Penalty shootout. Two words that have haunted England fans since the great game of football was invented.
The Three Lions have lost seven of the 10 shootouts they have taken part in at major tournaments, most recently suffering heartbreak at the Euro 2020 final as Italy triumphed at Wembley.
One hopes that as the World Cup knockout stages begin, England won’t have to settle a match on penalties, but just in case they do, Metro Sport takes a look at who should and who shouldn’t be on spot-kick duty in Qatar.
Nailed on:
Pending some kind of massive disaster, captain Harry Kane will be the first to step up, with the striker boasting an incredible record from the spot with 60 out of 69 penalties finding the back of the net.
No England player has taken more, scored more or missed more penalties than him.
Harry Maguire was the second player to step up at Wembley last year, and you can expect that to be the case again in Qatar given the centre-back’s near perfect penalty record.
Of course, this is all dependent on who is actually on the pitch at full-time but if Gareth Southgate gets the chance Callum Wilson should be subbed on given his strong track record for Bournemouth and Newcastle.
And then there’s Marcus Rashford, who could be forgiven for wanting no part in a shootout given the horrendous racial abuse he, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka suffered after their misses last year.
But the forward is determined to make amends, and given how his form is red hot at the moment, you can count on him to deliver.
Possible contenders:
James Maddison and Mason Mount are the other regular penalty takers in the squad though both have less-than stellar conversation rates, with the latter’s miss costing Chelsea the FA Cup back in May.
Every other outfield player in the squad has taken a penalty before but not on many occasions, so the likes of Kieran Trippier, Jack Grealish and Trent Alexander-Arnold will be practicing hard on the training ground.
Eric Dier has a near perfect record and of course scored the winning penalty against Colombia four years ago, England’s first and so far only shootout win at the World Cup.
Saka’s only penalty miss came against Italy last year but whether Southgate will risk him again remains to be seen.
And then there’s goalkeeper Jordan Pickford who thundered one in against Switzerland in the Nations League in 2019 and may fancy his chances again.
Not a chance:
It takes a lot of bravery to step up to take a penalty, so credit where it’s due to Jordan Henderson and Declan Rice.
But under no circumstances should they be going anywhere near the penalty spot in Qatar, with both midfielders’ record of just one successful penalty from three attempts.
Henderson was the only player to miss against Colombia four years ago, while Raheem Sterling must also miss out having missed six of his 12 penalties.
England’s 2022 World Cup squad’s penalty record:
Harry Kane: 60/69 (87% success rate)
Callum Wilson: 17/20 (85%)
Marcus Rashford: 14/17 (82%)
James Maddison: 10/14 (71%)
Mason Mount: 7/10 (70%)
Raheem Sterling: 6/12 (50%)
Harry Maguire: 5/6 (83%)
Eric Dier: 4/5 (80%)
Trent Alexander-Arnold: 3/3 (100%)
Kalvin Phillips: 3/4 (75%)
Bukayo Saka: 3/4 (75%)
Kieran Trippier: 3/5 (60%)
Jack Grealish: 2/3 (66%)
Conor Coady: 2/4 (50%)
Jude Bellingham: 1/1 (100%)
Conor Gallagher: 1/1 (100%)
Jordan Pickford: 1/1 (100%)
Luke Shaw: 1/1 (100%)
John Stones: 1/1 (100%)
Kyle Walker: 1/1 (100%)
Ben White: 1/1 (100%)
Phil Foden: 1/2 (50%)
Jordan Henderson: 1/3 (33%)
Declan Rice: 1/3 (33%)
Nick Pope: N/A
Aaron Ramsdale: N/A
*Stats since 2013/14 season (all competitions, club and country). Data taken from The Sun
The Goalkeeper:
Back in 2014, Louis van Gaal did something no one had dared do on the world’s biggest stage: He subbed off the Netherlands’ No.1 goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen just before the shootout.
What happened next is now iconic, with back-up keeper Tim Krul saving two Costa Rica penalties to help his side advance to the semi-finals.
So could, and should Southgate replace Jordan Pickford in the 120th minute?
No, and no is the answer, as Pickford’s penalty saving prowess is well-known and slightly better than Nick Pope’s and Aaron Ramsdale’s record when saves and misses are taken into account.
England’s 2022 World Cup goalkeeper’s penalty saving record:
Jordan Pickford: 16/67 (24% success rate)
Nick Pope: 8/41 (20%)
Aaron Ramsdale: 5/23 (22%)
*Includes saves and misses. Stats since 2013/14 season (all competitions, club and country). Data taken from The Sun
The first ‘opportunity’ for England to take part in a penalty shootout is this Sunday when they take on Senegal in the round-of-16.
MORE : Trent Alexander-Arnold sends message to Gareth Southgate over ‘underrated’ England star Marcus Rashford
MORE : Fans who ‘bullied’ Man Utd and England World Cup star Harry Maguire ‘must feel ashamed’, says Patrice Evra
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