This past weekend, we saw one of the all-time great goals not just in the Premier League but arguably in the history of the beautiful game full-stop, leaving football fans debating where Alejandro Garancho’s worldie ranks among the best overhead kicks of all time.
For anyone who somehow missed the goal of the season — and yes, barring truly extraordinary circumstances, the competition is almost certainly over — the Man United starlet proved exactly why Reds are so excited about him, scoring just his first league goal of the year in mind-blowing fashion.
Erik ten Hag‘s side went on to win the game 3-0 despite Everton staying in the game and creating a lot of chances throughout, but such a scoreline could never have been achieved were it not for the 19-year-old’s truly remarkable strike.
Less than three minutes into the game, a whipped cross from Diogo Dalot saw the young Argentine leap and wrap his foot around the fast-paced ball to place what will probably go down as the greatest finish of his career into the far right corner. Incredible.
It doesn’t matter who you support, you can’t help but get chills witnessing moments like that.
As Gary Neville and Roy Keane said on the night, the acrobatic leap was like “nothing else” and the best they’ve ever seen, with Chris Sutton insisting it is without a doubt “the greatest overhead kick of all time”, but naturally fans can’t but weigh it up against similar screamers from the past.
While it was undoubtedly a bigger goal, being the winner in a Manchester derby, Keane said in the post-match on Sunday that Garnacho‘s technique was more impressive and “cleaner” than its predecessor — not the first time Rooney’s finish has been dubbed ‘the greatest shin-roller of all time’.
Wayne Rooney, 12th February 2011 Alejandro Garnacho, 26th November 2023
Two acrobatic efforts written into the list of all-time great Premier League goals 💫 pic.twitter.com/dnEDI18oZl
And, obviously, the next great contemporary Garnacho’s wondergoal was compared against is Cristiano Ronaldo’s overhead kick for Real Madrid in the 2017/18 Champions League quarter-finals against Juventus.
The fact that the current United man emulated his sporting hero by copying the former club legend’s well-known ‘Siu!’ celebration definitely helped put CR7‘s incredible leap from five years ago in mind, but for many Garnacho’s is now their favourite of the two.
Once again, undoubtedly a bigger goal than one of three in any old league game at Goodison Park and still unreal technique, but the fact that Garnacho’s was further out and he had to stray back a few yards before jumping also seems to be a factor.
It’s also worth reminding that Ronaldo pulled his off at the age of 33. Who do you reckon did it better?
Throwback to Ronaldo’s overhead kick against Juventus😮💨🔥
Speaking of belters scored by former Real Madrid players and Premier League legends, while there are obviously several more strikes of a similar fashion that have been scored down the years, the final spot in the ‘overhead kicks top four’ is Gareth Bale’s stunner in the Champions League final.
Blasted home in the same season as his Madrid teammate, goals don’t come much bigger than an overhead kick in a UCL final and we still think about this one regularly and how weird it is that it was scored by a man who wholeheartedly admits that he prefers golf to football.
This one seems to be the real sticking point on social media as not only is it the bigger and better goal purely based on the nature of the game it came in but because the technique and distance were also similarly impressive from Wales’ greatest-ever player.
While some are arguing that the build-up sequence that led to Garnacho’s overhead kick was better than Bale’s, we really can’t pick a favourite at this point and this is only from a handful of the most immediate examples that come to mind.
Garnacho’s Overhead kick was unreal right, but imagine doing it in a UCL Final..
What’s your verdict: where does Alejandro Garnacho’s overhead kick rank compared to the best overhead kicks of all time?
One thing we won’t hear any argument on is that it was comfortably one of the greatest goals we’ve ever seen in Premier League history.
Let us know of any other miraculous overhead kicks we missed, especially if you think they trump the ones on this admittedly shortlist.
To be fair, it’s often forgotten but this one from Philippe Mexès — a centre-back, no less — is definitely in the top five, we just can’t quite decide where.
📅 OTD in 2012…
Philippe Mexès scored one of the most incredible bicycle kicks the Champions League has ever seen 😳👏
Bryan Mbuemo transfer saga looks to finally be over as Manchester United agree deal with Brentford
Danny Jones
In one of the biggest transfer sagas of the 2025 summer transfer window, it looks like Manchester United have got their man, as an agreement with Brentford FC is in place and a move for Bryan Mbuemo looks to be a done deal.
Following weeks and weeks of speculation, minor nudges back and forth in the market, it has now been reported that French-born Mbuemo is heading to Man United, having made it apparent that Old Trafford was his desired destination for some time.
Having initially entered a bid of around £45 million before bonuses last month, the west London club stuck to their guns and appear to have got their overall asking price for the player.
According to Ornstein, a trusted transfer source and ever-reliable journalist, United are expected to pay Brentford an estimated £65m for Mbeumo’s signature.
However, with add-ons of approximately £6m, the attacking midfielder’s total price comes out at more than £70m, making his a fee a sales record for a now established Premier League side who have become known as a ‘feeder/selling club’ with excellent recruitment.
It is also said that MUFC and INEOS have arranged for a payment structure that will see the transfer funded over the course of four-year instalments, with a contract valid until 2030 and the option to extend by a further 12 months.
Well-known for using the so-called ‘Moneyball‘ model to their success in recent years, Mbuemo was signed by the Bees back in 2019, when they were still in the Championship, and he cost just £5.8m from ES Troyes AC – also a club record signing at the time.
Fast forward just a few seasons, not to mention 121 goal contributions in all competitions (28 of those coming last season alone), and he’s been deemed worth about 12 times that amount.
Here are just a few reasons why they’ve been after him.
"He's a player who likes to attack space!" 🔥
With Bryan Mbuemo Manchester United-bound, what can we expect from the winger? 👀 pic.twitter.com/ebmG8scUBy
Still just 25 years old, it’s fair to say he fits the balance of age and experience that the club are looking to recruit, as well as boasting a profile that suits the system Ruben Amorim is looking to deploy with his ever-shifting squad.
At least on paper, anyway.
Meanwhile, outgoing deals are still expected to be completed before the end of the summer window, with key first-team players like homegrown Marcus Rashford, Alejandro Garnacho, and loanee Antony all still expected to depart.
Stockport school sees under 15s girls football team crowned national champions
Danny Jones
A local Stockport secondary has welcomed home their under-15s girls’ football team as national champions after winning the English Schools’ FA Cup.
Marple Hall School (MHS), located in the south-east part of the old Cheshire borough, is a high-performing educational institution known for its strong investment in youth sport.
Boasting a large sports hall, dedicated 3G footy pitches, MUGA (Multi-Use Games Area), gymnasium, netball and tennis courts, as well as other grass surfaces, many of the town’s nearby clubs make use of the facilities throughout the year.
However, it’s their homegrown talent that is having the spotlight rightfully shone on them this week, as a side of junior female footballers won the prestigious FA tournament for sporting youngsters.
The squad of Year 10 girls – consisting of Marple Hall players aged 14-15 – faced off against Kings Langley last week in the decisive fixture away at Sixways Stadium, home of Worcester City FC and the Worcester Warriors rugby union side.
Following their landmark victory this month, this most recent title has seen them crowned Stockport, Manchester and now National champions, thanks to their 2-1 win in the Development Cup Finals.
Writing in a proud and lengthy post on the school’s website, headteacher Joe Barker described the campaign as “a remarkable run for a remarkable team” and a “thoroughly deserved” trophy, despite coming up against a “really strong team” travelling from the Hertfordshire village.
Barker went on to add: “Team MHS were supported so well by the travelling family and friends, and of course by the 44 students who made their presence known in the stands. Outnumbered but certainly not outvoiced, the chants from team MHS were non-stop and so supportive.
“Not only that, but the whole school got behind the team with the tie live-streamed into every classroom and our halls over lunch.
“My colleagues tell me that they have never felt an atmosphere like it at MHS, the whole school site reverberating to the cheers when the teams came out, when Penny scored her two amazing goals, and at the final whistle.”
He even cited an anecdote of one young pupil telling fellow teacher Miss Gregory: “This is a really mint day for our school, isn’t it, miss? I’m really glad I come here!” He was responding to the moment the aforementioned Stopfordian star, Penny Hallos, scored an audacious backheel to make it a brace.
Unsurprisingly, she earned the player of the match award for her game-winning efforts.
To make things even sweeter, the incredible achievement was also recognised in the House of Commons, with Hazel Grove MP Lisa Smart motioning to toast their success among her fellow peers.
Celebrating not just the English championship but their Treble-winning year, Smart declared: “The whole of the town is incredibly proud of these girls for their achievements.
“My recent hundredth speech in Parliament was on ensuring that girls and young women were given the opportunities to participate in sport, and it is fantastic to be able to celebrate these young women who are doing just that.
“It’s great to be able to help celebrate their national success at Parliament, and I look forward to them achieving wonderful things going forward.”
Better still, nearly £1,500 was raised on top of the fund collected in order to help get the girls to the ground on matchday, and all that money is going directly towards further sports provision for the girls and young women’s sport, specifically.
You can watch the game in full down below, but we’ve highlighted that ingenious second strike from Hallos for you (rewind to around 41:45 to see her equaliser).
Congrats again to the SK, Greater Mancunian and now National champions – we hope we go on to see plenty of your names up in lights soon enough.
Danny Jones -
27th November 2023 
