FIFA reveal Puskas award finalists as Brighton’s Julio Enciso leads nominations for his wondergoal against Man City, while strikes from Portugal and Brazil also make shortcut
- The three-man shortlist for the upcoming FIFA Puskas Award has been revealed
- Brighton’s Julio Enciso is among the nominations for his goal against Man City
- Do Man United have what it takes to exploit Liverpool’s defensive vulnerability? It’s All Kicking Off
The three finalists for the upcoming FIFA Puskas Award have been revealed ahead of the winner being announced at the The Best FIFA Football Awards on January 15.
The individual accolade celebrates the most impressive goal scored across men’s and women’s football from December 19 2022 to August 20 of this year.
Goals from the Premier League, Brazil’s Serie B and the Portuguese top-flight have made the final cut, with no women’s strike included in the final nominations.
Brighton forward Julio Enciso will be hoping to lift the iconic prize named after legendary Hungarian striker Ferenc Puskas who is renowned for his sensational goals.
Enciso’s goal against Manchester City in one of the final Premier League games of last season secured Roberto de Zerbi’s goal a deserved 1-1 draw against the reigning English champions.
Julio Enciso’s stunning goal against Manchester City has been nominated for the FIFA Puskas award
The Brighton forward scored a long-range stunner against City at the end of last season
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The Paraguayan rounded off a brilliant attacking move as he dribbled to within 30-yards of Ederson’s goal before unleashing a rocket strike that left the Man City goalkeeper stretching helplessly.
His stunning right-footed effort found the top corner as the AMEX stadium erupted in emphatic celebration after witnessing the wondergoal.
Enciso said afterwards: ‘The replay is even better. I really like it, because I needed to score at the Amex. My mum was at this game, so it was just for my mum, my celebration. In my country, this goal is on TV, it’s a dream come true.’
Sporting Lisbon’s Nuno Santos is the second nomination after scoring a similarly brilliant goal against Boavista in March this year.
The 28-year-old produced a moment of magic inside the opposition box when he performed a rabona to sweep the ball into the top corner.
Sporting Lisbon’s Nuno Santos (left) has also made the shortcut for his rabona goal
Santos later revealed he had been trying to score that type of goal in training as Sporting went on to claim a 3-0 win in the Portuguese top-flight.
Botafogo’s defensive midfielder Guilherme Madruga claims the final nomination spot for the Puskas award for his goal against Novorizontino in June.
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The 23-year-old has scored just two goals in the entirety of his professional career and his first was a moment of brilliance in the Brazilian Serie B clash.
Madruga opted for the sensational when he hit a half-volley bicycle kick from outside the box with his shot then sailing over Novorizontino’s defence and goalkeeper and into the net.
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