Pace, swerve, angle – the art of the ‘olimpico’, football’s (usually) rare phenomenon

“Oscar Wilde once famously wrote that ‘to concede one goal direct from a corner is a misfortune, to concede two in eight days looks like carelessness.’ The thoughts of Oscar, noted corner-kick scholar, may have been rushing through the heads of anyone associated with Manchester United recently after they allowed not one but two ‘olimpicos’ — which, if you’re not familiar with the term, means scoring directly from a corner — in just over a week, in two different competitions. The first came from Son Heung-min in that madcap Carabao Cup quarter-final against Tottenham, his corner sailing over second-choice keeper Altay Bayindir and into the net. The second saw Matheus Cunha flummox Andre Onana, with the help of some judiciously positioned Wolves defenders, in the Premier League on Boxing Day. …”
NY Times/The Athletic (Video)