Rodriguez: It Will Be Difficult To Match That Goal

                         James Rodriguez was thrilled after scooping the Puskás Award for the best goal of 2014, and with good reason. The prize, which was voted for by members of the public via FIFA.com and francefootball.fr, caps what has quite possibly been the most sensational 12 months of his career to date – one of the highlights of which was undoubtedly the stunning strike in the Round of 16 win over Uruguay at the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™.

"I'm extremely happy to win this award, which is really a very special honour. All the more so because it was voted for by the public. I'm very grateful," the Real Madrid man said after beating off competition from Stephanie Roche and Robin van Persie to claim the crown lifted by Zlatan Ibrahimovic last year.

'Special' is certainly a word that applies to Rodriguez's volley back on 28 June 2014, which broke the deadlock at the legendary Maracana stadium and kindled his country's World Cup dreams. The screamer would go on to be chosen as the goal of the tournament by FIFA.com users and, judging by the results at the Ballon d'Or Gala, it remains as popular as ever.

"I knew that very day that my goal had the potential to make history," added Rodriguez, who also made a point of thanking the thousands of voters who gave him the nod.

The 23-year-old, who was also the top scorer in Brazil last summer, signed off with a comment that speaks volumes about both his ambition and the magnitude of his feat. "It will be difficult to match that goal, but I'm going to keep trying to score more [like it] in the future."