Official: Goal that kicked England out of the World Cup was a fluke
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The goal made a fool of David Seaman at last year's World Cup, reducing the veteran England goalkeeper to tears in front of a global television audience of millions.
It eliminated England from the tournament, cast doubt over Seaman's future, sent Brazil into the semi-finals and provoked a national debate on whether it was intentional.
And to make matters worse, Ronaldinho, the forward who scored from that 42-yard free-kick, has in public maintained that he meant it and knew Seaman was susceptible to being lobbed from long range. But today The Independent can reveal that Ronaldinho confessed after the match that the goal was a fluke.
"He said he tried to put the ball in the opposite angle to where it went, the other corner," Ronaldinho's international teammate Juninho said in an exclusive interview. "He mishit it. In the end it was lucky. In football you have to be lucky sometimes." Or, as Seaman found, unlucky.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments