25 Wackiest Player Moments in Soccer History

Football has always had its funny side, as players have been known to make the strangest decisions at times. They don't exactly have a reputation for being overly intelligent, either, which has led to some bizarre and wacky decisions on their part.

I'll attempt to list some of the strangest and wackiest things I've seen in the game in this article.

Mario Balotelli Fails at Putting a Bib on

Mario Balotelli has a reputation for being a little odd to say the least, and he's not always the easiest player to get on with. He recently showed that he hasn't quite mastered the life skill of putting a bib on as he warmed up for a game. It's a skill that takes a lot of practice, obviously, and he needs to spend a little more time on the training ground.

Brazil Free Kick Vs. Zaire in the 1974 World Cup

Brazil were playing Zaire in a group game in the 1974 World Cup, and the Brazilians won a free kick outside their opponent's penalty area. As the referee struggled to get the wall back the required 10 yards, one of the Zaire players suddenly rushed forward and kicked the ball 50 yards away. The referee had no choice other than to issue a yellow card to the offender, but it's difficult to understand what exactly the player thought he was doing.

Lee Dixon Own Goal

Arsenal were playing Coventry in a first division league game in 1991 when Lee Dixon decided to play an early back pass to David Seaman. In those days, goalkeepers were allowed to pick up back passes, and sometimes, the ball was played to them to give them an early touch of the ball.

However, Dixon managed to chip the keeper from 30 yards out, and it was a better goal than he ever scored at the right end for Arsenal.

Jens Lehmann Takes a Pee Break During a Game

Jens Lehmann was never far from controversy during his career, and when he played for Stuttgart against Unirea Urziceni in the Champions League in December 2009, he was in the limelight yet again.

This time, Lehmann decided he couldn't wait for the game to finish, and he went behind the advertising hoarding to relieve himself. He was lucky not to receive a yellow card, and maybe even end up playing with damp shorts.

Nani Causes Ronaldo to Have a Tantrum

Portugal played Spain in a friendly international game in November 2010, and they beat them 4-0 on the night. Cristiano Ronaldo looked to have scored a memorable chip to put Portugal 1-0 up, but an offside Nani decided to head the ball as it was about to enter an empty net. The sight of Ronaldo stamping his feet and punching the air in temper was a highlight of the game for those who aren't particularly fond of the Real Madrid player.

Ronnie Rosenthal Misses a Sitter

Liverpool played Aston Villa in a Premier League game in September 1992, and it's a game Liverpool striker Ronnie Rosenthal won't forget. He ran on to a long ball from the Bruce Grobbelar, rounded the Villa keeper and was faced with an open goal from 10 yards out. All he had to do was roll the ball home, but somehow, he managed to hit the bar.

Robert Pires and Thierry Henry Penalty

Arsenal played Manchester City in the Premier League in October 2005, and Robert Pires had put the Gunners 1-0 from the penalty spot.

When Arsenal got another penalty, Pires tried to copy a technique Ajax once used in the 1980s, and pass the ball to Thierry Henry. He made a mess of the pass, though, and he ended up conceding a free rather than scoring a goal.

The Greatest Goal Celebration Ever

Icelandic club Stajrnan may not be the most famous football club in the world, but they do have a claim to fame all of their own. After they had scored a penalty in July 2010, the players proceeded with a celebration that has to be seen to be believed. The time and effort put into practicing the celebration might have been better spent on practicing football, but the results were worth the work in my opinion.

The Scorpion Kick

Goalkeepers have a reputation for being a little eccentric, and Colombian goalkeeper Rene Higuta is no exception. In a friendly game against England in 1995, he displayed what was known as his "Scorpion Kick" to keep a Jamie Redknapp shot out.

It meant he let the ball go over his head and then volleyed it from behind himself with both feet. It was quite unbelievable at the time, and it still looks like a sublime piece of skill to this day.

Catania Players Drop Their Shorts

When Catania played Torino in a Serie A match in Italy in November 2008, some of their players used a novel approach to help their team to victory. They had a team outside the Torino penalty area, and three of their players dropped their shorts to their knees to distract the Torino keeper. They scored from the free kick, so it can only be presumed that their stunt had the desired effect.

Dion Dublin Fools Shay Given

In his Newcastle days, Shay Given was one of the better goalkeepers in the Premier League, but it didn't stop him having a very unfortunate incident against Coventry City. He rolled the ball in front of himself when he thought the coast was clear, but Dion Dublin emerged from behind him to roll the ball into an empty net. It led to jokes about Given being the only Irishman who didn't know where Dublin is.

Jone Samuelsen Headed Goal from His Own Half

Jone Samuelsen plays for Odd Grenland in the Norwegian league, and in September of 2011, he scored a headed goal that will probably never be beaten. With the opposition goalkeeper forward for a corner, the ball was cleared, and it came back to Samuelsen, who headed it to the net from his own half of the field. 

Steven Taylor Handball

Newcastle defender Steven Taylor was playing against Aston Villa in 2005 when he managed to block a shot almost on the goal line. Unfortunately, he used his arm to block the shot, and the referee had no option but to send him off.

His attempts to pretend the ball had hit him elsewhere were comical, as he fell to the ground as if he had been taken out by a sniper. Surely he couldn't have been trying to con the referee, as everybody knows good old-fashioned English pros never sink that low.

Frank Rijkaard Vs. Rudi Voller

When The Netherlands played West Germany at the 1990 World Cup, the best part of the game was the running battle between Frank Rijkaard and Rudi Voller. Netherlands' Rijkaard was booked for fouling Voller, and he spat in the German striker's hair as the referee's back was turned. Shortly afterwards, Rijkaard took another opportunity to have a go at Voller when he tweaked his ear and then stood on his foot.

The referee stepped in and sent both players off, but it hardly seemed fair on Voller, who had done very little wrong. As they left the field, Rijkaard was again seen to spit on Voller, and it's hard to imagine that he didn't have a good reason for behaving so badly. 

The Penalty with Backspin

In a match between Maghreb Fez and FAR Rabat in Morocco's Coupe de Trone, there was a bizarre penalty shoot-out incident. The FAR goalkeeper made a good save, and he walked away to celebrate, but unknown to him, the ball had so much backspin on it that it spun into the net. The referee gave the goal, and FAR ended up losing.

Paolo Di Canio Red Card

Paolo Di Canio played for Sheffield Wednesday against Arsenal in the Premier League in September 1998, and there was a fight during the game. The referee gave Di Canio a red card, and what happened next will go down in the history books of football.

Di Canio pushed the referee ever so slightly in the chest, and the referee fell slowly backwards as if in slow motion. He eventually hit the ground, but not as hard as the FA hit Di Canio, who ended up with an 11-game ban.

Jens Lehmann Vs. Didier Drogba

When Arsenal played Chelsea a few years ago in the Premier League, there was a bizarre incident involving Jens Lehmann and Didier Drogba. First of all, Drogba went down in the Arsenal box looking for a penalty, and Lehamann went over to remonstrate with him. Lehmann pushed him slightly in the back, and Drogba fell to the ground as if he had been flattened by a heavyweight boxer.

With Drogba looking like an idiot, all that Lehmann had to do was keep his cool, but he did the exact same thing when Drogba squared up to him. It left two grown men looking like a couple of idiots, and it gave everybody else something to laugh at.

Brazil Vs. Sweden Disallowed Goal

When Brazil played Sweden in the group stages of the 1978 World Cup, there was a bizarre incident at the very end of the game. With the score at 1-1, Brazil took a corner, and Zico headed the ball home to seemingly give them a dramatic win. However, Welsh referee Clive Thomas disallowed the goal, as he had blown the whistle before the ball entered the net.

It is the accepted norm for referees to allow a corner to run its course before blowing the full time whistle. The Brazilian players were particularly unhappy with the referee, but at least they managed to qualify for the knockout stages by winning their last game against Austria.

John Aldridge Loses It at the World Cup

Ireland went to the 1994 World Cup in America, hoping to at least make it out of the group stages and into the last 16. They beat Italy, 1-0, in their opening game and they were in a great position going into their second game against Mexico. However, things didn't go too well for them in that game, and Mexico led, 2-0, as Ireland tried to introduce substitute John Aldridge.

Due to an incredible mix-up by the FIFA officials on the sideline, Aldridge was not allowed on the field when the player he was to replace came off. Aldridge completely lost the plot with the officials, and he was lucky not to get a red card for his reaction. He got the last laugh in the end, though, as he got a goal when he came on, and it was enough to see Ireland through to the last 16 when they drew 0-0 with Norway in their last group game.

The Battle of Santiago

When hosts Chile played Italy in the 1962 World Cup, the game was noted for the foul play and violence between both teams. Chile eventually won, 2-0, after Italy had two men sent off, but the surprise was that no Chilean players were sent off, either. Punches were exchanged, and both teams engaged in shocking foul play at times.

It was so bad that the police had to intervene four times in the game, and teams engaging in a similar display in the modern game would be severely punished by FIFA.  

Paolo Di Canio Catches the Ball

Paolo Di Canio has had his fair share of bad publicity over the years, but he showed a different side to his character in December 2000. He was a West Ham player at the time, and they were playing a Premier League game against Everton when Everton keeper Paul Gerrard went down injured. The play continued, and the ball was played to Di Canio in the penalty area in a great position to score.

Di Canio grabbed the ball and pointed to the stricken goalkeeper instead of taking his chance to score, and he received the FIFA fair play award in 2001 as a result. FIFA described the act as "a special act of good sportsmanship", and Di Canio showed himself to be a man of true character.

Lee Bowyer Vs. Kieron Dyer

Lee Bowyer has had his fair share of controversy on and off the field, and he is seen as one of the bad boys of football. During a Premier League game between Newcastle and Aston Villa in April 2005, Bowyer got into a brawl with his teammate, Kieron Dyer. The referee had to send both players off after punches were exchanged, and they were both fined and banned for three games.

Bowyer was seen as the instigator, as he had thrown the first punch and he received further punishment from the FA. He was also charged by the police, and he pleaded guilty to a charge of "threatening behaviour" for which he was fined.

Jens Lehmann Bites the Ball

Jens Lehmann makes his third appearance in these 25 wacky moments with one of his stranger antics on the football field.

When playing for Germany against Croatia in 2008, he decided to take a bite out of the ball for reasons that are best known to himself. He has a reputation for being more than a little bit mad, and he lived up to it in this incident yet again.

Robert Pires Vs. Spurs Fans

Robert Pires had a great habit of scoring goals against Spurs during his Arsenal career, and the Spurs fans were not particularly fond of him.

In a Premier League game against them at White Hart Lane, one of the Spurs fans threw the ball at Pires with a lot of venom, and the Arsenal player was not particularly happy. He feigned throwing the ball back at the Spurs fan, but he didn't actually do it.

The referee was none to happy with Pires and had a few words with him, but he didn't get into any real trouble.

Best Own Goal Ever

When Spain's under-21 team played Georgia in September 2011, they were already 6-0 up when Inigo Martinez scored a goal to remember. Unfortunately for him, it was at the wrong end of the pitch, but at least it made no difference to the outcome of the game.

The Georgian goalkeeper played a long ball forward, and Martinez hit what can only be described as a back-heel volley from 35 yards. The Spanish keeper had advanced to cover a ball over the top, and he was caught in no man's land as the ball sailed over his head into the goal. Spain ran out 7-2 winners in the end, but the game will be best remembered for the spectacular own goal.

I'm sure there are plenty of other wacky moments I missed, but the ones I picked aren't too bad. Feel free to point out any glaring omissions and let me know if my choices were any good.

That's it for today.

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