIFA Puskas Award short list, however, one has seen much more memorable goals.

Faiz is BetVictor‘s FIFA Puskas Award favourite at odds of 2.10Bet €100 to win €21011/10Bet £100 to win £210+110Bet $100 to win $2101.10Bet HK$100 to win HK$2101.10Bet Rp100 to win Rp210-0.9091Bet RM100 to win RM210  and one thinks that he represents good value at odds against. Faiz stood over a free kick approximately 40 metres from goal. Faiz struck the ball over Pahang’s two-man wall and it appeared headed for the hands of the defending team’s goalkeeper before it swerved viciously to the custodian’s left and ended up in the net’s top corner. Faiz’s strike generated more ball movement than the famous goal that Roberto Carlos scored for Brazil versus France in 1997.

Exotic markets on which there is only one bookmaker are the ones on which it is possible to secure unusually generous odds. One rates Faiz’s goal as head and shoulders above those of Marlone and, particularly, Rodriguez, and one thinks that the Malay should be trading at odds on.

The FIFA Puskas Award public vote will close on Monday 9 January and FIFA will announce the winner at a ceremony in Zurich later that day. Consequently, one does not expect BetVictor to be open for business for long so get on now.

Tips Summary

Faiz Subri to win the FIFA Puskas Award
Announced 10th January, 2017
Odds: 2.10Bet €100 to win €21011/10Bet £100 to win £210+110Bet $100 to win $2101.10Bet HK$100 to win HK$2101.10Bet Rp100 to win Rp210-0.9091Bet RM100 to win RM210