Thirty years ago Desmond Morris, zoologist, wrote (The soccer tribe, 1981) that “One of the qualities that makes the goal so important is its rarity … every team has a over a thousand contacts with the ball during the game. Which means that one player who hits the ball has less than one chance in a thousand mark … And it’s not to wonder that in the rare occasions when the goal is scored the gunner or goleador is high in tribal folklore, in the pedestal of a true hero and he becomes for his followers a sort of divinity to worship and adore. Undoubtedly, the greatest hero of modern times has been the Brazilian Edson Arantes do Nascimento, known throughout the world by his nickname Pelé. He did 1363 goals in his career, a total never reached by other modern players. ”
Pelè as Maradona and Messi are the exceptions that have made and make it seems easy and frequent scoring a goal. The goal, however, still remains a rare event. It is based on the ability of the players to create scoring opportunities, but also on exploiting the errors in defense of their opponents. A mistake can mean nothing in football, they serve hundreds of ball touches because one of these becomes a winning shot, but in the same time any mistake can be fatal because the goal can be realized at any time. Be aware of this apparent contradiction it’s important to avoid to say after a goal, “We only made one mistake and immediately we have paid dearly, what bad luck!”
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