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So what makes a great goal? I know it seems a easy question but honestly, what makes a goal truly great? Is it the goal that keeps a side up or a lob from the half way line? The goal that drags a side back in to a game when they’re 2-0 or a last minute winner in injury time? Everyone has a different variation on what they judge to be a great goal or what the ingredients are that makes some goals stand out above all others.
Well, I’m going to give you my ten goals of the decade, which you may agree with, but probably won’t. Yet that’s one of the great things about football, we all have different opinions and views of the same incident. Hopefully you can view these goals without blinkers of your favourite team and simply judge them on the goal itself. OK, ready? Then we’ll begin.

<div><figure class="image"><img loading="lazy" class="aligncenter" src="https:\/\/ds-images.bolavip.com/news/image?src=https:\/\/images.worldsoccertalk.com/webp/WST_20091229_WST_13907_thierry-henry.webp&amp;width=306&amp;height=375" alt="" width="306" height="375"></figure></div>
Goal Number Ten: <a href="http:\/\/www.youtube.com/watch?v=QUXKtf1rdaY&amp;feature=PlayList&amp;p=4804DC0EC4C58613&amp;playnext=1&amp;playnext_from=PL&amp;index=10" target="_blank">Thierry Henry v Spurs </a>November 2002
Another North London derby, another Arsenal win but this for me is one of the best goals that this decade saw in the continuing battle between Arsenal and Tottenham. A wonderful solo run and finish saw Henry begin to show the form that was to torment defenders the length and breadth of Europe for the remainder of the decade. A truly great individual goal.
Goal Number Nine: <a href="http:\/\/www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CqXlNpesnk" target="_blank">Dietmar Hamann v Portsmouth</a> March 2004
There looked nothing on when Michael Owen swung the ball back in from the left wing but Didi Hamann was running in to hit this strike beautifully from the edge of the box. One of those wonderful volleys that occur every now and again, I doubt Hamann has ever scored a goal better than this in his life.
Goal Number Eight: <a href="http:\/\/www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPTm0vrX-LU" target="_blank">Shaun Bartlett v Leicester</a> April 2001
What a strike this was for Charlton Athletic. A wonderful cross field pass from Graeme Stuart that the South African Shaun Bartlett hit first time to fire it past the goalkeeper and into the bottom corner. A fabulous hit, set up by a fantastic pass.
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Goal Number Seven: <a href="http:\/\/www.youtube.com/watch?v=8DNfgibZO5o" target="_blank">Dennis Bergkamp v Newcastle</a> March 2002
What a wonderful piece of skill this is. From Pires’ crossfield pass, Bergkamp flicks the ball one way and rolls around the defender the other and then slides it past Shay Given. A delightful bit of skill from the Dutch master.
Goal Number Six: <a href="http:\/\/www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJeVaV2o-3k" target="_blank">Xabi Alonso v Newcastle November 2006</a>
Alonso seemed to be one of those players that could try and score from inside his own half more than most. This strike against Newcastle left Steve Harper scrambling to get back, but to no avail. Perhaps more impressive than the similar goal he scored against Luton Town in the F.A. Cup, it will live long in the memory for its precision from distance.
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Goal Number Five: <a href="http:\/\/www.youtube.com/watch?v=23-rL8jObqM&amp;translated=1" target="_blank">David Bentley v Arsenal</a> October 2008
Probably Bentley’s high point during his difficult spell at Tottenham, this wonderful hit saw him control the ball on his chest and volley the ball in to the Arsenal net from 50 yards out. A sublime strike that shows the quality he has, but he simply hasn’t delivered at White Hart Lane. The only benefit to Spurs would seem to be the consistent quality that Aaron Lennon now shows week in, week out since Bentley joined.
Goal Number Four: <a href="http:\/\/www.youtube.com/watch?v=UH2Szm9Ert0" target="_blank">Wayne Rooney v Newcastle</a> April 2005
Everyone knows the power of Wayne Rooney but this goal shows it for me like no other. Like something from a video game, Rooney spanked the ball in midair at what seems 100mph. The only thing that surprised me was that it didn’t burst the net. A wonder goal from a player that on his day is unplayable.
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Goal Number Three: <a href="http:\/\/www.youtube.com/watch?v=IACkXEs0d9s" target="_blank">Glen Johnson v Hull City October 2008</a>
Well, it is always special when a full back scores a screamer, Stuart Pearce built a career on smashing the ball in the back of the net, but this was a fantastic strike from Johnson. It impressed me, because he runs on to the ball, controls it with two defenders closing in and smashes it home with his left foot. An outstanding goal.
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Goal Number Two: <a href="http:\/\/www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUh-NcHi5ug" target="_blank">Paolo Di Canio v Wimbledon April 2000</a>
Now this goal summed up the genius of Di Canio in one swift moment. A flying volley that saw him use his left leg to propel him upward for a smashing volley with the right foot past Neil Sullivan, it was a divine finish from one of the Premiership’s most enigmatic players. A truly great goal.
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Goal Number One: <a href="http:\/\/www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3HcdvHbtN4" target="_blank">Robin van Persie v Charlton September 2007</a>
This for me, is one of the best goals I’ve ever seen. A simply breathtaking goal that showed fantastic technique, athleticism and an eye for goal that Marco Van Basten would have been proud of. Everyone knows the qualities that van Persie offers the Gunners, but niggly injuries have held him back from showing the Arsenal faithful his full potency.
So there you have it, my favourite ten goals from the last decade of Premiership football. Leave me some comments, or memories of your favourite goals over the last ten years.

The 10 Best Premiership Goals Of The Noughties - World Soccer Talk

The 10 Best Premiership Goals Of The Noughties

<div id="attachment_545" style="width: 385px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><div><figure class="image"></figure></div>St Mary&apos;s Stadium will host League One football next season</div>
Sheffield Wednesday, QPR, Manchester City, Wimbledon (aka MK Dons), Leeds, Oldham, Nottingham Forest, Swindon, Leicester, Barnsley, Bradford. Soon to be joined by another two and probably three in Charlton, Southampton and Norwich. All these clubs have tasted the sweet nectar of life in the Premier League only to later sup at the workaday bitterness of League One. In Bradford’s case, even League Two.
If Norwich go down, as seems likely, that’s 14 teams who have played against the best and slipped to the third tier of English football in the last 17 years. In a game full of startling statistics, that seems pretty mind-boggling. It might hearten fans of Saints and Addicks that a decent portion of those teams have at least made it back to the Championship. Indeed, this time last year Leicester were belly-up and now they are like a horny young salmon, leaping back upstream to play with the bigger boys and girls once more.
In a sense, this shows the outstanding strength in depth of the English leagues. Unlikely teams including Bradford, Swindon, Hull, Stoke, Wigan and Reading all made huge strides in the last decade and a half to reach the top of the mountain. Yet it does not take much to find yourself back at base camp in double-quick time.
It can be put down to poor money management. It can be blamed on carelessness and poor decision-making. But the shocking thing this year is that two clubs who have often been held up as excellent examples of how a medium-sized club should be managed are either already down or simply waiting for the trap door to open.
When Sheffield Wednesday, Man City, QPR, Leicester and Leeds fell into League One, the structure at the clubs was poor and all of them had dealt inadequately with the money the EPL gave them. But Charlton and Norwich do not seem to fall into this category. Charlton have cleverly developed a fanbase from all over Kent and steadily improved a stadium that was derelict 20 years ago. Norwich had more than their fair share of problems in the boardroom in the 90s, but they have a city dedicated to the team, a real sense of community and Delia Smith providing heart and soul as well.
For those two clubs, the short term might be unpalatable, but the feeling is that the long term might be rosy. They are sensible clubs. If they cut costs, appoint the right managers and keep expectations sensible, they could return a stronger unit, like Leicester appear to be doing.
Southampton, though, could be a different story. Not so long ago they had a new stadium, Gordon Strachan had taken them to the Cup Final and they were the latest in a long line of clubs hoping to break into the top six of the EPL. Now the money is gone. The stadium is not being filled. The stars of their youth system have almost all been sold in an effort to balance the books. Rumours of a takeover notwithstanding, it seems likely that Andrew Surman and Adam Lallana will now have to be sold as well.
Around this time of year a lot of pundits make long faces and say it’s a shame for this team or that team to go down. They are saying it about Newcastle now, but is it a shame when clubs the size of Southampton are relegated to League One? Would we prefer to see the smaller clubs, like Doncaster or Blackpool, get relegated, to keep the status quo?
I don’t think so. I think it’s a healthy situation that big clubs occasionally taste life in the bottom half of the Football League. It’s good for football that so-called small teams like Peterborough can play at Championship level.
With dreams of winning the Premier League unrealistic for fans of all clubs except perhaps five – six at a push – the dream has perhaps been downshifted to glory in the Championship and a chance to merely get in the ring with the big boys.
The difference this season compared to others is that three clubs who have all played at the top level within the last four years are (probably) heading down. Not only should that be a lesson to clubs currently happy in the Premier League, it should be a warning. There are at least half-a-dozen Premier League clubs who could be facing the same crisis as Southampton in three or four years time.

Southampton and Charlton's Demise Is Nothing New - World Soccer Talk

Southampton and Charlton's Demise Is Nothing New

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