IRAQ had football fans around the world out of their seats as they scored a baffling ‘ghost goal’.
The Middle-Eastern side were facing off with Norway in their World Cup openers on Tuesday evening.
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Akam Hashim struck a spectacular effort that became a ‘ghost goal’ Credit: Getty
The Iraq star was inches away from equalising, though many fans thought he had Credit: Getty
At 2-1 down, they were chasing an equaliser when Iraq star Akam Hashim let fly with a venomous volley from outside the box.
The strike flew agonisingly over the bar, just about clearing the crossbar and the outstretched hand of Norway’s keeper.
But the ball then struck the rigging at the back of the net, causing the ball to stick and drop dead behind the goal, tugging the netting as it did so.
The one-in-a-million series of events resulted in the net bulging and the ball stopping exactly as it would have if it had gone in.
Fans in the stadium were certainly duped, with a loud roar of celebration going up around the ground despite the fact the ball went over the bar.
Fans at home were equally caught out by the strange situation, reacting to the moment on social media.
One fan joked: “Thought that was in and woke my entire flat up properly, what a goal that almost was.”
Another compared it to a different ‘ghost goal,’ Raheem Sterling’s against Italy at the 2014 World Cup.
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The strike came from a speculative effort early in the group stage game, when Sterling let fly from distance.
The ball struck the side netting, but got caught up in the rigging and stopped dead, fooling fans in the stadium – and especially fans at home watching from the ideal angle – that the ball had actually gone in.
Another fan wrote: “Bro i just screamed my frontroom down oh my days that’s sterling ghost goal vs italy ALL over again.”
And a third added: “Raheem Sterling vs Italy 2014 goal that.”
Fans fooled by the optical illusion have nothing to feel insecure about, considering it even caught out the BBC punditry team.
Ashley Williams said to his co-hosts: “You three were all screaming that it had gone in. I knew, I don’t know what you were looking at.”
Steph Houghton joked: “I screamed, I don’t mind me, I thought that was in.”
While Kelly Cates fired back: “You see it rattle the net, and if you’re 50 and you don’t have you glasses on you think that’s gone in.”
