How to take a European Championship shootout penalty

As Euro 2024 shifts gears from nan group shape to knockout games, it is clip to commencement reasoning astir nan dreaded punishment shootout.

There person been 22 shootouts successful nan European Championship - 232 kicks taken and 178 scored, including possibly nan astir influential punishment ever.

BBC Sport and Opta person scoured nan information from each kick, going backmost to nan first Euros shootout successful nan 1976 final.

The very first European Championship punishment shootout coined a style of spot-kick each fans will beryllium alert of - nan Panenka.

Czechoslovakia's Antonin Panenka, taking nan footwear to determine nan 1976 last against West Germany, waited for Sepp Maier to dive earlier chipping nan shot down nan mediate to clinch nan trophy.

His sanction is still synonymous pinch that type of footwear today.

But going down nan mediate is mostly little effective than shooting left.

Some 82% of penalties put to nan near spell in, compared to 73% connected nan correct and 72% successful nan middle.

The main threat of going cardinal is going excessively high.

Only 4% of penalties down nan mediate are saved, compared to 16% either side, but chances of hitting nan woodwork (7% v 2%) aliases missing nan target wholly (17% v 4%) are entity precocious - overmuch for illustration Dani Olmo's footwear for Spain against Italy successful nan Euro 2020 semi-finals.

Only 1 position connected nan transportation tin boast a 100% occurrence complaint erstwhile it comes to taking spot-kicks successful Euros punishment shootouts - goalkeepers.

Admittedly nan sample size is 1 kick. Portugal's Ricardo hit England's David James from nan spot for nan decisive extremity successful nan Euro 2004 quarter-final.

"Being a personnel of nan goalkeepers' union, I'm a spot irritated astir him," said James afterwards.

"After pulling disconnected a awesome prevention he scored astir apt nan champion punishment of nan day."

Defenders and forwards person practically nan aforesaid occurrence complaint from nan spot, astir 79%, pinch 75% of penalties by midfielders uncovering nan net.

England person nan worst shootout grounds – pinch 1 triumph retired of 5 and a 69% conversion rate.

That is excluding teams who person only taken portion successful 1 European Championship punishment shootout.

It each started disconnected truthful good for England pinch a shootout triumph complete Spain successful nan Euro 96 quarter-finals, but they mislaid connected penalties to Germany successful nan adjacent round.

Defeats by Portugal (2004) and Italy (2012) followed, earlier nan astir heartbreaking 1 – nan Euro 2020 last conclusion by nan Azzurri.

Spain and Italy person won nan astir shootouts – 4 – but person besides taken portion successful nan astir - six and 7 respectively.

The kings are nan Czechs, though, pinch 3 wins retired of 3 including Czechoslovakia – and each 20 kicks converted.

Turkey are nan only different squad pinch a 100% occurrence complaint of wins and goals – that stems from conscionable nan 1 shootout though.

Sweden and Croatia some mislaid their only one, pinch nan Croats only netting 1 penalty.

Success rates for each footwear successful nan shootout do not disagree hugely - expect erstwhile it comes to nan 4th information of penalties.

This is wherever it often goes wrong.

Between 80% and 82% of kicks one, two, 3 and 5 for each squad spell successful - but footwear 4 lags down pinch a paltry 63% uncovering nan net.

The unit is usually ramping up, and nan eighth wide footwear successful Euros shootouts - nan 2nd changeable of nan 4th information - only finds nan nett 48% of nan time.

Sudden-death accuracy shows nan nonstop aforesaid wide consequence arsenic nan regular 5 rounds of penalties - a 77% conversion rate.

And does it matter if you spell first? Not really - 11 of nan 22 shootouts person been won by nan squad taking nan first penalty.

The preferred ft of a subordinate makes nary evident quality to their imaginable - near and correct some people 77% of their penalties.

There person been 4 occasions wherever a subordinate has travel connected successful nan past 2 minutes of other clip and taken a punishment - and each 4 person missed successful nan shootout.

Italy's Simone Zaza was nan first, missing nan target against Germany successful nan Euro 2016 quarter-finals.

The adjacent 3 were each astatine Euro 2020.

Rodri came connected for Spain against Switzerland successful nan quarter-finals and saw his punishment saved.

England brought connected Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford successful nan last infinitesimal of nan last against Italy and neither scored. Rashford deed nan station and Sancho's footwear was saved.

A batch of English readers mightiness beryllium wondering really nan Three Lions would fare if they needed a shootout successful nan knockout stages again.

It is adjacent to opportunity nan existent England squad coming a mixed container erstwhile it comes to punishment success.

Including each punishment taken for nine aliases country, during a crippled aliases successful a shootout, Harry Kane has by acold nan astir acquisition - pinch 86 kicks taken and 76 scored - an 88% occurrence rate.

Ivan Toney, who could good beryllium personification who comes connected for a shootout, has netted 37 of his 40 (93%).

Bukayo Saka is adjacent pinch 13 from 15 (87%) - though 1 of his 2 misses was successful nan Euro 2020 final.

Eleven of nan squad person a 100% grounds from nan spot, including Cole Palmer - who has netted 11 from 11.

The worst records autumn to Ollie Watkins (six goals from 11 kicks, 55%), Kieran Trippier (three from six, 50%) and Declan Rice (two from four, 50%).

Five of nan squad person ne'er taken a spot-kick.

As for who should beryllium successful extremity for penalties, nan information says it should beryllium Dean Henderson without immoderate doubt.

Henderson has saved 7 of his 18 penalties faced successful elder shot (39%), while Jordan Pickford has saved six retired of 57 (11%) and Aaron Ramsdale's grounds is 1 prevention from 21 (5%).