Declan Rice’s second free-kick in Arsenal’s 3-0 Champions League quarter-final first leg has been shortlisted for the 2025 FIFA Puskas Award.
Established in 2009, the award honours the most aesthetically pleasing goal of the year – and Rice’s strike certainly qualifies.
Having already opened the scoring with a gorgeous curler that wrong-footed Thibaut Courtois, he repeated the feat 12 minutes later, this time from even further out, picking out the top corner with outrageous precision. Arsenal went on to win 3-0, before completing the job in Madrid with a 2-1 victory.
Rice becomes the fourth Gunner to receive a nomination for the Puskas Award, following Emmanuel Adebayor (2009 vs Villarreal), Samir Nasri (2010 vs Porto) and Olivier Giroud, whose unforgettable scorpion kick in 2017 won the award.
A goal against Arsenal – Eric Lamela’s rabona in a defeat for Spurs in the north London derby – also won in 2021, arguably the Sp*rs-iest ‘victory’ of all time.
Congrats to Declan – win or not, it’s a strike destined for Arsenal folklore.
The winner will be chosen through a 50/50 split between fan votes and a panel of “FIFA Legends”, with the award presented at The Best FIFA Football Awards 2025.
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FIFA Puskas Award nominees
- Alessandro Deiola, Cagliari v. Venezia, 18 May 2025
- Pedro de la Vega, Cruz Azul v. Seattle Sounders, 31 July 2025
- Santiago Montiel, Independiente v. Independiente Rivadavia, 11 May 2025
- Amr Nasser, Al Ahly v. Pharco, 17 April 2025
- Carlos Orrantía, Querétaro v. Atlas, 16 April 2025
- Lucas Ribeiro, Mamelodi Sundowns v. Borussia Dortmund, 21 June 2025
- Declan Rice, Arsenal v. Real Madrid, 8 April 2025
- Rizky Ridho, Persija Jakarta v. Arema, 9 March 2025
- Kévin Rodrigues, Kasımpaşa v. Rizespor, 9 Feb 2025
- Lamine Yamal, Espanyol v. Barcelona, 15 May 2025
