Twenty years have passed since the day Dennis Bergkamp “emptied” Nico Dambiza with a 180-degree dribble in Arsenal’s game against Newcastle at St James’ Park.
On 2 March 2002, the Dutch striker managed to take advantage of Robert Pires’s assist in a unique way, in a phase that is a point of reference for both the Londoners and the English league, and to defeat with an amazing finish Sei Given, who was unable to react after the specific “work of art” that happened to be a spectator at close range.
In a recent interview on the Dutch website elfvoetbal.nl, o Dambizas described his initial reaction but also after: «Now I see it differently from then. At first I was overwhelmed by other emotions. When you are a defender, a goal bothers you. But gradually those feelings subsided. I think it took me a few days to accept what happened and see the goal from the right perspective. With the eyes of a fan. That’s the only way to see it, I think».
For his part, o Dennis Bergkamp admits it may be the best goal of his long career: «I thought: I need a new idea now and fast … I understand that the defender has come to me and that the trajectory of the ball could favor me. About 10 meters before he reaches my feet, I decide that anyway, I will turn to cross him. Every … millimeter of the movement, the course of the ball and the contact, was perfect and accurate».
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