Is it just about the goal etc,” says Pajtim Kasami, when I texted him if he fancied a chat for SPORTbible’s Streets Will Never Forget mini-series. Obviously, I wanted to talk about other things. But I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to ask him about THAT goal at Selhurst Park in 2013.
After all, it’s still a goal etched in Premier League history. The run onto the lofted ball over the top, the control on the chest and then, the volley. Kasami’s wonderstrike will always rank as a genuinely iconic moment for fans of a certain vintage and the sensational sequence that led to the finish will go down as one of the greatest goals to have been scored in England’s top flight.
While it took an incredible amount of skill to execute the volley from an absurd angle, the Swiss midfielder puts his effort down to ‘instinct’.
When asked about the goal, he responded to SPORTbible, “My memories are still the same. It was something that very naturally occurred. When I rushed into the open area where [Sascha] Riether had the ball and it came up, I used my weaker right foot to put the ball back in the goal.
The former Fulham player is still really pleased of the genius it took to perform that breathtaking volley today. It was made even more memorable by the multiple factors that came together to make that particular night in October nearly ten years ago, including the fact that it was a London derby and a Monday Night Football game played under the lights.
“In this circumstance, you don’t think very deeply,”
“It was such an unbelievable goal, like one of the greatest goals in the Premier League. It’s something very special and makes me very proud. Some times it’s just with your instinct.
“I ran into this space, I controlled it. It was a special goal, and it was Monday Night Football, which made it more special, a London derby. I don’t want to forget Steve Sidwell’s goal. It was a fun, fun game. We had some fun in that game.
“If I think of it, it’s quite an impossible goal to score from that angle. The ball that was played by Riether was an amazing, amazing chipped ball into space. The whole setup was beautiful. It was not like a deflection. It was a pure beautiful setup. Within one pass, you can score a goal, which is beautiful.
“I saw a pass, I mean; I don’t know how many passes before the action happened. Maybe I need to see the full game again but from what I remember it like yeah, two, three passes. And that’s it.”
Kasami’s cheeky ear-cupping celebration went under the radar amid the epic goal, but it was a nod to the Crystal Palace fans, who he felt were slightly unorthodox. “Palace fans are a bit different,” he said. “A bit different from others. It’s nothing. It’s just a celebration that you don’t think of it.”
In the midst of the spectacular goal, Kasami’s sly ear-cupping celebration went unnoticed, but it was a wink to the Crystal Palace supporters, who he thought were a little out of the ordinary. He said, “Palace fans are a little different. “A little unique compared to others. It has no value. It’s only a celebration, so you don’t give it much thought.
That volley quickly brings to mind Kasami. You are unable to think of the athlete without mentally repeating his goal. Even after seeing it countless times, I’m still in awe of his technique. What about the individual though? How often has he seen it again?
“I’ll be honest with you, every time it’s that date, the Premier League posts it. So, I will watch it,” he revealed. “I don’t know. If I’m not lying, during the year. I don’t know. Maybe five to 10 times during the year. Because you scroll it on Instagram, I scroll it on Twitter.
“Every time it’s my birthday, I get it every time. So, it’s interesting to see what other people think about it. And it was also nominated for Puskas Goal of the Year as well. My former teammate James Rodriguez won it. The volley.”
He’s not wrong. If you simply type his name in on any social media platform, you get flooded with different accounts posting the goal. There is a case to be made for it ranking as the best-ever goal in Premier League history due to the technique involved. Needless to say, it’s Kasami’s favourite goal of his career and he believes it ranks among the best the league has ever seen.
“Yeah, by far,” he said when I asked if it was his favourite goal of his career. “Even though I like volleys. This was the most beautiful. Maybe top five.”
Kasami hasn’t played for Fulham since 2014 but he secured his place in fans’ hearts with that goal. Despite being away from West London, the feeling is clearly mutual as Kasami discusses how ‘the Cottagers’ are a club he still keeps an eye on to this day, especially with his former Olympiacos boss Marco Silva now at the helm at Craven Cottage.
“It’s still the club in my heart. It’s the club that I still support and especially with my former coach I had at Olympiacos, Marco Silva,” he said.
“I won the double with at Olympiacos. We had some great success together also in the Champions League.”
Since Kasami last played for Fulham, they’ve spent time in the Championship before winning promotion back to English football’s promised land.
Last season, they secured an impressive 10th-placed finish, and he believes the club should now be targeting a return to Europe, having reached the UEFA Cup final in 2010 – a memorable run that included a famous victory over Serie A giants Juventus.
Kasami, who recently turned 31, is in talks with Olympiacos about extending his stay in the Greek capital, having signed a one-year deal last summer. He believes he’s at the ‘best stage’ of his career and wants to prolong his time in Europe amid a wider raft of transfers in the game currently across the US and Saudi Arabia. However, his ‘big goal’ remains to one day return to the Premier League. He’s fully aware of the fast-paced nature of business in a league widely considered the world’s best but how likely does he think a return is?
“This is a big aim, a big goal for me,” he said about a return to the Premier League.
“I want to stay for sure the next three or four years in Europe. Football can change so fast that you cannot know what can happen. But I think I’m in my best stage now. I feel very fit and I’m ready to start soon. Last year was a bit of a problem. I injured my calf, which made me start with the team a bit late. In football we cannot predict what’s going on next year. I’m not planning. I cannot say ‘I will not go there, I will do that.’ Football is a daily business.”
Whether Kasami will ply his trade again in England remains to be seen, but he had a glint in his eye when he talked up the Premier League. Successful stints at Sion, Basel and Olympiacos, where he scored an impressive 49 goals during that period, will stand him in good stead should he achieve his goal.
