Nine things you need to know about penalties as England face Dutch

England's 5 cleanable penalties to hit Switzerland successful nan Euro 2024 quarter-final were a operation of practice, precision, and capacity nether pressure.

But what if their semi-final against Netherlands goes nan aforesaid way? Can they really beryllium that bully again?

BBC Sport looks intimately astatine some teams' punishment records and immoderate of nan secrets down England's "superb punishment strategy".

In their World Cup 2022 quarter-final 4-3 shootout conclusion by Argentina, this was nan Netherlands punishment order:

With Berghuis, Koopmeiners and De Jong not successful Koeman's Euro 2024 squad, here's a action of Netherlands' different imaginable punishment takers.

*Only non-shootout stats disposable via Opta

Pickford has now saved 4 of nan 14 penalties he's faced successful awesome tourney punishment shootouts for England.

And if he had followed nan instructions connected his vessel exactly, he could person saved 2 of Switzerland's 4 penalties successful nan quarter-final tie...

Pickford vessel instructions vs what happened

1. Akanji:

Water vessel instruction: "Dive left"

Pickford: Dived left

Result: Saved

2. Schar:

Water vessel instruction: "Fake right, dive left"

Pickford: (Opposite) Faked left, dived right

Result: Scored to Pickford's left

3. Shaqiri:

Water vessel instruction: "Dive left"

Pickford: Dived near

Result: Scored to Pickford's left, supra his dive

4. Amdouni:

Water vessel instruction: "Hold - Dive near – Go! (low)"

Pickford: Held position, shuffled feet, dived debased to left

Penalty: Scored debased down middle

After nan game, Pickford said nan referee "stopped" his "normal process" of delaying strategies - including handing nan shot to his team-mates - by threatening to springiness him a yellowish card.

But erstwhile England world Izzy Christiansen told BBC Radio 5 Live that Pickford took his "one chance" to "play each his mind games".

"He'd chosen his infinitesimal and I was watching Akanji stepping complete to put nan shot down connected nan spot," she added. "Jordan Pickford started stepping towards nan goal, past he turned backmost astir again and walked backmost nan different way, conscionable to get his towel and drinks bottle. Delay tactics, it worked once. That is nan 1 he saved.

"That gave nan backing for his squad to spell connected and person their penalties.

"It was a superb punishment strategy from England."

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Brentford's athletics scientist Michael Caulfield, who has besides worked pinch Southgate, says Toney has "almost changed nan measurement penalties tin beryllium taken".

"That was an unthinkable portion of accomplishment and courageousness to really spot your process, nether that overmuch pressure, without moreover daring to look astatine nan ball," he said.

"It's a singular accomplishment which he has refined complete years and years of believe and he's sewage an bonzer mind for a young man.

"This is simply a very reliable young man, a very smart young man.

"Penalties are not a lottery. I dream we've yet nailed that 1 down."

With 37 penalties scored from 40 taken crossed each nine and state appearances, Toney past missed a punishment successful April 2023 for Brentford against Newcastle.

According to an question and reply pinch Toney's erstwhile coach Bob Jeffery, a goalkeeping head who worked pinch nan striker successful nan US during his betting ban, nan striker practises spot-kicks from 13 yards, truthful that erstwhile he takes a normal 12-yard punishment "the extremity looks bigger".

Asked astir nan penalty, Toney himself told BBC aft nan game: "I wouldn't opportunity pressure, I ever person my ain routine. Just attraction and do what I ever do, which is conscionable return your clip and rotation nan shot into nan net. I ne'er look astatine nan ball.

"Some group mightiness spot it arsenic crazy, but I've been sticking to it and it has been working."

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Geir Jordet, writer of nan book Pressure: Lessons from nan Psychology of nan Penalty Shootout, told The Athletic nan England punishment takers took an mean 5.2 seconds from nan referee's whistle to starting their run-up - compared to nan Swiss mean of 1.3 seconds.

Jordet said that region "to return nan clip to person 2 aliases 3 heavy breaths" is astir "more power complete yourself successful that moment".

Caulfield told BBC Radio 5 live: "It's saying, 'I will return nan punishment erstwhile I'm ready, not erstwhile everyone other is ready, not erstwhile nan referee says truthful aliases erstwhile nan goalkeeper stops dancing connected nan goalline.'

"One point we each do, successful each walks of life erstwhile we're nether aggravated pressure, we thin to rush.

"All they're doing is slowing it down truthful they're successful complete power of their mind, assemblage and emotions, and past they return nan penalty. They've sewage it down to a good art."

Penalty master Jordet besides picked up connected a "subtle innovation" of "social psychology", wherever England assigned each punishment taker a 'buddy' who would locomotion down and 'collect' nan taker and invited him backmost into nan group.

For Saka's penalty, pictured below, John Stones played that role.

Jordet said: "I presume this buddy would besides support their assigned punishment taker if he were to fail.

"This was was painfully lacking successful 2021, erstwhile Rashford walked 50 metres unsocial aft his missed shot."

All these abstracted processes wrong a shootout were broken down and reconstructed, external by Chris Markham, insights lead expert astatine nan FA, and his team, from January 2017 to nan 2018 World Cup successful Russia.

Markham has since said: "It was an 18-month portion of work, successful which we reviewed each nan lit and collected bespoke information connected thousands of penalties, including everything you could ideate - run-up angle, length, steps, strategies of keepers, distraction techniques. It was all-encompassing."

Jordet added connected Markham's research: "I tin safely opportunity that nary different squad successful nan history of shot has ever prepared arsenic thoroughly and diligently for penalties arsenic England did earlier nan 2018 World Cup."

As Southgate told BBC Sport connected Tuesday successful nan video below, England person continued to "learn" and "refine" their processes complete nan years to consciousness "a batch of control".

The domiciled of erstwhile Dutch world and existent England forwards coach Jimmy-Floyd Hasselbaink was praised arsenic "massive" by Jude Bellingham aft nan quarter-final shootout.

And Phil Foden told nan BBC Sounds Football Daily podcast: "Jimmy's sewage a batch of acquisition successful nan game, truthful he knows his stuff.

"I consciousness for illustration erstwhile I first came into nan England side, possibly we were practising excessively much...So arsenic you spot now, we person Jimmy for that reason, to only return a mates [of us], not overdo it, and practise your spot and sticking pinch it."