France right-back Benjamin Pavard has won the 2018 World Cup goal of the tournament award for his staggering strike against Argentina in round of 16, FIFA announced today. His brilliant strike equalized the game at 2-2 before his side claimed a stunning 4-3 victory over the South American heavyweights. Pavard is one of those defenders from France to score a goal.
In an online poll by FIFA which saw over three million people casting their votes, Pavard’s goal was adjuged as the winner over 168 other goals scored in the tournament. The competition came from Colombian midfielder Juan Quintero’s free-kick goal against Japan and Luka Modric’s goal in Croatia’s group-stage clash against Argentina.
With the prestigious honour, Pavard became the first European to win the award since its creation in 2006. The three awards in the past were won by the South American footballers- Maxi Rodriguez (ARG) in 2006, Diego Forlan (URU) in 2010 and James Rodriguez(COL) in 2014.
