Leonel Quinonez is nominated for the FIFA Puskás Award
His goal was a free-kick from inside his own half
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Leonel Quinonez was freezing deep into a Monday night at Quito’s altitude. It was one of the rare occasions he wished he worked in an office rather than the arctic outdoor.
Minutes into a game against Universidad Catolica, having not run sufficiently to warm up, the Macara defender experienced another rare occurrence: he celebrated a goal. And what a goal it was.
When Macara were awarded a free-kick, ten yards inside their own half, he cannily spotted opposition goalkeeper Hernan Galindez a touch off his line and combined power and unerring precision to lob him.
The goalscorer in figures
Age: 27 Position: Defender Club: Macara International record: 0 caps for Ecuador
What they said
Leonel Quinonez: “We were all still cold. [Michael] Estrada was fouled and [Carlos] Arboleda grabbed the ball. I told him, ‘Drop it, leave it, I’ll take it.’ And I just kicked it. I was so cold that it felt like electricity in my feet. I want to call all Ecuadorians – it’s not a matter of the shirt I was wearing but the country we are representing – [to say] that I hope you vote for the goal.”