Tony Yeboah’s thunderbolt volley against Liverpool is one of the greatest goals in Premier League history and the Leeds legend was fuelled by Yorkshire puddings galore
Leeds legend Tony Yeboah adored Liverpool as child but that affection sparked an extraordinary goal against the Reds, which will live forever in football folklore.
A goal that would come to characterise his career and be hailed as possibly the finest – if not the most iconic – the Premier League has ever witnessed. David James will certainly never erase it from his memory. Unluckily for James, he was the Liverpool goalie when Yeboah unleashed a thunderous volley past him, clinching Leeds a memorable victory at Elland Road in their first match of the 1995/96 season.
James confesses he still detests watching video clips of the scorching shot. It has plagued him ever since. Hardly surprising, given that some experts suggest the ball whizzed past him at nearly 100mph after it left the Ghanaian goal machine’s boot.
JOIN US ON FB! Get all the best sports news and much more on our Facebook page
That intoxicating evening in Yorkshire just over three decades ago is etched into the memory of Yeboah, who turned 60 on Saturday, June 6.
He would later score a similarly spectacular goal against Wimbledon just a few weeks on. He was conducting a ‘goal of the season’ contest, single-handedly. But there’s no question about which one holds more significance for him.
“Sometimes, when a ball leaves your foot, you know it’s heading straight in,” he said. “Playing against John Barnes and Ian Rush, I thought I had to do something special, so for me that particular goal was something special.”
“The one against Wimbledon is better, in terms of technique. But if you consider the opponents, Liverpool were my idols, the game was live on television, the emotion and size of the crowd, the Liverpool goal is my favourite.”
The strike secured Yeboah immediate cult status amongst Leeds fans, not to mention a literal truck load of Yorkshire puddings. A local firm, Nordale Foods, chose to sponsor Yeboah two puddings per goal, plus one for each of his teammates. A lorry once delivered 250 of them to the club’s Thorp Arch training ground, and Yeboah became obsessed with the legendary puds.
Until boss Howard Wilkinson grew worried about his new striking sensation gaining weight, and demanded they be halted.
Yeboah said: “Yeah, I loved the Yorkshire puddings. I had no idea what they were, but the more I ate, the more I seemed to score. But eventually we agreed they would have to stop. I just couldn’t eat anymore of them.”
Yeboah now operates a thriving sports agency and hotel chain back in his homeland. He netted 32 goals in 66 matches for Leeds, and he’s adamant that his most memorable goal was no accident.
This is because he used to hone his volleying skills in training with Rodney Wallace, who provided the assist on that fateful night of August 21, 1995. Unlike James, Yeboah relishes watching replays of that goal, a moment that is frequently revisited both in Ghana and England.
He added: “There’s a TV station in Ghana that always shows the goal before the sports programmes, and I know they show it regularly in England too. It’s fantastic. The people still remember me in Leeds. I played there a long time ago now, but because of the fantastic goals, everyone remembers.
“I am very proud of that. I feel so proud to have played for Leeds United and to have scored a fantastic goal like that.”