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Stadio: Six Glorious Passes

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Alongside this week’s special episode on passing, Stadio hosts Musa Okwonga and Ryan Hunn each select three of their favourite passes.

Three of Musa’s Favourite Passes:

Xavi v Malaga – Here the most dangerous pass obviously available is the one into the feet of Lionel Messi, and that angle is too tight for Xavi to make it. But Xavi doesn’t care because he has seen a different one; one which is not just dangerous, but fatal.

Messi v Levante – Messi is the greatest player I have ever seen simply because, more often than anyone else, he does things that do not just seem impossible but previously unimaginable. Who volleys a throw-in perfectly across the field? Messi does.

Ronaldinho v Murcia – Just watch the way Ronaldinho meets the ball as it drops towards him; he watches it all the way, and in the final instant, he turns away, almost in disdain, and then lets it run off his back as if it were rain off a ledge. What you sadly can’t hear on this clip is the gasp from the Camp Nou crowd. They have seen absolutely everything there is to see in football: but they haven’t seen this. 

Three of Ryan’s Favourite Passes:

Pogba v Croatia – There’s something about the coolness of this pass. To execute this from that position, taking a slight step to make space – where most players would have taken a touch – whilst being flanked by two opposition players in a fairly dangerous position, in a World Cup Final is just so very Paul Pogba.

Özil v Hull City – The hardest thing about pieces such as this, is that you could pick fifty of your favourite passes and still a few would slip your mind. This one from Mesut Özil, however, never does. Everything about this is timing and feel, and few players could pull this off with such ease.

Guti v Sevilla – When you think about Guti, the ones that come to mind tend to be the back-heeled assists. However, despite having a resume that would take forever to sit through, I think this is my favourite Guti pass. At the time he strikes the ball, it needs to evade five players to get to Zidane, which is does, naturally. The fact Zidane then finishes makes this even more enjoyable.

Stadio: Six Glorious Passes

Alongside this week’s special episode on passing, Stadio hosts Musa Okwonga and Ryan Hunn each select three of their favourite passes.

Three of Musa’s Favourite Passes:

Xavi v Malaga – Here the most dangerous pass obviously available is the one into the feet of Lionel Messi, and that angle is too tight for Xavi to make it. But Xavi doesn’t care because he has seen a different one; one which is not just dangerous, but fatal.

Messi v Levante – Messi is the greatest player I have ever seen simply because, more often than anyone else, he does things that do not just seem impossible but previously unimaginable. Who volleys a throw-in perfectly across the field? Messi does.

Ronaldinho v Murcia – Just watch the way Ronaldinho meets the ball as it drops towards him; he watches it all the way, and in the final instant, he turns away, almost in disdain, and then lets it run off his back as if it were rain off a ledge. What you sadly can’t hear on this clip is the gasp from the Camp Nou crowd. They have seen absolutely everything there is to see in football: but they haven’t seen this. 

Three of Ryan’s Favourite Passes:

Pogba v Croatia – There’s something about the coolness of this pass. To execute this from that position, taking a slight step to make space – where most players would have taken a touch – whilst being flanked by two opposition players in a fairly dangerous position, in a World Cup Final is just so very Paul Pogba.

Özil v Hull City – The hardest thing about pieces such as this, is that you could pick fifty of your favourite passes and still a few would slip your mind. This one from Mesut Özil, however, never does. Everything about this is timing and feel, and few players could pull this off with such ease.

Guti v Sevilla – When you think about Guti, the ones that come to mind tend to be the back-heeled assists. However, despite having a resume that would take forever to sit through, I think this is my favourite Guti pass. At the time he strikes the ball, it needs to evade five players to get to Zidane, which is does, naturally. The fact Zidane then finishes makes this even more enjoyable.