3 defenders who scored the match-winning goal in the final of a major tournament

Modified Nov 16, 2018 13:22 GMT

Ronald Koeman was brilliant with his free-kicks and scored a lot of goals from set pieces

#3. Juliano Belletti (Barcelona vs Arsenal, 2005/06 Champions League)

Barcelona had a very good attacking team in 2005/06 season, comprising of the likes of Xavi, Ronaldinho, Messi and Eto’o, but it took one of their substitutes to win the match against Arsenal in the final. Barcelona came back from a 0-1 deficit to win the match after Arsenal had scored first through a header by Sol Campbell, another defender.

Barcelona coach, Frank Rijkaard, introduced Henrik Larsson and Belletti in the second half. Eto'o equalized in the 76th minute from an assist by Larsson. Larsson then played a pass to the overlapping Belletti, who entered into the Arsenal penalty box through the right side and beat David Seaman with a well-placed shot in the 80th minute.

It was Barcelona’s 3rd European title and the diminutive Brazilian defender played a pivotal role in it. Belletti moved to Chelsea soon after that, but the Barcelona supporters would always remember him for that goal.

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Subhadeep, an adept tennis journalist at Sportskeeda, has been writing about the sport for seven years. He is known for his exclusive match reviews and opinion pieces, utilizing his MBA degree to tackle them effectively with his problem-solving abilities.

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Edited by Sagnik Mallick