Football on Feb. 29: Who can claim to be soccer’s Mr. Leap Year?
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Much like World Cups (for now at the least), Feb. 29 solely comes round as soon as each 4 years and a few alternative soccer occasions have occurred on the rarest of all dates.
As you most likely know, a Leap Year incorporates a further day on high of the same old 365, which is added in on the finish of February so as to preserve a stage of synchronisation between the Gregorian calendar 12 months and the Earth’s precise annual rotation across the Sun.
With 2024 being one other Leap Year, and Leap Day itself upon us as soon as once more, this is a well timed look again at a few of the most notable intercalary incidents which have taken place in soccer on Feb. 29, going again to the 12 months that the Premier League and Champions League each started.
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1992
#OnThisDay in 1992: Eric Cantona scores his first objective in English soccer, the winner for #LUFC vs Luton. pic.twitter.com/bpQhTyrbkv
— A Funny Old Game (@sid_lambert) February 28, 2018
Eric Cantona scored his first goal in English football on Feb. 29, 1992, over a month after signing for Leeds United from French aspect Nimes. After coming off the bench towards Luton Town, Cantona managed to open his account and lay on an help in a 2-0 victory for his new aspect, who the surly France ahead helped propel to the ultimate English First Division title earlier than the highest tier rebranded and relaunched because the Premier League for the 1992-93 season.
2000
Ferran Torres is an apex predator. 🦈 pic.twitter.com/rpEKgxVeFh
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) October 6, 2023
Ferran Torres was born on Feb. 29, 2000 which, assuming the Barcelona ahead has solely been in a position to rejoice his birthday each 4 years since, technically makes him seven years outdated in the present day — absolutely the key to his youthful look.
Ferran is not the one skilled footballer to have been born on a Leap Day; in actual fact he shares his birthday with a choose group that features former United States worldwide Taylor Twellman (born in 1980) and World Cup-winning Germany midfielder Benedikt Höwedes (1988). Crystal Palace hero Darren Ambrose was additionally born on Feb. 29 in 1984, which suggests he has the esteemed honour of sharing his birthday with none apart from hip-hop star and Fyre Festival founder Ja Rule.
On the identical day that Ferran was born, Bayern Munich galloped to a 4-2 hammering of Real Madrid within the second group stage of the Champions League. Bayern topped the group but it surely was the Spaniards who had the final chuckle. Madrid powered by to the knockout stage, beating Bayern dwelling and away within the semifinals, earlier than lifting the trophy by defeating Valencia 3-0 within the ultimate.
2004
Harry Kewell put in a fine performance by scoring for Liverpool in a 2-2 draw towards former membership Leeds United at Elland Road on Feb. 29, 2004. Kewell then staked his claim to be without end often called soccer’s “Mr. Leap Year” by scoring for Australia on Feb. 29, 2012. The Socceroos swept to a dramatic 4-2 win over Saudi Arabia in a World Cup qualifier with a late three-goal flurry that ended the latter’s hopes of reaching the 2014 match in Brazil.
2008
What a means to get your first Reds objective 😍
🚀 @Mascherano 🚀 pic.twitter.com/YATyky5Cnu
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) June 8, 2021
Leap Day in 2008 introduced with it a merciful finish to a controversial and drawn-out switch saga that had begun the earlier November. Javier Mascherano lastly accomplished his everlasting transfer to Liverpool from West Ham, having beforehand been on mortgage at Anfield for over a 12 months.
The deal had been held up for months due to authorized problems with Mascherano and the third-party possession of his financial rights, below which he had joined West Ham United two years earlier from Brazilian aspect Corinthians alongside compatriot Carlos Tevez. However, issues have been finally resolved and the Argentina worldwide’s £18 million swap was ratified. Shortly afterwards, FIFA, UEFA and the Premier League took steps to ban third-party possession fully.
2012
The U.S. males’s nationwide group loved slightly Leap Day magic in 2012 after they pulled off a well-known 1-0 win over Italy in a world pleasant, beating the Azzurri for the primary time ever. Clint Dempsey scored the decisive goal simply after half-time but it surely was the U.S.’s resilient defensive show thereafter, marshalled by captain Carlos Bocanegra, that actually sealed the deal in Genoa.
Earlier that day, Stuart Pearce suffered the indignity of shedding his first and solely sport as England supervisor, after stepping in as caretaker following the sacking of Fabio Capello, in a 3-2 defeat towards Netherlands. Arjen Robben scored the late objective that consigned “Psycho” and his gamers to their underwhelming destiny at Wembley. If you are questioning whether or not Robben reduce in from the fitting and completed deftly along with his left foot, then wonder no more …
2016
WATCH
FIFA President Gianni Infantino had a memorable first day in workplace! https://t.co/C0tzKBAZsK— FIFA (@FIFAcom) March 1, 2016
After being sworn in as successor to the deposed Sepp Blatter, Gianni Infantino marked his first day in workplace as president of FIFA with a star-studded kickaround that took place on Leap Day exterior his new office in Zurich. A raft of former gamers turned out for the sport with Luis Figo, Robert Pires, Michel Salgado, Clarence Seedorf and Deco serving to to kind a stacked roster for the event.
2020
There have been Premier League fixtures performed on Feb. 29 for the primary time since 2004 as 5 top-flight video games came about on Leap Day in 2020.
The most memorable was Watford’s shock 3-0 win over Liverpool at Vicarage Road, primarily as a result of the previous have been bobbing round within the relegation zone on the time and the latter have been simply 5 outcomes shy of equalling the Arsenal Invincibles’ Premier League report 49-game unbeaten streak. The Reds have been additionally on a run of 18 straight league wins, although all that got here crashing to a halt because the Hornets hauled themselves out of the drop zone with a very momentous efficiency.
Ismaïla Sarr additionally made his personal little little bit of Premier League historical past by turning into the primary participant to rating two targets on Leap Day, although the Senegal winger’s achievement was matched later the identical day as Chelsea full-back Marcos Alonso scored a brace of his personal in a 2-2 draw towards AFC Bournemouth.
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