(Kelechi Iheanacho celebrates his late winner against Crystal Palace - image via Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)
Football is not just a sport, but an art form. The man who Maradona turns his way into the 18-yard-box automatically manoeuvres himself into a position of superiority over the fellow that trips and slips along the same route. It doesn't really matter whether player A's goal meant nothing and player B's goal won a major trophy, brilliant goals are taken at face value.
This weekend two players of similar ages scored goals for their clubs, one decidedly more important than the other in regard to their respective games. Anthony Martial, 19, a £36m buy from AS Monaco, 'scored a sublime late goal' to finish off Liverpool in Manchester United's 3-1 victory over their fierce rivals on Saturday.
"What a way to announce yourself," said Sky pundit Thierry Henry who has been compared to Martial. "I love the finish, it’s a great finish. I call it freezing the goalkeeper. He puts his head up, he’s looking at the keeper, he takes his time and then goal. It’s so composed." His colleague Martin Tyler was even more appreciative of the strike, screaming "Yes!" when the ball rolled past Simon Mignolet.
(Anthony Martial announces himself to the Premier League with a superb solo goal - image via Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
Earlier that day, Kelechi Iheanacho, 18, a graduate from Manchester City's EDS squad, emerged 'to clip home his first senior goal' in the 90th minute against 2nd place Crystal Palace. The goal earned City their fifth consecutive victory without conceding a goal and put them five points ahead at the top of the table, but it drew only murmurs from European media outlets.
And before I'm hit with the "bitter" and "obsessed" accusations from Manchester United supporters who may be reading this, I don't believe Martial's price tag has anything to do with the heightened coverage. If Iheanacho had shown a similar level of skill to net City's winner, perhaps he would be receiving the same applause? It's unlikely, however.
Why? Because this country is still captivated by a rivalry that lost its heat many years ago. Manchester United, 20, and Liverpool, 18, dominate English football in terms of titles won, but a title race involving the two clubs last happened six years ago. These are two sleeping giants, the exhausting first half on Saturday afternoon showcased that, and it's questionable as to whether they'll ever wake up.
As for Manchester City, acquiring a rival for the Premier League title this season is proving to be a difficult task, but we're not complaining.
