One of the beautiful things about the World Cup is that it can present an almost unique opportunity for an unfancied player to enshrine themselves in footballing folklore forever.
At this summer’s finals alone we have seen Leicester flop Ahmed Musa destroy an Icelandic defence which held firm against Argentina, John Stones scoring more goals in one match than he ever has in his entire league career and Denis Cheryshev looking like Maradona incarnate – well, before he stuck the ball in his own net against Uruguay anyway.
Today, we wanted to take a look at seven even more unlikely characters who have managed to become synonymous with football’s ultimate month-long festival of football.
Here are our 7 unlikely World Cup heroes:
7. Oleg Salenko
We start with a player from this year’s host nation Russia, and the curious case of Oleg Salenko. The only player in the history of the game to have won the Golden Boot at both the U-20 and senior World Cups, those records suggest a player who ought to be a household name. But Salenko is anything but. He scored 5 goals in a single game against Cameroon at the 1994 World Cup – another record – and remains the only World Cup Golden Boot winner to have gone out in the group stages. His heroics earned him a move to Valencia, followed quickly by a transfer to Rangers. Salenko looked decent in both those stints, but had horrendous injury problems, and his career was as good as over by the age of 26.
6. Marco Tardelli
(L-R) Former Italian National players Marco Tardelli and Giancarlo Antognoni pose showing the award during the Italian Football Federation Hall of Fame Award ceremony at Palazzo Vecchio on…
Arms out, fists clenched and shouting with all the fervour of a man possessed by Satanic forces. Marco Tardelli’s goal celebration after scoring for Italy against West Germany in the 1982 World Cup final is truly one of the most iconic World Cup moments. Among the finest defensive midfielders of all time and undoubtedly the most talented and decorated player in this seven, one could argue that Marco Tardelli has no right to feature here. However, goal scoring was hardly the dominant feature of Tardelli’s game, the Juventus great being more commonly associated with his stamina, tenacity and footballing intelligence.
5. Joe Gaetjens
A man who was at the centre of one of sports greatest underdog stories before mysteriously disappearing after his arrest at the hands of a murderous dictator in his native Haiti. Born in the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince, Gaetjens moved to the United States in 1947, when he began playing football for the now defunct Brookhattan club of New York. He scored prolifically, and in 1950, he was included in the US squad for the 1950 World Cup finals in Brazil. It was there that Gaetjens scored a goal which rocked the world arguably more than any other in the history of the game, a 38th minute strike in a freak 1-0 win for the US against England. He made a move to France following that fame, but failed to replicate his heroics following the step up in class. Gaetjens disappeared in 1964 at the age of 40, shortly after his return and arrest in Haiti.
4. David Narey
England player Ray Wilkins challenges David Narey of Scotland during a British Championships match at Wembley Stadium on May 23, 1981 in London, England.
A 6-foot centre-back who spent 21 years at Dundee United and a single season at Raith Rovers, David Narey’s club career doesn’t scream of cult hero, except for those at Tannadice Park perhaps. However, the Scottish international scored one of his country’s most memorable World Cup goals in 1982. Playing at right-back that day, Narey burst forward and sent a fierce right footed shot past Waldir Peres in the Brazil goal. It wasn’t enough for the Scots though, who finished third in their group trailing the Soviet Union on goal difference.
3. Pickles
The only dog in this seven, Pickles was the black and white collie dog who quite literally saved the World Cup, or the Jules-Rimet Trophy to be more specific. Back in 1966, four months before the World Cup was set to kick-off in England, the Jules-Rimet trophy was stolen from Westminster, London. After an extensive search, it was four year old Pickles and his owner David Corbett who found the trophy in South London. When England eventually won the tournament months later, Pickles was invited to the celebration banquet. Following a brief movie and TV career, Pickles sadly passed away in 1967. As for the trophy, it was eventually stolen once more and never recovered this time in Brazil in 1983.
2. Roger Milla
Roger Milla poses with the Golden Foot award during the Golden Foot 2014 Awards Ceremony at Sporting Club on October 13, 2014 in Monte-Carlo, Monaco.
World Cup cult heroes don’t come much better than Roger Milla, the effervescent and timeless Cameroon legend whose goals and subsequent celebrations brought joy to millions. A quality centre-forward who had enjoyed much success in France’s Ligue 1, Milla’s World Cup stardom was unlikely primarily due to his age. He was 38 at Italia ‘90 when he became the tournaments oldest ever goal scorer, going on to bag four goals as Cameroon reached the Quarter-Finals. Four years later at the ripe old age of 42, he overtook his own record, and remains comfortably the oldest scorer in the competition’s history.
1. Toto Schillaci
Roger Milla’s four goals at Italia ‘90 made him the joint third highest scorer at the finals, but the Golden Boot went to another unlikely hero. Salvatore or ‘Toto’ Schillaci was a centre-forward who spent most of his career outside of Italy’s top flight, and only ever scored more than 6 goals once in the five seasons he spent in Serie A. Thankfully for Schillaci, and Italy indeed, the 1990 World Cup came after his best season, in which he scored 15 league goals.
Schillaci had only won one cap before the finals, and started their first two games on the bench. He eventually worked his way into the starting XI, though, scoring in the Round of 16 against Uruguay, the Quarter-Finals against the Republic of Ireland, the semi-finals against Argentina and in the third-place play-off match against England. He ended the tournament as top scorer with 6 goals, but scored only 5 goals in 25 games for Juventus the following season, ending his career with three years in Japan.
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