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There's playing out from the back and then there's this.

We’ve just found the Puskas award winner – he’s a nine-year-old goalkeeper

Manuel Neuer, eat your heart out.

By now we’re all well-versed in goalkeepers playing it out from the back, often effectively operating as an 11th outfielder. But this next generation appear to be taking that to ridiculous new levels.

On a sleepy international break weekend, it was welcome to see our social media feeds punctuated by this outrageous solo effort from Eintracht Frankfurt’s Under-9 goalkeeper.

We’ve not checked the fine print for the Puskas award, but we don’t think actual children from youth games are eligible.

But we’d like to see an exception made for this, frankly because it’s something we’ve not seen in the real world – the closest reference point we can think of is when you’re bored and taking the p*ss against your six-year-old nephew on FIFA.

The young ‘keeper is already well outside of his box, playing the sweeper role and evidently desperate for some action, when he receives the ball. Now there are at least three or four passing options open, but he’s not interested in that.

Straight away, he knows what he’s doing. Head down and a shimmy to evade two of the opposition’s forwards. From there there’s open green space ahead of him. Past another one. Past two. At this point there are four behind him and it’s starting to resemble a game of tig more than football.

Past another. Now he’s on the edge of the opposite box, but the angle isn’t easy. The finish is every bit as adept as the mazy dribble, giving his opposite number no chance as he fires it into the bottom corner.


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The funniest thing about this act of individual brilliance is that his team-mates don’t even go to over to celebrate with him, suggesting that they’re well used to him doing this by now.

Either way, on this evidence he ought not to be playing in net or possesses the freakish ability to be moved up a level or two in the age groups.

Perhaps we’ve just seen a glimpse of the future. Forget Pep Guardiola’s tactical revolution and Juego de Posicion. Intricate passing is all well and good. Very impressive, well done Pep.

But we’re a bit tired of that now and could do with something new. And if football in 2034 is a bunch of freakishly talented dribblers going from one end of the pitch to the other, that’s fine by us.

All hail our new footballing overlords.

By Nestor Watach