‘Don’t ask me how I’ve done it’: Young Socceroo Alou Kuol scores scorpion goal

Australian rising star Alou Kuol may have scored a scorpion goal for Australia’s under-23 side at the Asian Cup in Uzbekistan overnight - but don’t ask the 20-year-old how he did it.

“I was running forward and saw the ball go behind me, and I just thought ‘yeah, let’s do it,’” said Kuol, who grew up in Victoria’s north, after the game.

“I couldn’t do anything else so I just hit it and it came off ... don’t ask me how I did it.”

With the ball behind his body, Kuol dived forward, throwing his legs back and connecting his heel to the ball, which surged forward into the top corner of the net for Australia’s only goal in a 1-1 draw with Iraq in their second match of the tournament.

The scorpion strike makes Kuol, who grew up in Shepparton and now plays in Germany, a contender for the FIFA Puskas award.

The FIFA Puskas Award is given to the goal voted the most beautiful by fans in a calendar year with the shortlist usually announced in November. In a positive sign, FIFA’s official Twitter page has already shared the goal asking fans if it could be a contender for the honour.

Kuol won plenty of support during his exciting stint with the Central Coast Mariners in the A-League before taking his talents to German club VB Stuttgart who loaned him to 2 Bundesliga club SV Sandhausen this past season.

The Asia Cup has handed him the chance to play for his country and Kuol has impressed against Iraq. In the game, Australia held on for the draw despite being down to ten players after a red card in the second half.

The team will need a win or a draw to book a place in the knockout rounds when they take on Jordan in their final group game at 11pm on Tuesday night.

Speaking post-game, Kuol told Football Australia media he was impressed with the strike but was disappointed Australia didn’t win the game.

“Happy to get a point but it’s a disappointing result 100 per cent.

“We were up and we had to get on with it, but in the end Iraq were lucky to get away with a point.”

However, with a smile, Kuol played down the strike.

“Out of 10? I’d give it a five. That’s normal. Just give me the same ball and I’ll do it again,” Kuol joked.

“I’m lying, that was nice.”

Kuol comes from a talented family with his brother Garang recently starring for the A-League All-Stars against Barcelona.

Their family left war-torn Sudan when he was three, moving to Egypt and finally settling in Shepparton where his parents work as dry cleaners and raised their seven children.

Western United’s Ben Garuccio scored a scorpion goal in the A-League Men against Western Sydney Wanderers in February.

Socceroos midfielder Riley McGree was nominated for the Puskas Award for a similar scorpion goal in 2018 after scoring for Newcastle Jets against Melbourne City in the A-League.

Tim Cahill scored a bicycle kick (an overhead kick with his back to goal) during the Asia Cup in Australia in 2015.

Cahill was also nominated for the Puskas Award in 2014 for his volley in the FIFA World Cup against the Netherlands.

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