A ‘Streets Won’t Forget’ player is an iconic cult hero who might not have won trophies, but they certainly won the hearts and minds of the fans.
Originating out of the Barclays Premier League era, the term has come to describe a special type of player who makes football so enjoyable to watch.
And no stage creates those heroes quite like the World Cup. Here are ten of the most iconic.
10. Bryan Ruiz – Costa Rica, 2014
At club level, Bryan Ruiz carved out a respectable career with notable stints at Twente, Fulham and Sporting.
But at the 2014 World Cup, he ascended to the global stage.
Costa Rica’s fairytale run to the quarter-finals was impressive, but it was their group stage performances that earned the most plaudits. The Central American minnows topped a group that contained Uruguay, Italy and England – despite being tipped to finish last.
Bryan Ruiz was the creative focal point of the team, with his composed finish against Italy sealing Costa Rica’s passage through to the knockout stages.
9. Sofyan Amrabat – Morocco, 2022
Morocco’s 2022 World Cup run was legendary – they became the first African side to reach a World Cup semi-final.
Sofyan Amrabat was the midfield engine who made it all possible.
Every tackle, every interception, every burst forward. He looked unstoppable in the middle of the park.
His passion and work-rate was infectious, and his stock as a midfielder went up exponentially. A loan move to Manchester United followed a year later, but he was never able to hit the same levels as during the magical summer of 2022.
8. Tim Howard – USA, 2014
Sometimes, one performance is all it takes to become a legend.
When the USA faced Belgium in the Round of 16, Tim Howard produced arguably the greatest goalkeeping display in World Cup history.
Sixteen saves – a tournament record – against one of the most dangerous attacking sides in the world. Whilst the USA eventually fell to defeat, the performance from the American keeper was legendary.
Howard was already a respected Premier League goalkeeper, but this performance took him to another level. This was the night he became the ‘Secretary of Defense’.
7. Yerry Mina – Colombia, 2018
The towering centre-back became Colombia’s surprise goal machine in 2018.
Three goals in a single tournament is a goal return most strikers would be pleased with, let alone a centre-back.
Standing at 6’5″ and equipped with a monstrous leap, Mina dominated in both boxes. Every corner looked to be a goalscoring opportunity.
At club level he has scored 29 goals, an impressive return, but none as legendary as his World Cup goals in 2018.
6. Keisuke Honda – Japan, 2010
Japan’s bleach-blond playmaker was the epitome of cool in South Africa.
The 2010 World Cup was notorious for the Jabulani; a matchball that seemingly had a mind of its own. Whilst many dead-ball takers struggled to control the flight of the ball, Honda with his knuckleball technique seemed at one with the Jabulani.
2 goals and 1 assist undersells the impact Keisuke Honda had back in 2010 – a proper cult hero.
5. Fabio Grosso – Italy, 2006
Before 2006, Fabio Grosso was a solid, if unspectacular left-back. By the end of it, he was a national hero.
In a team stacked with world-class talent such as Gianluigi Buffon, Andrea Pirlo, Francesco Totti, Fabio Cannavaro and Alessandro Del Piero, it was the unassuming left-back who stole the headlines and provided the decisive moment.
Having played for several smaller Italian teams, his World Cup heroics earned Grosso a move to Inter Milan but he was never able to hold down a starting position.
Grosso’s curling effort in the 119th minute of the 2006 World Cup semi-final against Germany will forever remain in the history books, not least because of how unlikely the scorer was.
4. El Hadji Diouf – Senegal, 2002
Senegal shocked the world in 2002 – and for one glorious summer El Hadji Diouf looked to be a world-beater.
He played with charisma and swagger, tormenting defenders with ease. His goal helped Senegal to defeat France in their World Cup opener, an indication of what was to come as they reached the quarter-finals, with El Hadji Diouf the star.
A €15m move to Liverpool followed, but the big money move was an unmitigated disaster for all involved.
3. Siphiwe Tshabalala – South Africa, 2010
The 2010 World Cup opener had one of the most memorable goals in football history.
Siphiwe Tshabalala’s thunderous strike against Mexico lit up the tournament and the entire nation.
It wasn’t just the finish – the roar of the crowd, the vuvuzelas, that celebration.
For a few moments, the world stopped and came together to celebrate Africa’s first World Cup.
Tshabalala’s goal remains one of the ultimate feel-good moments.
2. Guillermo Ochoa – Mexico, 2014
The ultimate tournament goalkeeper – Ochoa came alive in the World Cup.
His whole tournament was impressive, but one game in particular will live long in the memory.
When Mexico faced Brazil in Fortaleza, no one expected the show that followed.
Guillermo Ochoa was a brick wall, producing a string of impossible saves that had everyone in disbelief.
Here was a goalkeeper who had a middling club career, shutting out the world’s best attacking side. A 0-0 is never normally fondly remembered, yet Ochoa’s performance was pure theatre.
It was the kind of performance that lives forever.
1. Asamoah Gyan – Ghana, 2010
The ultimate World Cup streets won’t forget icon.
Few players have carried the hopes of not only a nation but a continent like Asamoah Gyan in 2010.
Ghana’s talisman scored three times during their incredible run to the quarter-finals, becoming the face of African football overnight.
Then came the moment that secured a place in our collective hearts – the penalty against Uruguay in the dying seconds. Luis Suárez instantly became the pantomime villain for his deliberate handball, but the scene was set for Gyan to score the goal that secured a historic passage through to the semi-final.
Instead, his miss broke the hearts of millions, and led to an eventual penalty shootout victory for the Uruguayans.
Asamoah Gyan made us laugh, he made us cry. He made us fall in love with the beautiful game all over again. And for that reason, he deserves the title of the ultimate World Cup Streets Won’t Forget icon.
