As we approach the Christmas break, there was plenty of football to catch up on before all the footballers around Europe (except the English) get some well-earned time off.
We'll start in Italy were Milan's Jeremy Menez scored a trick shot of a goal that was, unfortunately, disallowed. When it's this good, they should just let it stand anyway, in our opinion.
Staying in Italy, Mateo Kovacic scored what we can safely categorise as a "screamer" against Lazio. There's not much that any goalkeeper could do about a shot that was hit this well.
Over in Spain, Rayo Vallecano's Quini wanted to prove to his manager that he's a dedicated player who will chase lost causes and put in the hard-hitting challenges that are required. However, he might have been a bit too eager to really ram the message home with the gaffer, and ended up taking him out with a two-footed tackle...
In Ligue 1, Stade de Reims' Odair Fortes scored a pretty fantastic goal to give his side some breathing room against Stade Rennais after some nice build up play that involved some manoeuvring in tight spaces. Thems the benefits of learning to play football in a phonebooth, of course.
And, as you've come to expect from us, here is the obligatory clip of a goalkeeper making an absolute fool of himself. This particular clip comes from Belgium, where Arjan Swinkels will be credited with an own goal after his goalkeeper Bajkovic totally missed the ball in his attempt to clear the danger.
Unsurprisingly, his side Lierse were on the wrong end of a 6-0 thumping by Charleroi, but you can't completely blame Bajkovic, as he did have a few decent saves in the game too, including a miraculous double save at one stage.
Still, we rarely trust a footballer with a ponytail.
