Sports News of Monday, 23 September 2019
Source: planetfootball.com
Take yourself back to the late summer of 1995. Take That were top of the charts, Kevin Costner’s Waterworld was headlining at your local cinema, and O.J. Simpson was experiencing a squeaky bum in front of a jury of his peers.
In the Premier League, exotic names were appearing on teamsheets across the land. Ruud Gullit at Chelsea. Dennis Bergkamp at Arsenal. Georgi Kinkladze at Maine Road. But in the early weeks of 1995-96 only one man was stealing the headlines: Anthony Yeboah.
Leeds United’s resident Ghanaian embarked on a run of goalscoring form that made him a Premier League cult hero and the undisputed the King of the Thunderbastards. As @Sid_Lambert remembers.
West Ham, August 19, 1995
After arriving from Eintracht Frankfurt in January, Yeboah had taken little time in acclimatising to his new surroundings, and a springtime hat-trick against Ipswich showed that he was starting to simmer nicely.
By the time the new season started, Yeboah was hotter than Satan’s arsehole after an uncooperative Chicken Madras.
He scored twice a 2-1 win at Upton Park on the opening day. His first was an impressive header, his second a moment of quite exquisite savagery.
It started with that most traditional of Howard Wilkinson tactics: the hoof forward. Followed by the equally characteristic West Ham defensive cock-up, as Marc Rieper and Steve Potts suffered a collective brainfart to leave the Leeds striker space to shoot.
Still, even they couldn’t have expected what happened next. Yeboah’s left peg unleashed the most unprovoked act of violence in the East End since Ronnie and Reggie decided Jack McVitie was getting on their nerves.
The ball sizzled past Ludek Miklosko and back out again before the giant Czech could even react. This was the same Ludek Miklosko who just months earlier had performed miracles to keep out Manchester United, thereby gifting Blackburn the title. Even he was powerless. Sometimes there’s nothing you can do.
Monaco, September 12, 1995
Later that week Leeds travelled to Monaco in the UEFA Cup and took a sizeable following to the south of France. It was a clash of Hovis versus haute couture. Grand Casino versus Gary Kelly. Wine versus Wensleydale. And there was only one winner.
Yeboah notched a hat-trick, the pick of which was this extraordinary second goal.
Under Wilkinson’s blueprint, a throw-in near the opposition penalty was normally a chance to get it in the mixer. However, Yeboah wasn’t one for tactical discipline.
A trademark turn left his marker for dead and he uncorked a shitscorcher of a strike into the top left corner. The Leeds corner of the ground was a sea of energetic young men in white shirts and stonewash denim (and they say Take That haven’t influenced football), while even the home crowd stood to applaud its genius.
The final score would be 3-0 to the visitors. It wouldn’t be the last Yorkshire battering in Monaco of the 90s. But we’ve all heard enough about Geoff Boycott. This would comfortably be the most feted.
FORGOTTEN GOAL: 24 years ago today Tony Yeboah continued his personal crusade against tap-ins by scoring this pinger (for his hat-trick) vs Monaco.
— Proper Football (@sid_lambert) September 12, 2019
He was fucking unreal, wasn’t he?pic.twitter.com/8kHIxupsNg
???? "Wonderful goal, James never saw it!" #OnThisDay in 1995, Tony Yeboah scored THAT against @LFC... pic.twitter.com/xPyx1MAdND
— Leeds United (@LUFC) August 21, 2019
23 years ago today: Tony Yeboah vs Wimbledon.
— Proper Football (@sid_lambert) September 23, 2018
The greatest Thunderbastard in the history of Thunderbastards...pic.twitter.com/gYV3pWSD1N