Classic Moments: Marco Van Basten’s Exquisite Overhead Kick Against Den Bosch, 1986 (Complete With Slightly Crass American Commentary)

Chris Wright

9th, October 2014

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By Chris Wright

Ajax Images Heritage collection.

Granted, you don’t have to look very hard to find an achingly elegant goal in Marco van Basten’s groaning back catalogue, but his acrobatic effort in Ajax’s 3-1 victory over Den Bosch in 1986 definitely takes some beating.

Almost crystalline in its execution, Van Basten tracks Jan Wouter’s chipped cross to the far post and then proceeds to send it back from whence it came with an instinctive overhead finish – picking out the uppermost top corner of Jan van Gestel’s goal frame with ease.

And, of course, what better way to relive one of The Swan of Utrecht’s most exquisite finishes than to have it overdubbed with some slightly crass American commentary?

Go celebrate….wid yo’ people.

Definitely up there with his famous acute-angle volley against the USSR in the Euro ’88 final in our book – if only in terms of technique rather than the overall grandeur…

What a player.

(Image: Ajax)