Juventus Manages Draw Despite Oscar's Magic

Published: Wednesday, 19. September, 2012 in category Mark’s Mayhem

Chelsea's Brazilian phenom Oscar scores two great goals, but unfortunately Juve takes advantage of a late miscue to draw level at Stamford Bridge in Wednesday's Champions League action.

I remember when Clint Dempsey had the audacity to try a chip from the side of the penalty box against Juventus years ago, and without even looking (at least it seemed that way, but we all know he took a glance at goal at somepoint) he placed it into the net to propel Fulham to advancement.

Today, I was reminded of that kind of strike with Chelsea's Oscar turned around two Juve defenders and then, without even looking (again, we all know they look at some point) he struck a thing of beauty that found it's way to the upper corner of the net.

Those types of goals render me speechless.

I will sit there and rewind it half-a-dozen times to watch not only the trajectory (yes, I looked that word up) of the ball, but also to try and catch when the player (in this case Oscar) stole his little glance at goal to see exactly where he needed to put the ball.

Oscar knew where the goal was before he even turned and whether he took a look after his first turn touch is hard to decipher, but there is no doubt he saw enough of the goal out of the corner of his eye (peripheral vision) to know where his target was. The rest was all instinct. Head down, drive through the ball, enjoy a world-class goal. Have fans crying over the beauty and audacity of it all.

Special players bring us special moments and Oscar can be included in this category. How much more magic will the youngster provide us in coming years? Plenty!

What a great signing by Chelsea. It's too bad that his two goals didn't secure the victory. But I like the combinations of players that RDM is fielding.

Mark Vincent Lincir is the author of A SOCCER LIFE IN SHORTS. He writes at www.markvincentlincir.com and can be followed at www.twittter.com/mvlincir.