A toe punt (also known as a toe poker or a toe-ender [1] ) is a method of kicking the ball in association football. [2] Unlike other methods of kicking, the toe punt uses the toe end of the boot rather than the instep or laces. [1] [2]
Toe punts (known as "straight-on" or "straight-toe") were the predominant form of kicking for placekickers in gridiron-based forms of football until the 1960s. A special boot was used with a flat front surface, as using a toe kick with a regular shoe with a rounded or pointed toe could cause the ball to travel in an unpredictable direction. The introduction of instep kicking (known as the "soccer-style kick") to the game in the 1960s, along with a rule change in 1977 banning the special shoe (one of several rules introduced to curb the influence of kickers in the game), eventually led to the end of the use of toe kicks in American and Canadian football.
Ronaldo Luís Nazário de Lima, commonly known as Ronaldo, is a Brazilian business owner, president of Segunda División club Real Valladolid, owner of Brasileiro Série B club Cruzeiro, and a retired professional footballer who played as a striker. Popularly dubbed O Fenômeno, and also nicknamed R9, he is widely considered one of the greatest players of all time. As a multi-functional striker who brought a new dimension to the position, Ronaldo has been the influence for a generation of strikers that have followed. His individual accolades include being named FIFA World Player of the Year three times, and winning two Ballon d'Or awards.
Thierry Daniel Henry is a French professional football coach and former player who is an assistant coach for the Belgium national team. He is considered one of the greatest strikers of all time and one of the greatest players in the history of the Premier League. In 2003 and 2004, Henry was the runner-up for the FIFA World Player of the Year, and was runner-up for the Ballon d'Or in the former year. He was named the PFA Players' Player of the Year twice, the FWA Footballer of the Year three times, and was named in the PFA Team of the Year six consecutive times. He was also included in the FIFA FIFPro World XI once and the UEFA Team of the Year five times. He was one of the most commercially marketed footballers during the 2000s. Henry, along with Alan Shearer, was one of the inaugural inductees into the Premier League Hall of Fame in 2021.
Rivaldo Vítor Borba Ferreira, known as Rivaldo, is a Brazilian former professional footballer. He played mainly as an attacking midfielder but also as a second striker. He is regarded as one of the greatest players of all time. Labelled a "bandy-legged genius" by The Guardian, although he was predominantly left footed he was capable of playing on either flank, and was on occasion deployed as a wide midfielder or as a winger.
Ronaldo de Assis Moreira, commonly known as Ronaldinho Gaúcho or simply Ronaldinho, is a Brazilian retired professional footballer who played mostly as an attacking midfielder, but was also deployed as a winger. Considered one of the best players of his generation and regarded by many as one of the greatest of all time, Ronaldinho won two FIFA World Player of the Year awards and a Ballon d'Or. A global icon of the sport, he was renowned for his technical skills, creativity, dribbling ability and accuracy from free-kicks, his use of tricks, feints, no-look passes and overhead kicks, as well as his ability to score and create goals.
Romário de Souza Faria, known simply as Romário, is a Brazilian politician who previously achieved worldwide fame as a professional footballer. A prolific striker renowned for his clinical finishing, having scored over 750 goals, he is considered one of the greatest players of all time. Romário starred for Brazil in their 1994 FIFA World Cup triumph, receiving the Golden Ball as player of the tournament. He was named FIFA World Player of the Year the same year. He came fifth in the FIFA Player of the Century internet poll in 1999, was elected to the FIFA World Cup Dream Team in 2002, and was named in the FIFA 100 list of the world's greatest living players in 2004.
Roberto Rivellino is a Brazilian football pundit and retired footballer. He was one of the stars of Brazil's 1970 FIFA World Cup winning team. Rivellino currently works as a pundit for Brazilian TV Cultura.
Anderson Luís de Souza, known as Deco, is a Brazilian-born Portuguese sports agent and retired professional footballer who primarily played as an attacking or central midfielder. After an illustrious playing career he started D20 Sports, an agency that specializes in managing Brazilian and Portuguese footballers. Deco is regarded as one of the best players of his generation.
José Roberto Gama de Oliveira, known as Bebeto, is a Brazilian former professional football player who played as a forward. He entered politics in the 2010 Brazilian General Elections and was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Rio de Janeiro representing the Democratic Labour Party.
Robson de Souza, more commonly known as Robinho, is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a forward.
Lionel Andrés Messi, also known as Leo Messi, is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a forward for Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain and captains the Argentina national team. Often considered the best player in the world and widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, Messi has won a record seven Ballon d'Or awards, a record six European Golden Shoes, and in 2020 was named to the Ballon d'Or Dream Team. Until leaving the club in 2021, he had spent his entire professional career with Barcelona, where he won a club-record 35 trophies, including ten La Liga titles, seven Copa del Rey titles and four UEFA Champions Leagues. A prolific goalscorer and creative playmaker, Messi holds the records for most goals in La Liga (474), a La Liga and European league season (50), most hat-tricks in La Liga (36) and the UEFA Champions League (8), and most assists in La Liga (192), a La Liga season (21) and the Copa América (17). He also holds the record for most international goals by a South American male (80). Messi has scored over 750 senior career goals for club and country, and has the most goals by a player for a single club.
Afonso Alves Martins Júnior, better known as Afonso Alves, is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a striker. He represented Atlético Mineiro, Örgryte, Malmö FF, Heerenveen, Middlesbrough, Al-Sadd, Al-Rayyan and Al-Gharafa during a career that spanned between 2001 and 2013. He won eight caps and scored one goal for the Brazil national team, and helped his country win the 2007 Copa América.
In sports, a goal celebration is the practice of celebrating the scoring of a goal. The celebration is normally performed by the goalscorer, and may involve their teammates, the manager or coaching staff or the supporters of the team. Whilst referring to the celebration of a goal in general, the term can also be applied to specific actions, such as a player removing their shirt or performing a somersault. Celebrations are generally more substantial in lower-scoring sports, such as association football and ice hockey, where a score has greater significance.
In association football, rugby league, rugby union and Australian rules football, a dummy or feint is a player deceiving the opposition into believing he is going to pass, shoot, move in a certain direction, or receive the ball and instead doing something entirely different, thus gaining an advantage.
Curl or bend in association football is spin on the ball which makes the ball move in a curved direction. When kicking the ball, the inside of the foot is often used to curl the ball, but this can also be done by using the outside of the foot. Similar to curl, the ball can also swerve in the air, without the spin on the ball which makes the ball curl.
The 2002 FIFA World Cup Final was the final match of the 2002 World Cup, the 17th edition of FIFA's competition for national football teams. The match was played at the International Stadium in Yokohama, Japan, on 30 June 2002, and was contested by Germany and Brazil. The tournament comprised hosts Japan and South Korea, holders France, and 29 other teams who emerged from the qualification phase, organised by the six FIFA confederations. The 32 teams competed in a group stage, from which 16 teams qualified for the knockout stage. En route to the final, Germany finished first in Group E, with two wins and a draw, after which they defeated Paraguay in the round of 16, the United States in the quarter-finals and South Korea in the semi-finals. Brazil finished top of Group C with three wins, before defeating Belgium in the round of 16, England in the quarter-final, and Turkey in the semi-final. The final took place in front of 69,029 supporters, with an estimated 1.5 billion watching on television, and was refereed by Pierluigi Collina from Italy.
Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior, known as Neymar, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain and the Brazil national team. He is widely regarded as one of the best players in the world.
In association football, shooting is hitting the ball in an attempt to score a goal. It is usually done using the feet or head. A shot on target or shot on goal is a shot that enters the goal or would have entered the goal if it had not been blocked by the goalkeeper or another defensive player.
The flip flap is a dribbling move, or feint, in football, used to fool a defensive player into thinking the offensive player, in possession of the ball, is going to move in a direction they do not intend to. Players perform it by using the outside of their dominant foot to push the ball towards their dominant side, then quickly move the dominant foot around the ball and using the inside to push the ball to their non-dominant side. Although the footwork is the most distinctive aspect of the flip-flap, its success as a feint also relies heavily on the attacking player having an explosive acceleration from a stationary position.
The history of the Brazil national football team began with the team's first international match in 1914, a 0–3 loss to Argentina. Brazil played in the first FIFA World Cup in 1930. The Brazil national team has been successful throughout its history, winning the FIFA World Cup five times since 1958.
A chip, also known as a lob, is a shot in which the ball is kicked from underneath with accuracy but with less than maximum force, to launch it high into the air in order either to pass it over the heads of opponents or to score a goal over the goalkeeper. Chip shots usually have backspin, and if a chip doesn't, then it is usually considered a lob.
