'The worst miss of all-time': Footballer denies his team-mate a goal in truly baffling moment

There have been many contenders for the worst miss in football history as evidenced by the sheer number of videos and DVDs released each Christmas cataloguing the latest batch of howlers.

We may now be able to crown a champion of champions, though, as it appears the Canadian Premier League’s William Akio has produced something truly special, a work to rival Tommy Wiseau’s The Room in the 'so bad its good stakes'.

In the match between Valour FC and HFX Wanderers, the hosts looked absolutely certain to break the deadlock midway through the first half when Alessandro Riggi got on the end of an inviting cross.

With the goalkeeper grounded and the ball trickling into an empty net, the visitors were simply awaiting the inevitable. Enter Akio.

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All the man had to do was nothing. Instead, presumably in a bid to make certain of the goal (or, less generously, because he wanted to get on the scoresheet), he took a wild swing at the ball from a position where it was virtually impossible to miss the target and managed to clear it off the line more effectively than the most committed defender.

Akio’s teammates were understandably furious and he was subsequently substituted, presumably for the good of just about everyone. Assuming Akio’s motives were not nefarious, there is some debate about what exactly he was attempting to achieve with his antics.

Some online have suggested he believed the ball had already crossed the line and was simply celebrating by kicking the ball away. If true, it’s the very definition of hubris and an act of instant karma worthy of the John Lennon song.

All’s well that ends well, though, and Akio’s Valour colleagues eventually triumphed 1-0 without his frankly dubious assistance.

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