[Football] Penalty taking.

[Cowfold Seagull]

I really do think that we are overthinking all this. If a player aims for one of the four corners of the net, hits his penalty hard and true, any goalkeeper would be extredmely lucky to get anywhere near the ball.

Nine times out of ten that should prove successful. The emphasis really should be on the keeper trying to save it, not the penalty taker scoring.

 

[vagabond]

Some people are just not good at taking penalties. I don't really understand it, but it is what it is. The job of the management is to identify them, and keep them off the list.

I know that us mere mortals can't begin to appreciate the pressure of all those eyes on them, but the process is such a simple one, and so completely repeatable.

In my own playing days, I scored 26 of 28 (yes I was sad enough to keep a record), and genuinely the ones in front of a relatively big crowd were no different to the ones in front of three people on a parks pitch. All put where I wanted them. Never any second guessing. Never make any consideration of who the keeper is, or what he is doing. I do think that bodyshape is massively important, and often overlooked. I'd guess that at least 20 of those 26 penalties, the keeper went the wrong way, without me consciously trying to trick him. That can't be a coincidence.

Not in an actual match, but I scored one at the Amex in front of 15,000 or so, with £500 riding on it.


And one, to win REMF at the Dripping Pan, in front of 1,000 people, which in relative terms, was massively 'important'.

Just watching the penalties in the final the other night, I felt physically sick to my stomach.

I can’t begin to imagine what the pressure is like to be taking one of those. It’s something really hard for us to relate to.

 

[hans kraay fan club]

Laughable comparisons.

They're not laughable. The pressures involved are OBVIOUSLY incomparable, compared with Sunday night. But these are the best examples I have, because funnily enough, I'm not a professional footballer.

My point is that in comparison with the spot kicks I would normally take, the occassions were huge, or there was a huge amount riding on the outcome. So for ME personally, the pressure of the occasion didn't seem to disrupt the repeatable process. It doesn't mean you're superman -like someone says above, it might just mean you're 'an emotional vacuum'! - but such players are the ones that the management want to identify.

 

[Barham's tash]

I read that penalty was Sakas first ever professional penalty kick. With hindsight it was pretty naive to put him up to it.Bizarre from Southgate, doubly so when you consider his PK in that shootout

Apparently the kickers and positions were chosen based on stats from training. Way to go stats.

 

[Glawstergull]

Legends=The very best. Go down in history. A very small band. Winners
NOT nearly did it. Came very close or Silver medalists.
I keep hearing Legend and Hero being bandied about.
Apparently i was a Legend last week for remembering to bring the umbrella!

 

[zefarelly]

Apparently the kickers and positions were chosen based on stats from training. Way to go stats.

I wonder how TB and Gpot slog that one out, emotional intelligence and psychology VS cold hard stats . . . .

 

[Falmer Flutter ©]

I guess what I mean is that you can stack the odds in your favour, and I think England have done this. You can get lucky in a shoot out, and you can get unlucky. But if you plan properly you should be able to win 2 out of 3, which is what England have done.

Exactly this. Practising something is no guarantee of success, but it's a way of reducing the chances of failure. It's why golfers practise three-foot putts, snooker players pot the colours off the spots, darts players hit double-top etc etc. Every sport has these. The point is is that when it comes to those high-pressure moments in competition, which of course can't be replicated in training, then that muscle memory kicks in. Alan Shearer has often said how he would practise one penalty over and over, and then hit that one when it came to being needed. Not a guarantee of success, but stacking the odds in your favour. I'm just not convinced that the penalties hit by Sancho and Saka were the ones they had practised in training.

 

[Shropshire Seagull]

This montage makes for LOL opportunity and puts Sunday into some perspective ...

I particularly like the [in off the woodwork] goal on 3 mins and really don't like the miss at 8:15 [2nd to last clip]

 

[Swansman]

I wonder how TB and Gpot slog that one out, emotional intelligence and psychology VS cold hard stats . . . .

Maybe there is room to combine them. Not in a situation like this though.

In a final of that importance, cold hard stats should matter very little so if thats what Southgate went by, its idiotic.

Over and over again its been proved that penalties is mostly psychological stuff. When a goal behind, teams miss 40% of their penalties, when ahead they only miss 10%. Speaks volumes. Also I read another report saying that players are more likely to convert penalties in away games, which is probably also because of psychological reasons.

Obviously some other things also play a part: penalty kick experience, technique (Chiellini would never take a pen despite having a mind of steel), level of tiredness and so on. But its mainly psychology, and whatever your "cold hard stats" from penalties during training sessions say, it shouldnt matter when deciding the penalty takers in a final.

Overall in penalty kick shootouts, I think the best approach is to let the players decide. Take those who see it as a challenge more than a burden. Regardless if they missed their last two or whatever, if they are fearless enough to suggest themselves as takers, they should do it. If Grealish raises his hand, let him take it rather than telling the bloke who scored 5 out of 5 in some training session "you take the final one"

 

[Commander]

Laughable comparisons.

Yes and no. International players are used to playing in front of huge crowds in huge games. Presumably HKFC isn't. So it's all relative.

 

[herecomesaregular]

They're not laughable. The pressures involved are OBVIOUSLY incomparable, compared with Sunday night. But these are the best examples I have, because funnily enough, I'm not a professional footballer.

My point is that in comparison with the spot kicks I would normally take, the occassions were huge, or there was a huge amount riding on the outcome. So for ME personally, the pressure of the occasion didn't seem to disrupt the repeatable process. It doesn't mean you're superman -like someone says above, it might just mean you're 'an emotional vacuum'! - but such players are the ones that the management want to identify.

Oh, such players as yourself you mean?

 

[raymondo]

I don't buy this pressure cooker theory at all. The young are fearless. I'd rather have a 19 year old who thinks he's invincible taking a penalty than an experienced 28 year old who understands the hopes of a nation weigh on his shoulders.

I disagree with you Commander. If you're right then lets always have 5 lads from the U16s in the squad and bring them on for the pens ��

 

[Commander]

I disagree with you Commander. If you're right then lets always have 5 lads from the U16s in the squad and bring them on for the pens ��

Saka has nearly 60 appearances in the Premier League for Arsenal. It's hardly the same!

 

[hans kraay fan club]

Oh, such players as yourself you mean?

Good grief.

Well, obviously not, because they would be choosing 5 takers from the squad of actual footballers, that they had selected for their actual football ability.

But FROM those, in terms of choosing the 5 with some ability to momentarily ignore outside pressures, to kick a ball 12 yards, I guess

 

[Bry Nylon]

I also blame the 'behind the taker' arial tv shot Uefa have been using for penalties in this tournament.

It makes it look MUCH harder than usual.

 

[raymondo]

Saka has nearly 60 appearances in the Premier League for Arsenal. It's hardly the same!

But Sterling, Walker, Shaw, have more experience of high pressure games !!!!!!! Let's agree to differ.

 

[Commander]

But Sterling, Walker, Shaw, have more experience of high pressure games !!!!!!! Let's agree to differ.

And if they've been constantly blazing their penalties over the bar in penalty shoot-out practice, where as Saka cooly slots his in the corner 9 times out of 10, then who would you pick?

 

[herecomesaregular]

Good grief.

Well, obviously not, because they would be choosing 5 takers from the squad of actual footballers, that they had selected for their actual football ability.

But FROM those, in terms of choosing the 5 with some ability to momentarily ignore outside pressures, to kick a ball 12 yards, I guess

Mbeppe, Jorginho, Morata, Kane (almost) missed this tournament, all regular big game takers you'd normally back to ignore outside pressures.

 

[Cowfold Seagull]

I also blame the 'behind the taker' arial tv shot Uefa have been using for penalties in this tournament.

It makes it look MUCH harder than usual.

True actually, from the viewers perspective why aren't we able to see penalties being taken in the conventional way on tv any more?

 

[nwgull]

True actually, from the viewers perspective why aren't we able to see penalties being taken in the conventional way on tv any more?

Because the behind view made possible by the suspended overhead cameras is fantastic for TV viewers. Why would you go back to side on?