The Legend Of El Loco - 30 Years Since The Scorpion Kick

The thought came to Rene Higuita while filming a tv advert for soda pinch immoderate children successful Colombia. One juggled a shot successful nan aerial and bicycle-kicked it towards nan goalkeeper, who instinctively threw some legs down his backmost and punted it away.

Two years later, having made it his statement instrumentality successful training and warm-up routines, nan stars aligned for Higuita to constitute his bequest nether nan hazy Wembley floodlights.

England midfielder Jamie Redknapp's miscued effort drifted tamely towards nan goalkeeper, already renowned for his flamboyant style, who watched it driblet complete his caput earlier lurching guardant and jolting his heels for illustration a scorpion's tail.

It was nan "perfect ball", Higuita recalls successful his Netflix documentary 'Higuita: The Way of nan Scorpion'. "I thought 'no problem'. It came retired perfect."

Breaking his autumn pinch 2 hands connected nan turf, cuffs of his baggy bluish keeper's jersey halfway up his forearms and agelong achromatic curls flowing down him, Higuita instantly burst into his iconic grin.

On commentary for Sky Sports connected nan nighttime of 6 September 1995 was Martin Tyler, who initially thought nan referee's whistle must person gone - aft all, nan linesman put his emblem up - but play continued.

"I was confused," Tyler tells BBC Sport. "In existent time, cipher would do that, why would they do it? It was for illustration location was thing mysterious going on. It was wholly unexpected. He foiled Jamie Redknapp and he fooled nan batch of america connected nan gantry!"

Bryan Robson, portion of nan England coaching team, could beryllium seen laughing connected nan chair almost successful disbelief and location was a akin guidance among nan fans, contempt conscionable 20,000 of them filtering into nan nationalist stadium for a Wednesday nighttime friends successful an era characterised by debased attendances.

"There was this silence, group were conscionable trying to fathom what had conscionable happened," remembers BBC Radio Newcastle big Simon Pryde, who was successful nan crowd. "Then everyone conscionable burst into a substance of spontaneous laughter and applause."

England centre-back Steve Howey, who had been tasked by Newcastle leader Kevin Keegan pinch providing a scout study connected nan Colombia guardant he was marking, 1 Faustino Asprilla, assumed nan crippled must person stopped.

"Higuita wasn't precisely nan benignant of characteristic that was massively dependable, he utilized to travel retired and dribble past forwards and subordinate successful play, he was perfectly crazy. So it wasn't precisely a astonishment for personification for illustration him," says Howey.

"Everybody thought nan referee had blown his whistle but arsenic we recovered retired quickly, he hadn't - if it had gone successful it would person counted."

An different forgettable friends vanished goalless, but Higuita had fans trying to recreate his physics-defying prevention successful parks and playgrounds up and down nan country.

"It was conscionable nan eccentricity of 1 peculiar goalkeeper successful 1 peculiar infinitesimal which had a commentator rubbing his eyes successful disbelief," adds Tyler. "It's from a comic book, really. It was for illustration Roy of nan Rovers… immoderate benignant of schoolboy, fictional stuff."

Yet while this would beryllium Higuita's globally defining moment, it was conscionable different section successful nan unsocial communicative of a keeper who scored 43 profession goals, inspired a game-changing caller rule and had only precocious returned to nan Colombia squad aft being sent to situation for his portion successful a cartel kidnapping.

Some, Higuita admits, would telephone him a clown, others a pioneer. But Higuita had some nan bravado and bravery of a kid who mislaid his mother erstwhile he was young, increasing up pinch his grandparents successful a Medellin neighbourhood gripped by supplier feuds and societal problems.

He would sneak connected nan autobus to training, playing arsenic a striker and scoring goals connected nan pitches built by supplier lord Pablo Escobar, only donning nan gloves aft a team-mate was injured. He earned a statement astatine Millonarios, earlier signing for Atletico Nacional.

There is grainy footage of Higuita tackling forwards extracurricular his box, winning headers, playing one-twos and dribbling past players connected nan halfway statement connected dusty, worn-out pitches covered successful reams of ticker portion and unravelled loo rotation thrown from nan stands. In today's game, his touch maps would beryllium viral phenomena.

'El Loco', 'the Madman' arsenic he was dubbed by coach Francisco Maturana, was a cardinal fig arsenic Atletico Nacional became nan first Colombian broadside to triumph nan Copa Libertadores successful 1989, redeeming 4 penalties and scoring 1 of his ain arsenic Atletico hit Paraguayans Club Olimpia 5-4 successful a shootout successful nan final.

"He was up of his time," says Jorge Campos, legendary Mexico goalkeeper of nan aforesaid era, successful Higuita's Netflix documentary.

"Of people he risked a batch but he besides saved a lot. People don't realise he was an other defender. Rene was nan 1 who would commencement nan attack. Rene was nan illustration astatine world level and that became much and much revolutionary."

Indeed, astatine Italia 90, Colombia's first World Cup successful 28 years - pinch Maturana besides nan nationalist squad leader and keen to employment a strategy inspired by nan Netherlands' Total Football - Higuita's heroics landed connected a world stage.

"He was a pioneer erstwhile it came to his accomplishment pinch nan shot astatine his feet and successful his willingness to return work for situations 40 metres from goal," South American shot master Tim Vickery told BBC Sport erstwhile Higuita retired.

After an opening triumph against UAE, nan 5ft 9in stopper saved a punishment successful a 1-0 conclusion by Yugoslavia and was astatine his maverick champion successful a fiery tie pinch West Germany, heading balls extracurricular his container and juggling different complete Jurgen Klinsmann pinch his hand.

"All for one, Higuita for all," publication 1 nationalist newspaper headline, arsenic Colombia reached nan past 16 for nan first time.

But successful that gathering pinch Cameroon, Higuita's penchant for venturing upfield proved costly. Roger Milla had already put Cameroon up successful other clip erstwhile Higuita received an awkward walk and took a loose touch that was pounced connected by nan forward, who rolled successful a decisive second.

"I was becoming an icon until Milla came along," Higuita later complained. Yet he and his team-mates were welcomed location arsenic heroes. Upon landing, Higuita addressed nan nation: "Yes, I made a mistake. Just arsenic I judge praise, I'll return criticism."

Until nan implementation of nan backpass norm astatine nan Barcelona Olympics successful 1992, goalkeepers were allowed to prime up nan shot aft receiving it from their ain player.

Higuita believes his style, proving goalkeepers could beryllium proficient pinch their feet, was a cardinal facet successful governing assemblage Fifa opting to alteration nan rule - that, and Italia 90 delivering a record-low mean of 2.2 goals per game.

It became wide known arsenic nan 'Higuita Rule'.

"Football greats for illustration Pele and Diego Maradona were very bully players but they person not changed immoderate rules successful Fifa," Higuita told AFP.

Higuita, however, would not get to acquisition it astatine different World Cup.

Higuita was a Colombian icon, alongside Carlos Valderrama, 1 of nan astir recognisable faces of nan nationalist side. But he was besides a target.

A twelvemonth aft nan World Cup, arsenic nan warfare connected narcotics intensified, Escobar turned himself successful to authorities and was sent to his ain "personal" prison, La Catedral.

Many footballers would visit, often summoned for kickabouts - it was an induce you could not move down, though fewer were arsenic noticeable arsenic Higuita.

Stopped by TV reporters extracurricular nan mountaintop jailhouse connected nan outskirts of Medellin and asked if he was a friend of Escobar's, nan goalkeeper controversially replied that he was.

When Escobar later escaped, unit was put connected his known acquaintances to thief way him down - Higuita would extremity up copping a harsh reward for his high-profile relation pinch nan notorious criminal.

The goalkeeper recovered himself caught betwixt cartels pursuing nan kidnapping of nan teenage girl of Carlos Molina, a rival of Escobar. Both figures put their money into Colombian football. Higuita says he was called arsenic an intermediary to present a ransom costs and return Molina's daughter.

The family insisted he return a rate gift for his domiciled but successful doing truthful Higuita collapsed strict anti-kidnapping laws. He was sent to situation for 7 months, successful which he says he was interrogated complete Escobar's whereabouts much than his ain case.

Following Escobar's decease successful December 1993, Higuita was released without charge.

"I acted for humanitarian reasons," he later told Fifa. "If I was ever needed again to thief free someone, I'd do it without hesitating. I'm a footballer, I didn't cognize thing astir kidnapping laws."

Colombia players had continuously campaigned for his release, chanting his sanction aft winning 5-0 successful Argentina to suffice for 1994 World Cup. But Higuita would not beryllium deemed fresh capable to make nan squad for nan United States.

He clawed his measurement backmost into nan broadside for nan Copa America a fewer months earlier that iconic travel to Wembley, though Higuita admits he feared he had blown his chances pinch his statement trick.

"They ever telephone maine a comedian and here's maine proving them right," he said.

Perhaps he did. Higuita would only play six much times for Colombia earlier retiring from world work successful 1999, aliases possibly his state was people moving on.

But moreover aft he'd hung up his gloves, nan fable of nan goalscoring, showboating, scorpion-kicking goalkeeper has endured.