Xu Liang scored a magical goal in the 74th minute of a scoreless match between Guo’an and Dalian Shide in Beijing’s Workers Stadium on Saturday. The ball slipped from a Dalian player’s feet directly to his, and catching a glimpse of goalkeeper Zhang Chong a bit too far off his line, Xu let loose with a seeing-eye strike from beyond midfield. The ball zipped over Zhang’s head and found the back of the net, blowing the cap off a crowd that had been teased all night with goals that failed to materialize (just a few minutes earlier, Guo’an’s Freddie Kanoute was incorrectly deemed offsides on a ball he slammed home). The 62-meter goal proved to be the only one of the match.
After the jump, I’ve embedded the entire second half of the Beijing-Dalian game, so scroll ahead to the 32:30 mark if you want to see the goal. There’s also a GIF, originally posted to Sina Weibo, because this moment clearly deserved it.
(H/T Alicia)