My Greatest Leicester Goal: Paul Gallagher stuns Crystal Palace (November 2011)

35 yards out. First time. Top bins.

Paul Gallagher welcomed Nigel Pearson back to Leicester City with a stunning brace against Crystal Palace in 2011. Either of his goals on this day could be up for one of the best we’ve seen, but his second was something to behold.

Pearson returned to the club five days ahead of this game, replacing Sven-Goran Eriksson. The excitement of life under Eriksson had faded only a couple of months into the season and it was Pearson who, after a year at Hull, came back to steady the ship.

The Foxes line-up including Jermaine Beckford, Richie Wellens, Lee Peltier and Matt Mills. Palace started a young Wilfried Zaha, although he wouldn’t be the best winger on the pitch as Gallagher stole the show.

You always felt the Scotsman was capable of something special with his Ronaldo-esque run on his tiptoes and his dancing feet when on the ball. So after the deadlock had been broken by Beckford, Gallagher took the game by the scruff of the neck and treated us to a couple of stunning goals.

For his first, he took one touch with his right foot to open up the angle and curled an effort into the top corner from range. This goal was very, very good, but his second was on another level.

Paul Konchesky’s cross was flicked away by a Palace defender and the ball rolled towards an onrushing Gallagher. A roar of ‘SHOOOOT!’ preceded a brief silence, Leicester fans watching in awe as the ball rocketed towards goal.

It may sound laughable to compare a player who never played in the Premier League to Cristiano Ronaldo, but there were similarities in the way Gallagher connected with the strike.

He approached the ball with speed and struck it first time with his laces, unleashing a bullet past Julian Speroni who I don’t think even saw it until it was too late.

Being sat right behind it and watching the ball sail into the top corner will live long in the memory. I hadn’t been going to games for long before this so it stuck out as the first real ‘screamer’ I’d seen in person. I may be slightly biased from my experience but for me, it has to go down as one of Leicester’s greatest goals.