Shining the brightest in the greatest possible moment is what football is all about. Being able to produce a genius moment in a dying minute, in a split second, and making it count, giving your team a win or a trophy is what every player dreams about. Many play their entire lifetime without achieving such a moment in their career.
Others are called Antonin Panenka. A player whose name will always echo in the history of football and will carry the honour of having a kick named after him. In the greatest moment of his career, the final of the 1976 Euros, Panenka stepped in to take the crucial penalty kick.
Instead of kicking it in one of the two sides, he flicked the ball over the keeper, lobbing him and scoring the winning goal for Czechoslovakia to win the trophy against Germany.
This is how it all began, if you are asked what is a Panenka penalty? Since then there have been various more, some of them good, some of them bad. But each one with an attempt to replicate the cheekiness, the attitude, and the confidence one needs to score such a goal.
Today’s topic is obviously the Panenka penalty kick. But we are not going to go so much into the technique about how to pull it off. Instead, we want to emphasise all of the good moments and some bad ones where players tried to do it.
Zinedine Zidan (World Cup 2006)
One of the greatest of all time, Zinedine Zidan, gave France the lead in the 2006 World Cup final. It was a gutsy attempt at a penalty. But Zidan somehow managed to put the ball past Gianluigi Buffon, who was between the posts in Italy at the time.
However, things could have turned out much differently. It was a game of inches, as a panenka penalty is always a gamble. The ball hit the post, bounced cross the line, then bounced back up to hit the post again, and ended up going back into the field. It was a clear goal, by the skin of Zidan’s teeth.
France lost in the end on penalties, and Zidan got that red card, which was the only blemish on his career. But the Panenka penalty he took at such a crucial moment was something that only the football greats could pull off.
Andrea Pirlo (Euro 2012 Quarter Finals)
At a time when England were regularly losing games on penalties, they ran into Italy in the 2012 Euro quarterfinals. The Three Lions got going and were 2:1 up. But then stepped the master, Andrea Pirlo. He scored one of the most aesthetically pleasing Panenka goals that anyone has witnessed.
He sent Joe Hart crashing to the side. While the cheeky shot went up above him in a stellar curve and in the back of the net. Italy went on to win that shoutout and eventually reach the final. Many say that Pirlo’s goal turned the tie of the game and was the sole reason that Azzuri were able to win against England in that game.
Sebastian Abreu (World Cup 2010 Quarter Finals)
The quarterfinal game between Uruguay and Ghana at the 2010 World Cup had it all. Goals, penalties, penalties missed, Luis Suarez acting as a goalkeeper when he was clearly not allowed to touch the ball with his hands, absolute madness of a game.
Fans from Ghana remember this as the game when Suarez denied their team a place in the semi-finals with that outrageous move. But people from Uruguay remember it as a stroke of madness. After Suarez helped Uruguay get to the penalty shootout, another madman, Sebastian Abreu, stepped in.
Nicknamed El Loco, for good reason, the curly-haired striker scored one of the most disrespectful Panenka penalties in the history of football. He scored the winning goal and ended one of the most controversial games in World Cup history. He celebrated their passage to the semi-final in a competition they would eventually finish third.
Alexis Sanchez (Copa America 2015 Final)
Chile’s legendary player and best attacker of all time, Alexis Sanchez, helped them win their first major trophy. The legendary Chilean generation led by Alexis Sanchez and Arthuro Vidal reached the final of the 2015 Copa America. The competition was played in their own country. The opponent was none other than Argentina, and the game went down to penalties.
After Ever Banega missed his shot, Sanchez stepped in to try to score the winner. It seems that a Panenka football penalty was the first thing that came to his mind, as he wanted to make it memorable for the fans.
Alexis did score, but barely. It was the most disheartening Panenka penalty kick ever scored. The ball bounced twice and barely made it across the line. If it hadn’t been for the fake that sent the keeper to the side, things could have been much different for Chile.
Helder Postiga (Euro 2004 Quarterfinals)
Another example when England lost on penalties, this time orchestrated by the famed Euro 2004 Portugal team. The competition was played in Portugal, and everyone hoped for the home team to advance, but England was still the favourite.
Playing up front for Portugal at the moment was Tottenham striker Helder Postiga. He scored only a single Premier League goal for the entire season. So none of the English defenders gave him much credit when they went up against him.
But he rewarded their doubts with an equaliser and then sent the game into penalties. To make it more devastating for the Three Lions, Postiga scored the winning penalty that eliminated England from further competition. And to seal the cap on it all, it was a beautiful Panenka penalty that still hurts England fans even today.
Unfortunately, Portugal missed the chance to win their first Euro trophy that year. As the best underdog story ever told, called Greece, took that chance away from them.
Francesco Totti (Euro 2000 Semi Finals)
The Prince of Rome, Francesco Totti, was one of the most lethal finishers back in his days. He was able to score from wherever, open play, free kicks, and especially penalties. He was one of the surest choices when it came to spot-kicks for both club and country.
So when the chance for him to take the crucial penalty for Italy came at the semi-final of Euro 2000 he stepped in with condense. In front of him was 1.97m-tall Edwin van der Sar, one of the best Dutch goalkeepers of all time.
To execute the penalty, Totti needed laser precision. It is not easy to get one over on van der Sar on any occasion, let alone in a situation like this one. But Totti had nerves of steel and an even better foot. He lobbed van der Sar, which led to the Netherlands missing their next two penalties. Leading Italy into the showdown in the final against France.
Gary Lineker (International Friendly)
In a friendly game played against Brazil in 1992, Gary Lineker had a chance to equalise Bobby Charlton’s goalscoring record for England. In a friendly affair, the Three Lions were awarded a penalty and in stepped Lineker.
As you probably know, Gary was a very prolific striker back in his day. Scoring penalties came naturally for him, so everybody thought this was going to be an automatic one.
To everyone’s surprise, Lineker delivered one of the most lacklustre attempts at a Panenka shot. Making for easy prey for Carlos, the Brazilian goalkeeper. To make things even worse, Lineker never scored for England again, and he never managed to equalise Sir Bobby Charlton’s record.
