Matty Burrows
Encyclopedia
Matthew "Matty" Burrows is a professional football player from Northern Ireland. He currently plays for Belfast
club Glentoran
in the IFA Premiership
.
Burrows is probably best known for scoring a jumping backheel volley goal against Portadown
to seal victory for Glentoran in injury-time of a match on 5 October 2010. The "astonishing goal" came from the back of Burrows' heel from 16 yards out in mid-air. The goal received international acclaim, with millions viewing the goal on YouTube
, and football programmes around the world broadcasting the goal to audiences unfamiliar with the Irish league. The goal drew comparisons with the likes of Lionel Messi
and Cristiano Ronaldo
, with The Sun claiming that the two would be "proud to score a goal like that".
The goal was shortlisted for the 2010 FIFA Puskás Award
, which honours the player judged to have scored the "most beautiful" goal of the year. However, Burrows lost out at the Ballon d'Or
awards ceremony on 10 January 2011 to Bayern Munich
and Turkey
midfielder Hamit Altıntop
, for his volleyed goal in Turkey's UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying
game against Kazakhstan
on 3 September 2010.
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
club Glentoran
Glentoran F.C.
Glentoran F.C. is a semi-professional, football club in Northern Ireland. The club was founded in 1882 and plays its home games at the Oval in east Belfast. Club colours are green, red, and black.Glentoran's biggest rivals are Linfield...
in the IFA Premiership
IFA Premiership
The IFA Premiership – formerly the Irish Premier League, and before that the Irish Football League–and still known in popular parlance simply as the Irish League, is the national football league in Northern Ireland, and was historically the league for the whole of Ireland. Clubs in the league are...
.
Burrows is probably best known for scoring a jumping backheel volley goal against Portadown
Portadown F.C.
Portadown F.C. is a semi-professional, Northern Irish football club which plays in the IFA Premiership.The club was founded in the late 1880s and joined the Irish League in 1924. It is based in Portadown in County Armagh and plays its home games at Shamrock Park...
to seal victory for Glentoran in injury-time of a match on 5 October 2010. The "astonishing goal" came from the back of Burrows' heel from 16 yards out in mid-air. The goal received international acclaim, with millions viewing the goal on YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
, and football programmes around the world broadcasting the goal to audiences unfamiliar with the Irish league. The goal drew comparisons with the likes of Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi
Lionel Andrés "Leo" Messi is an Argentine footballer who plays for FC Barcelona and captains the Argentina national team, mainly as a striker. Messi received several Ballon d'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year nominations by the age of 21, and won in 2009 and 2010...
and Cristiano Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro, OIH, , commonly known as Cristiano Ronaldo, is a Portuguese footballer who plays as a winger or striker for Spanish La Liga club Real Madrid and is the captain of the Portuguese national team...
, with The Sun claiming that the two would be "proud to score a goal like that".
The goal was shortlisted for the 2010 FIFA Puskás Award
FIFA Puskas Award
The FIFA Puskás Award is an award established on 20 October 2009 by FIFA at the behest of FIFA President Sepp Blatter in order to award the player, male or female, judged to have scored the most aesthetically significant and "most beautiful" goal of the year...
, which honours the player judged to have scored the "most beautiful" goal of the year. However, Burrows lost out at the Ballon d'Or
2010 FIFA Ballon d'Or
The 2010 FIFA Ballon d'Or was the inaugural year for FIFA's awards for the top football players and coaches of the year. The award merged FIFA's former World Player of the Year awards with the Ballon d'Or, previously presented by the French media to the top men's player in Europe. The awards...
awards ceremony on 10 January 2011 to Bayern Munich
FC Bayern Munich
FC Bayern Munich , is a German sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. It is best known for its professional football team, which is the most successful football club in Germany, having won 22 national titles and 15 cups....
and Turkey
Turkey national football team
The Turkey national football team represents Turkey in association football and is controlled by the Turkish Football Federation, the governing body for football in Turkey. They are affiliated with UEFA...
midfielder Hamit Altıntop
Hamit Altintop
Hamit Altıntop is a German-born Turkish professional footballer who plays for Real Madrid in La Liga. He is a versatile midfielder who can play either in a defending or attacking role and on both flanks. He is well known for his flair of long-shot ability, as shown when he played for Schalke 04...
, for his volleyed goal in Turkey's UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying
UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying
The qualifying competition for UEFA Euro 2012 is a series of parallel association football competitions held over 2010 and 2011 to decide the qualifiers for UEFA Euro 2012, to be held in Poland and Ukraine...
game against Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan national football team
The Kazakhstan national football team represents Kazakhstan in international men's association football and is directed by Football Federation of Kazakhstan. They split from the Soviet Union national football team after independence in 1991 and joined the Asian Football Confederation's Central and...
on 3 September 2010.