| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand 23:08 - Mar 14 with 3217 views | extratimeR |
Post Match chat, talking about how good Ronaldo is in the air.
Gary Neville " Les Ferdinand was the best player in the air he played against"
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| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand on 00:11 - Mar 15 with 3075 views | Northernr |
Once wrote a very good article for the Telegraph about how Les stuck him and the ball in the back of the net piling in at the back post at the Loft End - grow up fast etc. Let me see if I can find it... |  | | |
| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand on 10:44 - Mar 15 with 2670 views | bakerloo8 |
Was like Les had springs in his boots. A monster in the air. |  | | |
| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand on 11:50 - Mar 15 with 2533 views | DannyPaddox |
As well as the jump and the timing what Les had was that seeming knack of staying in the air when it didn’t seem possible in the laws of physics as if he possessed a very specific super power which was for just a fleeting moment the ability to turn gravity off. |  | | |
| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand on 12:29 - Mar 15 with 2445 views | CLAREMAN1995 |
Ireland had Portugal dead and buried last year in the Euro qualifier until he hung in the air not once but twice and broke our hearts .Same thing on Saturday against Spurs and I believe it was the same culprit Matt Doherty who did not jump or impede his progress .
QPR need to continue heading corners into the net from now until the end of the season we have the height advantage I believe | | | |
| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand on 13:47 - Mar 15 with 2300 views | TheChef |
| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand on 12:29 - Mar 15 by CLAREMAN1995 |
Ireland had Portugal dead and buried last year in the Euro qualifier until he hung in the air not once but twice and broke our hearts .Same thing on Saturday against Spurs and I believe it was the same culprit Matt Doherty who did not jump or impede his progress .
QPR need to continue heading corners into the net from now until the end of the season we have the height advantage I believe |
Thought you were talking about Les for a moment there  |  |
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| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand on 14:12 - Mar 15 with 2233 views | BrianMcCarthy |
| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand on 12:29 - Mar 15 by CLAREMAN1995 |
Ireland had Portugal dead and buried last year in the Euro qualifier until he hung in the air not once but twice and broke our hearts .Same thing on Saturday against Spurs and I believe it was the same culprit Matt Doherty who did not jump or impede his progress .
QPR need to continue heading corners into the net from now until the end of the season we have the height advantage I believe |
It was Duffy for the first and Coleman for the second, Bannerman. [Post edited 15 Mar 2022 14:25]
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| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand on 16:26 - Mar 15 with 2128 views | Antti_Heinola |
Some of the best headers of a ball weren't that big. Always think it's slightly erroneous how some fans and commentators think height means you should win more headers. A bit like (not totally) saying you should be able to win more tackles if you've got massive feet. Heading, like all skills, is about technique and timing as much as how tall you are. Les at just 5'11, was fantastic. Tim Cahill another one - better than Les IMO, a tremendous header of the ball but not tall. Ronaldo I have to admit is also a superb headerererer. |  |
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| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand on 16:28 - Mar 15 with 2111 views | Northernr |
| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand on 16:26 - Mar 15 by Antti_Heinola |
Some of the best headers of a ball weren't that big. Always think it's slightly erroneous how some fans and commentators think height means you should win more headers. A bit like (not totally) saying you should be able to win more tackles if you've got massive feet. Heading, like all skills, is about technique and timing as much as how tall you are. Les at just 5'11, was fantastic. Tim Cahill another one - better than Les IMO, a tremendous header of the ball but not tall. Ronaldo I have to admit is also a superb headerererer. |
Paul Parker.
At the other end of the spectrum, Patrick Agyemang's wikipedia tells me he is 6ft 1in, or 5ft 7in if he was jumping to head the ball. | | | |
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| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand on 17:02 - Mar 15 with 2014 views | MrSheen |
| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand on 16:26 - Mar 15 by Antti_Heinola |
Some of the best headers of a ball weren't that big. Always think it's slightly erroneous how some fans and commentators think height means you should win more headers. A bit like (not totally) saying you should be able to win more tackles if you've got massive feet. Heading, like all skills, is about technique and timing as much as how tall you are. Les at just 5'11, was fantastic. Tim Cahill another one - better than Les IMO, a tremendous header of the ball but not tall. Ronaldo I have to admit is also a superb headerererer. |
See also Garth Crooks, who in the days before he dedicated himself to long questions seemed to be able to head a ball harder than he could kick it. |  | | |
| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand on 17:02 - Mar 15 with 2011 views | BrianMcCarthy |
Good calls on Cahill and Parker.
Ok, and Ronaldo too. Bah... | |
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| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand on 17:32 - Mar 15 with 1934 views | DannyPaddox |
I remember in a previous century watching the big match one Sunday afternoon and the shorter highlights came on of a second or third division game up north involving Bolton Wanderers. A player scored a headed goal from way out - maybe outside the box. As hard as a shot. I’d never seen such an exploit before and it shaped my concept of lower league northern defenders - like hardened conkers they must soak their heads in vinegar to head a ball so hard. I always remembered the players name, Allardyce. No idea what became of him. | | | |
| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand on 18:51 - Mar 15 with 1804 views | MrSheen |
| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand on 17:32 - Mar 15 by DannyPaddox |
I remember in a previous century watching the big match one Sunday afternoon and the shorter highlights came on of a second or third division game up north involving Bolton Wanderers. A player scored a headed goal from way out - maybe outside the box. As hard as a shot. I’d never seen such an exploit before and it shaped my concept of lower league northern defenders - like hardened conkers they must soak their heads in vinegar to head a ball so hard. I always remembered the players name, Allardyce. No idea what became of him. |
Never did him any harm, neither. | | | |
| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand on 11:58 - Mar 16 with 1510 views | extratimeR |
One of the best I saw was Alan Gilzean, slightly different style to Les, but again could hang around in the air, great player.
( Legendary consumer of the electric soup, allegedly) | | | |
| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand on 12:29 - Mar 16 with 1445 views | qprxtc |
On the other hand Stan was terrible in the air.
Aerophobia. |  | | |
| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand on 12:54 - Mar 16 with 1390 views | slmrstid |
Ale Faurlin was excellent at winning midfield balls in the air I always remember too. |  | | |
| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand on 10:16 - Mar 17 with 1111 views | CliveWilsonSaid |
Michael Mancienne wasn’t tall and didn’t have much of a leap but was very good at anticipating where the ball was going to drop. He’d often be able to head the ball away unchallenged for this reason. That’s my memory of him anyway. |  |
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| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand on 10:42 - Mar 17 with 1075 views | peterlund_dk |
| Gary Neville -Les Ferdinand on 16:26 - Mar 15 by Antti_Heinola |
Some of the best headers of a ball weren't that big. Always think it's slightly erroneous how some fans and commentators think height means you should win more headers. A bit like (not totally) saying you should be able to win more tackles if you've got massive feet. Heading, like all skills, is about technique and timing as much as how tall you are. Les at just 5'11, was fantastic. Tim Cahill another one - better than Les IMO, a tremendous header of the ball but not tall. Ronaldo I have to admit is also a superb headerererer. |
Yes, your mind immediately goes to players like Jan Koller, Oliver Bierhoff, etc.
But I remember players like Henrik Larsson and Ivan Zamoramo, who were not the tallest players but extremely skilled headers. Pelé was a great header of the ball also, if I remember my classic World Cup matches on the telly correctly. | | | |
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