Top five late goals of all-time
Everyone is aware of the beauty of football. The embroiled emotion soon followed by heartache and the intensity can be matched by no other sport. But is there anything more satisfying than watching your team scoring a last minute winner?
There have been some phenomenal last minute goals down the years with Sir Alex Ferguson's teams the master achievers, but not many have had as much importance as these five on our countdown list.
Also read: 5 Greatest Goals of All Time - that were never scored
It's time to open our vaults and countdown to the greatest last minute strikes of all-time.
#5 Andres Iniesta – Barcelona vs. Chelsea, 2009
Spanish midfielder Andres Iniesta's goal vs Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in May 2009 was to become the catalyst of success for arguably the greatest team in club football.
Pep Guardiola's side took on Chelsea in the Champions League semi-final hoping for a place in the final against Manchester United in Rome. Barcelona had been held controversially to a goalless draw at the Nou Camp just a week previously, and Chelsea was quietly confident of producing one of the biggest shock results in Champions League history.
With Barcelona hoping for a precedented triple, their Champions League hopes looked slim when Michael Essien opened the scoring for Chelsea after just nine minutes. Almost 18 shots later, and with Chelsea denied numerous gilt-edged penalty chances, Barcelona continued to pursue that all-important away goal to hand them the advantage.
Without skipper Carlos Puyol through suspension, the Catalans lacked leadership at times until one man decided to end the contest in the dying moments. With Lionel Messi shimmying with possession on the edge of the Chelsea penalty area, he laid the ball off to Iniesta whose outside of the boot strike nestled into the top corner.
Pandamonium occurred, and Barcelona eventually went on to lift the Champions League in Guardiola's first full season of top-flight management.