Footballer catches goalkeeper out with spectacular goal in World Cup qualifier… but did he mean it?

Keanu Baccus scored a wonder goal in Australia’s World Cup qualifier against Lebanon, although fans wondered whether the midfielder was aiming to find the back of the net with his effort.

The Socceroos got off to a flying start in Thursday night’s match at CommBank Stadium, with the St Mirren star breaking the deadlock in the group match.

Baccus collected a loose pass from midfield and drove down the right flank before launching a ball towards goal.

Lebanon goalkeeper Mostafa Matar was caught off guard by the trajectory of the ball, which passed over his head, hit the base of the post and lodged in the back of the net.

Baccus, seemingly unfazed by his spectacular effort, embraced the Socceroos faithful in celebration of his goal.

Some fans have suggested that Baccus had no intention of scoring in the opening minutes of the match

“Did he mean it?” asked commentator Simon Hill. “I don’t think anyone cares!”

“Bizarrely for Baccus, his first two touches of the ball were very wayward,” said his fellow pundit. “Whether it was a cross or a shot doesn’t matter to him.”

Socceroos fans on Twitter were also unconvinced that Baccus intended to direct his shot at goal.

“So we call a mishit a banger?” one fan asked.

Another said cynically: ‘A complete accident. Shows how unreliable his crossing is.

‘Not the kind of goal we want against a weak opponent. We want to dominate through skill, not luck.”

Kye Rowles doubled the home side’s lead in the second half with his first ever goal for his country.

But injuries to McGree and Bos, who were replaced by the returning Ajdin Hrustic, diminished an encouraging first half.

Lebanon did not cause many problems for Australia, but Rowles did well to recover after suffering some sharp runs and overlaps around their captain Hassan Maatouk.

Australia weathered a late Lebanese storm before half-time, with Rowles hammering in a corner to lift the pressure and give the home side a 2-0 lead after 54 minutes.

From then on, Lebanon never really looked like a challenge for Australia, except for one effort that hit the post in the final fifteen minutes.

Arnold pitched to Mitch Duke and gave a debut to Germany-based striker John Iredale to end the second half.