Soccer is a game that can be amazing – even if a bit boring at times. Yet, one thing that soccer fans do not look forward to is those underwhelming comic reliefs that bring much mirth to non-soccer fans, or even worse – the opposing team! Today we set out to tackle just that and the “underthrow” comes to mind.
But hold on – what is an underthrow? It’s not an official soccer term, but rather something that audiences and onlookers have coined themselves. Basically, it refers to the “throw in” action, but especially when it backfires comically and often – to disastrous consequences. Just think of a goalkeeper missing some silly ball after preeminent that he could not possibly fail to catch it first.
Well, that’s the same with an underthrow. Whether you are playing roulette online in USA or looking for a way to expand your soccer knowledge by looking up some of the silliest underthrows in history, you will definitely find it useful to read up first! Let’s get started. Here are some of the most common reasons why underthrows happen:
- Players are too full of themselves, and they start not acting seriously
- They assume that their teammates understand the ploy
- Sometimes they miscalculate
1. The Bundesliga Incident
Most of these underthrows will remain anonymous, but their stories are rather well-known. A defender in the Bundesliga, the German topflight soccer league, once attempted something rather showy, which backfired. He was supposed to make a throw in and did – but instead of notifying his teammates where he intended to send the ball, he fixed his gaze into the distance, giving the wrong idea to everyone on the field – including the enemy’s team, of course.
This seemed to have been his plan all along. Unfortunately, the defender also just so happened to be fooling his own goalie. Making a powerful throw in he managed to score a goal – in his own post! Here are some other cases of this happening.
Common Mistakes when Throwing In | Frequency |
Aim is off | Moderate |
Ball slips | Rarely but very funny |
Player shows too much self-assuredness | Much rarer, but incredibly funny when it does happen |
2. Ricochets Can Be Fun – and Embarrassing
Right, but it’s not just scoring a goal with a throw in (even if it’s an own goal) – after all, this is impressive even remarkably embarrassing. There are other noteworthy situations, too! Just like Roulette 77 likes to write – in a game of roulette, you can do many things right, but just one wrong decision could upset the entire progress.
Well, it’s the same for soccer! So, there was that one MLS soccer player who was a little showy (as you can assume) who decided that he can throw in the ball just past a teammate so that it will fool the opponents. Well, it did, because nobody expected the ball to hit the thrower’s teammate’s back and the ricochet into possession for the enemy team.
3. The Rory Delap Throw In!
Rory Delap is a fantastic soccer player, and he is well-known for his thrown ins. Make no mistake, this man is a legend. He has been able to send the ball flying more than 50 metres at a time with speed, accuracy, and deftness that few players can properly match, attesting to his incredible capabilities.
This is why it’s weird to find Delap on this list, but he actually did underthrow once – causing the ball to barely fall into the field. It was an incredibly funny moment which had Delap himself gaze at the ball not believing what had just happened.
Fans, of course, laughed it off – a titan such as Delap can hardly be worried about his legacy being tarnished by some such small accident.
4. The Interceptor Moment in Ligue 1
One of the most fun experiences when it comes to throw-ins is when the balls are intercepted. This is why, during a Ligue 1 game, one of the players had tried to set up his own team with a robust defense. He tried throwing the ball not just at the defenders of his own team, but right at their feet so that they could immediately send it out.
But as you have already suspected – this was a bit of a fiasco. An opponent managed to intercept the ball and score as a result. The underthrow was not necessarily too badly done but sending a ball that low when throwing is dangerous as it makes it easier for such things to happen.
This is why coaches mostly tell their players to aim high so that players of their team will usually get it, and interceptions are fewer and far between.
5. Rookies Make Mistake
A qualifier game for the World Cup once saw what the worst is probably underthrow out there. A rookie substitute was asked to perform a throw in with more skilled players fanning out to score if the opportunity arose. Yet, the rookie’s aim was off, and the opposing team got the ball. If you have learned anything – that was enough for them to score a game-sealing point.
The published material expresses the position of the author, which may not coincide with the opinion of the editor.