Goal! is one of the most famous football films of all time. The film was released in 2005 and is directed by Danny Cannon. The film centers around Santiago Munez, a Mexican born American (Illegal immigrant) who has a dream of being a professional footballer. The film takes mostly place in Newcastle, the club that he eventually joins. The film is in English and Spanish. In this article I will go through the scenes of the movie and the characters in the story.
Part 1
Introduction to Santiago (c.a. 10 years old)
In the first scene we get introduced to Santiago Munez, the protagonist. We see him as a young boy growing up playing football in a poor neighbourhood in Mexico. After that, he and his family sneak across the border to Los Angeles, USA. The most notable part of that particular scene is when Santiago and his family go up a hill and Santiago drops his football. He hesitates for a moment only to be forced to leave the ball and run up the hill. That scene shows Santiago’s desire and passion for football. His most prized possession was a regular football and he was incredibly sad to have to leave his precious football behind.
Short continuation of Santiago (c.a. 20 years old)
The next scene happens 10 years after the scene where he sneaked across the border with his family. He is now working in many gardening jobs in LA with his father. He also works at a Chinese restaurant as a busboy. In his free time he plays soccer for a local team. His father wants to start a business with him but Santiago is very unenthusiastic about a possible father-son partnership.
Glen Foy & Santiago: Introduction
Glen Foy is an English sports agent who helps Santiago kick off his career. He fixes cars. Glen used to play professionally for Newcastle but he got injured so he was forced to retire early. His wife died of cancer a few years ago. Glen is watching his kid or his daughters kid (it is never mentioned which) play football in LA. However, he gets quickly distracted when he spots a certain player playing on the other side of the field in a different game. That player is Santiago Munez. Glen sees him run past players like they weren’t even there, and scoring goals for fun. Glen was absolutely dazzled. The last player who dazzled him was Jermain Defoe (at the time he was a Tottenham player but now he plays for Bournemouth). He asked the manager: “Do you teach him to do that?”, and the manager quickly responded: “God taught him”.
Glen & Santiago: Post 1st game
Glen talks to Santiago after the game asking him if he ever considered to play professionally. Santiago says that college teams are not interested in non college kids. Glen tells him about a possible opportunity to play in England, much to Munez’s surprise and delight. Glen quickly calls an agent who was currently in LA, and tells him about the new and exciting player he had just seen. The agent agrees to go see him play but unfortunately for Santiago the agent forgot and therefore missed his chance of seeing him play. Santiago scored 2 goals in the game that the agent missed. This was Santiago’s last chance to dazzle that particular agent because he was flying over to England the next day. Glen, being the likable and hopeful person in the story, did not want to give up.
Glen calls the Newcastle manager
Glen called the Newcastle manager at 3:29 o’clock in the morning. Glen tells him about young Santiago and describes him as “a remarkable talent”. The Newcastle manager starts to show interest in Mr. Foy despite his sleepy mood. The Newcastle manager agrees to give Santiago a chance but later on in the story the manager forgot he even made a promise to Glen. Glen used to be a scout for Newcastle until the club made a regime change. This scene tells the audience that Glen really cares about young Santiago and his future. Glen’s loyalty to take care of Santiago will only continue throughout the movie. The Newcastle’s manager’s name is Erik Dornhelm.
Santiago and his father
Glen meets Santiago to tell him the good news that Newcastle has given him a trial. “Newcastle? That’s a big club.” says Santiago, feeling pretty happy. His father, on the other hand, is angry, and criticises Glen for giving Santiago false hope. “Why are you filling his head with these ideas?” his father says to Glen with a frustrating tone, adding: “Who the hell do you think you are?” Santiago’s father is the typical type of character who tells his son that he should not reach for the stars and chase his dreams but rather live a normal life in a normal job. “Why don’t you keep your feet on the ground, instead of your head in the sky” his father says to Munez. Glen gives Santiago his card. In a previous scene, Santiago’s father told Santiago this: “There are two types of people in this world. Those that live in big houses...and people like us, who cut their lawns and wash their cars.”. This is Santiago’s father view on the world. Santiago’s father’s name is Hernan Munez.
Santiago starts saving money
Glen’s promise to Santiago obviously gave the young player extra faith and belief in himself. He is 400 dollars too short to buy a plane ticket to England. A short montage of him working and earning money is shown. After that, Santiago discovers that someone had stolen his money. That someone was his father, who used Santiago’s well-earned money to buy a truck for their father-son business. Santiago gets fuming mad. He only needed to save money for 2 more weeks and then he could buy a plane ticket to England. Santiago’s father continues to disrespect his dream by calling it “stupid”. Santiago’s father gives his son a short speech on his life. He worked in construction at the day-time and cleaned a brothel at night. He continues to say that he has kept the family together ever since Santiago’s mother left him. You can see that Santiago’s rage is building up. “I make enough in this house, and now we have our own business. That’s how things get better. That’s how you measure a man’s life.” says Santiago’s father and Santiago responds screaming: “It’s your life!”.
About Santiago’s rage
Here we have another classic example of a father holding his son down. Some people might understand Santiago’s father’s point of view on this. Santiago’s father had worked his entire life to keep his family together, having to sacrifice his own dream for the sake of his family. It is possible to interpret Santiago’s father’s actions as only protecting his son. However, it is incredibly immoral to steal your son’s money without his permission, especially since Santiago was saving money for his dreams to come true.
Introduction of Gavin Harris
Gavin Harris is an English player with a super-star attitude. He was recently bought for 8 million pounds and given the nr. 10 shirt. 8 million pounds, at the time, was a lot of money but now 8 million pounds is “peanuts” as the English football fans would say. The scene where Gavin is introduced happens at a press conference. Cameras are flashing every second, indirectly saying to the audience that Gavin is “a pretty big deal”. Gavin Harris is supposed to be the typical arrogant, cocky and smug footballer. Gavin Harris is very much the opposite of Santiago Munez in terms of characteristics and fame status. Later on in the story Gavin Harris showed up late and was disrespectful to the coach.
Newcastle’s main objective
During the press conference, Newcastle’s main objective is shown: To finish in the top 4 and qualify for the Champions League. Newcastle has to win their remaining games to qualify for the Champions League. This is not only Newcastle’s main objective but also the movie´s main objective. Every movie has a certain obstacle, otherwise the audience don’t want to invest themselves in the story. If every character in a movie is perfect than the story becomes boring.
Santiago and his grandmother
Santiago’s grandmother buys Santiago a train ticket to San Diego and a bus ticket to Mexico City. The reason why Santiago can’t fly from LA to London is because he is an illegal immigrant. His grandmother also bought him a plane ticket to London. Santiago’s grandmother is the opposite of Santiago’s father. She wants Santiago to go chase his dreams and to be different. “When your mother walked out on us, I promised God I’d do everything to help you boys to follow your dreams.” she said to Santiago and his little brother. She gives him a necklace of the Virgin Mary. Santiago leaves without saying goodbye to his father because he knew that he would only try to stop him.
Santiago lands in London
There are many “fan” moments in this movie that perfectly capture the humor, mindset and the banter that is very strong in the English football culture. When Santiago lands he tells a staffer that he is hoping to play for Newcastle United. The staffer calls out his colleague telling him that this young gentleman (Santiago) hopes to play for your club. “We need all the help we can get” the Newcastle fan responded. Even though that was a very brief and unimportant moment in the movie in terms of the continuation of the story, I still feel like it captured the personality of a typical football fan in England.
Santiago and Glen in England
Santiago calls Glen, much to Glen’s pleasure and surprise. When Santiago arrives at Newcastle, Glen is there to greet him. Glen invites Santiago to go live with him to get settled. Glen mentions terms like “the Toon” and “Geordies”. Santiago has no idea what Glen is talking about, which goes to show that Santiago is very much unaware of the culture in Newcastle and England. It is very common for a foreign player to not know the culture of a different country, and that scene perfectly displayed that. “You mean Toons, like Looney Tunes, and stuff? Like Bugs Bunny?” Santiago said confused.
Great fan moment
As was mentioned before, there are many great fan moments in this movie. Santiago was eating at a pub when he notices that a couple of Newcastle fans were talking about football and Gavin Harris. “Sorry, but, you’re talking about soccer, right?”. The fans look bemused, one of them replying to Santiago, bluntly saying: “No”. “Football?” Santiago then says. The fans then look happy and excited. English fans don’t like it when people call call football “soccer”. The term “soccer” is mainly used by Americans because they already have a game called football. This scene perfectly captured the view of the English fans when they hear the word “soccer”.
Santiago’s difficult start at Newcastle
Santiago tells the coach that he usually plays up front but he would like to play on the midfield. It rained heavily on Santiago’s first training session. Santiago was tackled again and again and again. He had one magical moment where he flicked the ball passed a defender who was incredibly mean to Santiago throughout the movie. The manager was barely watching Santiago play because he was constantly on his phone. Santiago felt very disappointed with himself. After the training session he hears that he will not get another chance. Even Glen is feeling sort of hopeless. However, Glen convinces the manager to give him another chance. The manager gives him a 1-month trial. In this scene Glen continues to be the likable character who doesn’t want to lose faith in Santiago. There are many examples of world-class players who had a rough start: Diego Forlán, Ian Wright, Gareth Bale, Paul Pogba, Thierry Henry, etc. (List from TheSporter.com). This scene shows that although things don’t start out the way you wanted it to, it doesn’t mean that you should give up.
Santiago’s day dreaming
After Santiago was given a 1-month trial, things started to turn for the better for him. Santiago is a dreamer and that shows when he gets distracted by the first team players train on the training ground. The most notable player is Alan Shearer. Shearer is shown again later in the film talking to Munez. It is quite a humorous scene.
Santiago meets Roz
Santiago meets a nurse who he fancies. He asks her name but she only gives her last one, Harmison. Later on in the movie we know that her name is Roz. He lies to the nurse about having breathing problems because he fears that the club might stop being interested in him. Munez has asthma. We understand why Munez did not want to tell the nurse about his breathing problem. This would eventually seriously affect his performance in one game later on in the movie.
Santiago meets Jamie
Jamie is another player who is on trial for Newcastle. He is from Merseyside and used to play for Tranmere Rovers. Tranmere Rovers signed him up when he was only 14 years old, so football has been a part of his entire life. Jamie and Santiago become friends. Shortly before the scene where they talk to each other, Jamie had prevented Santiago from losing his temper against a defender who had always been very mean to him. Jamie is very likable and he insists on showing Santiago the town and go clubbing. “How old do you have to be here to get a drink?” Santiago asks, Jamie responds: “11”. While standing outside a club they meet the nurse who Santiago fancies. They talk and have a good time. The nurse hopes that Santiago doesn’t become something he isn’t. As we know, many footballers tend to get cocky and sort of disrespectful to people when they get famous. However, there are many examples of world-class footballers who stay humble and respectful: Steven Gerrard, Pelé, N’Golo Kanté, Ronaldinho etc. (List from sokka.com)
Santiago’s big lesson from the manager
During one training session, the manager noticed that Munez doesn’t pass the ball. Obviously in the Premier League that is a huge problem. The manager gives Munez a private lesson on how a professional football game is supposed to be played. The manager asks him to run as fast as he can towards a goal while he kicks a ball over him. Santiago is pretty confused seeing the ball obviously travels faster than him. “What did you learn?” the manager asks. “That you can score from halfway?” Santiago answers wrongly. “No, that the ball can travel faster than you. Here we pass the ball, do you understand? We’re a unit, not a one man show.” the manager says. Then the manager says, in my opinion, the best line in the movie: “The name on the front of the shirt is more important than the one on the back”.
Newcastle v Chelsea
This was Santiago’s first time watching Newcastle play. Gavin Harris played but he was taken off because he was most likely hungover. You can see legendary Chelsea players like: Joe Cole and Frank Lampard play. The main commentator was Martin Tyler. The scene was beautifully shot and it never felt like it was fake or cheesy. You actually get to see the players play a proper football game. Newcastle won 1-0. The goal was scored by the former Ajax and Barcelona legend, Patrick Kluivert.
Santiago trains all by himself
After the Chelsea v Newcastle game we see Santiago Munez start to train all by himself. Most of the greatest footballers train more and longer than the other players, weather they show up early at training or train after practice. The manager sees Santiago train and decides to give him a chance in a reserves game. The dream continues for our young protagonist.
Part 2
Santiago’s and his father’s reaction to being picked
Santiago’s reaction to seeing his name on the team sheet is fantastic. He got incredibly excited. This was Santiago’s make or break moment because he only had one week left on his trial. He goes to tell the nurse, Roz, the news. The scene where Roz and Santiago talk together is important for the establishment of their relationship. Santiago tells Roz about his family and his burning desire for football. When Santiago’s father hears about the news that he will be playing in a reserves game he doesn’t even smile a little bit. “He left like a thief, without saying goodbye. Why should I care?” said Santiago’s father when his mother (Santiago’s grandmother) told him the news. Santiago’s father is very angry and bitter that Santiago left without saying goodbye. It is very ironic that Santiago’s father has the nerves to label Santiago departure similar to a “thief” when he was the one that literally stole money from Santiago, a cruel deed that made Santiago want to leave. Later on in the movie, Santiago contacts his father. However, Santiago’s father doesn’t want to talk to him.
Santiago’s first reserve game: Newcastle vs Manchester United
Santiago’s first reserve game came against Manchester United. Santiago played on the right flank. Santiago was, understandably, very nervous before the game, so he reached out for his inhaler (asthma inhaler). However, he drops it on the floor and the defender who had been mean to Santiago the whole time intentionally demolishes his inhaler, leaving Santiago stunned and petrified. Santiago found it incredibly difficult to concentrate, and he was not himself when he was playing. He was losing the ball and did not know what to do on the field. “What’s wrong with him?” said the manager. The manager quickly took Santiago off. The look that Santiago gives to the manager after he was taken off speaks more than a thousand words. He felt ashamed and felt like he disappointed him immensely.
The end of Santiago’s adventure?
Santiago gets told that the club has to let him go. Santiago is devastated. Santiago goes to Roz to tell her that he got fired. Roz tries to comfort him by telling him that this sort of thing happens to players all the time, and that he can find another club. Santiago knew, though, that he was just going to return home. In his mind, this was going to be his last time seeing Roz. He leans in on her and kisses her. They make out. Before entering a Taxi, Santiago leaves a note for Glen.
Fate or coincidence?
Gavin Harris had spent the night with some women. He realised that he was late for practice but the tires on his car were stolen. He called a Taxi service, telling the employee that he was Gavin Harris and that he needed a car immediately. “And I’m Clint Eastwood, make my day.” the employee said in a sarcastic tone. The employee then realised that it was actually Gavin Harris calling and he was absolutely dumbfounded. The employee called a Taxi driver telling him to pick up Gavin Harris. “He’s first team, man” the employee said, obviously a Newcastle supporter. The taxi driver that the employee called was driving Santiago. Santiago and Gavin Harris meet in the Taxi. Santiago told Gavin his whole story and why he was let go.
Gavin Harris to the rescue!
Gavin tells the manager that the club is making a huge mistake with releasing Santiago. Here we see a positive side of Gavin Harris, the character who we previously thought was selfish, smug and disrespectful. Gavin tells the manager that the reason why Santiago was so poor in the United game is because he lost his inhaler. “Lying is a problem, asthma is not” says the manager. The manger gives Santiago another chance. Had it not been for Gavin, Santiago would have been on his way back to LA.
Santiago is back, baby!
He scored a goal in a reserve game against QPR. He was incredible in that game and he instantly received great praise from his team-mates and the fans. Everything was finally working out for young Santiago. He scored again in a reserve game against Middlesbrough. Santiago now lives with his teammate and friend, Gavin, in a fancy apartment. “Takeaway pizzas and lady nickers (underpants). Not hard to figure out his lifestyle” says Roz to Santiago about Gavin. In this scene we get an inside look of Gavin´s life, and we get to see more of his character.
Santiago meets agent
Santiago and Gavin go out clubbing one night. Gavin meets his agent. His agent is the man that Glen had called up in the beginning of the film to check on Santiago but he forgot. The agent is a typical super-star agent (similar to Mino Raiola). He thinks he’s the coolest and he’s not afraid to say whatever he wants. The agent has a very thick English accent. “What’s cool and hangs up?” is what the agent told to the person he was talking to before he hung up on him. That line is sort-of the essence of his character. The agent is curious to know Santiago’s current agent status. Santiago tells him that Glen will take care of his dealings till the end of the season. The agent proposes that if Santiago makes a deal with the agent and gets some first-team action next season that he will guarantee Santiago an ad for the famous clothing company, GAP. As we know, sponsorship deals are huge part of players’ income.
Santiago’s first game for Newcastle’s first team: Fulham vs Newcastle
Santiago was shocked to hear that he wasn’t in the reserves list. He thought that the club was demoting him but in fact they were promoting him. Santiago started on the bench against Fulham. The manager puts Santiago on because one Newcastle player got injured. “Who the hell is this?” said one Newcastle fan watching the game in LA. “That’s my boy, Santiago” said his father, who finally saw his son play football. Santiago’s father was incredibly happy to see his son play. He was no longer disappointed but proud. Santiago makes an impressive run but he gets fouled in the penalty box. Newcastle get a penalty. Gavin Harris takes it and he scores. Here we see a partnership between Gavin and Munez. Two different people but with the same love and passion for the beautiful game. Santiago’s father is screaming with pride. We see a radical change in Santiago’s father’s perception of his son.
“You don’t pass, you go for glory!”
The manager was not happy with Santiago in this game because he had an opportunity to give the ball to two players while making the run that eventually took him down. “You don’t pass, you go for glory!” the manager says to Santiago in a frustrating tone. That scene is very powerful because it teaches Santiago the importance of passing and working together. A football match is about the team but not the individual. Santiago can not be like Rocky, where he is the center of attention and the only winner.
Negative media attention
The next scenes in the movie are very negative. Gavin Harris and Santiago go to a party where they meet Beckham, Zidane and Raúl. Santiago finally gets an opportunity to speak Spanish. Gavin wants to go to another party, a wild party. Gavin and Munez go upstairs where they meet some very attractive women. A friend of Gavin takes a picture of him with these women in bed and sells it to the papers. The manager gets furious at Santiago. Santiago has never been in a situation like this before. He feels incredibly guilty and he refused to rat out on the other players who were in the room with him during that night.
Santiago’s life lesson
Santiago meets Roz to explain to her what had happened at that party. She is obviously mad at him. She tells him about his team-mate and good friend, Jamie, who is in a hospital room. Sadly, Jamie will never be able to play football again. Santiago realises that this sport is incredibly risky and you never last long as a footballer. “We are one tackle away from flipping burgers” Santiago says to Gavin. Gavin kicks him out. Gavin, later in the movie, defends Santiago telling him that going to the party was not Santiago’s idea. Gavin has become a better person ever since he met Santiago. Santiago and Gavin become great friends and start a great partnership together.
Santiago’s father dies
Santiago’s little brother sees his father lying completely still on the ground. His father is dead. Glen tells Santiago to phone his grandmother. She tells him about his father’s death. Santiago completely breaks down. Santiago did not know, at the time, about how proud his father was of him when he saw him play against Fulham. Santiago was on his way to LA but he goes back to the training ground. Santiago doesn not want an excuse to leave. Santiago said to the manager: “The only person who can tell me I’m not good enough, is you, and even then I may not agree with you.“.
The Final Game: Newcastle vs Liverpool - Pre-game
The manager picked Santiago for the game against Liverpool, Newcastle’s most important game of the season. Newcastle has to win the game to qualify for the Champions League. Liverpool only need a draw to qualify for Europe. Before Santiago steps in on the field, the viewer sees Santiago as a young boy growing up in Mexico playing football. That scene is supposed to remind the audience of how Santiago went from rags to riches. As a wise Canadian philosopher once uttered: “Started from the bottom, now we here”. That scene is also supposed to remind the audience of how Santiago is fulfilling his dream.
The Final Game: Newcastle vs Liverpool
Gavin Harris scored the first goal of the game with a beautiful header, 1-0. Liverpool equalised with a header from a corner kick, 1-1. The Czech International, Milan Baros, scored with a clinical finish and made the game 2-1 for Liverpool. The Newcastle fans are absolutely devastated. Newcastle equalised with a fantastic strike by Gavin Harris, and an even impressive assist by Santiago Munez. Munez finally learnt the importance of passing. Here we see the partnership between Gavin and Munez in the clearest form. 2-2.
The Ultimate kick
Fans on both sides are freaking out from excitement. You can feel the tension in the air. Newcastle give it all they got in the last minutes, and we see our protagonist, Santiago, make some impressive runs and perform some magnificent skill moves. Gavin Harris gets fouled and Newcastle get a free-kick. No other than Santiago Munez gets to take it, much to the fans and commentator’s surprise. “The hopes of an entire city is resting on his shoulders” says Martin Tyler about Santiago right before he takes the free-kick. Munez brings out the Virgin Mary necklace that his grandmother had given him, hoping that it would give him some spiritual strength. Santiago looks at the goal, looks at the goalkeeper, knowing that thousands upon thousands of fans are watching him about to take the most important kick of the season. Only a few months ago, he was playing for a local team in Los Angeles but now he is in the spotlight in the most competitive league in the world. He keeps his eye on the goal, running towards the ball, kicking it and...GOAL!!! He did it! Newcastle’s newest and youngest player has secured Newcastle a spot in the Champions League. Howard Webb, the referee, blows the whistle, and the game is officially over! The fans, the players and the staff go absolutely nuts!
The End
Shortly after the game, Santiago’s grandmother found out that Santiago’s father had seen Santiago play against Fulham. Santiago had thought all this time that his father had never actually seen him express himself on the pitch. Upon hearing the news, Santiago’s grandmother called her grandson, telling him that his father had seen him play against Fulham. Santiago called Glen telling him that his father had seen him play. “He’s probably watching you right now” says Glen pointing at the sky. Roz, the nurse, expresses her love to Santiago by blowing a kiss to him. The final shot of the film is Santiago screaming with joy on the middle of the pitch. Thus ends the journey of the true underdog, Santiago Munez.
Conclusion (short review)
I absolutely love this movie. This movie was once my favorite movie and it is definitely in my top 10 or even top 5 today. The movie perfectly captures the spirit, banter and the culture of English football. The little fan moments give the movie more of a feeling that you are delving into the core of the football culture in England. The story of the film is simple, yet inspiring. What makes the movie great is that it never wastes the viewer’s time. There is always something happening that affects the plot, story, tone and the characters of the movie. Santiago Munez is a great protagonist. The protagonist of a story is supposed to be likable, appealing and someone we can relate to. We get to see Santiago’s origin story and how his life was in a way that is not cheezy or boring. His journey was not perfect although the ending was a bit predictable. The only thing that I felt could have been done a bit better was the ending. I mentioned that I thought it was a bit predictable, but that was not what I disliked about it. I felt that the movie could have continued a bit more and that we got to see Santiago train for Newcastle the next day, and also to get to see more of his relationship with Roz. However, I completely understand the writer’s decision to end the movie after the final game. Santiago’s main lesson of the movie was to learn to pass and to be a teamplayer, so it would have been quite contradicting if Santiago would be greeted like the only hero of the Newcastle team.
Overall, I really like this movie and I recommend it to all football fans, especially young football fans because it could give them extra belief in themselves. I give this movie 5 stars out of 5.
All the images not credited were screenshots taken from this video:
Post by: Ólafur Hálfdan Pálsson
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