Jordan Flores’s spectacular volley for Dundalk against Shamrock Rovers earlier in the year has been named by Fifa as one of 11 contenders for this year’s Puskas Goal of the Year.
The English midfielder’s rivals for the award, which Stephanie Roche was shortlisted for in 2014, include Son Heung-min of Tottenham, Luis Suarez, of Barcelona when he scored the goal for which he has been nominated, and former French international striker Andre-Pierre Gignac now of Tigres UANL in Mexico.
Flores’s effort, a left-footed first time shot from Michael Duffy’s corner, which drew Dundalk level in what is widely regarded as having been the game of the League season just finished (a 3-2 win for Rovers in Tallaght in February), received a good deal of attention at the time and was, among other things, shown on Match of the Day.
“It’s been a bit surreal really, seeing the clips on different pages, on Twitter all over the world,” said the player back in February. “These are things I’ve been watching when I was growing up and to be shown on something like that is good. It’s good to get that recognition.”
The winner of the award will be decided by a mix of jury and public voting. Details are at Fifa.com.
Puskás Award nominees
Shirley Cruz (CRC) - Costa Rica v. Panama [Concacaf Women’s Olympic qualifying] (January 28th 2020)
Giorgian De Arrascaeta (URU) - Ceará SC v. CR Flamengo [Brasileirão - Brazil] (August 25th 2019)
Jordan Flores (ENG) - Shamrock Rovers FC v. Dundalk FC [League of Ireland] (February 28th 2020)
André-Pierre Gignac (FRA) - UANL Tigres v. Pumas UNAM [Liga MX - Mexico] (March 1st 2020)
Sophie Ingle (WAL) - Arsenal WFC v. Chelsea FC Women [FA Women’s Super League - England] (January 19th 2020)
Zlatko Junuzovic (AUT) - SK Rapid Wien v. FC Red Bull Salzburg [Bundesliga - Austria] (June 24th 2020)
Hlompho Kekana (RSA) - Mamelodi Sundowns FC v. Cape Town City FC [South African Premier Soccer League] (August 20th 2019)
Son Heungmin (KOR) - Tottenham Hotspur FC v. Burnley FC [Premier League - England] (December 7th 2019)
Leonel Quiñónez (ECU) - Universidad Católica v. CSD Macará [Serie A - Ecuador] (August 19th 2019)
Luis Suárez (URU) - FC Barcelona v. RCD Mallorca [LaLiga[MG(1] - Spain] (December 7th 2019)
Caroline Weir (SCO) - Manchester City WFC v. Manchester United WFC [FA Women’s Super League - England] (September 2019 7th)
