It’s all in the head
England hope different mindset will conquer penalty curse
ST PETERSBURG: England have projected this World Cup as a fresh start for a new generation but the team’s record of failure in penalty shootouts may not be so easy to forget.
Penalties have been the death of England at six of the last 12 major tournaments and in that time, they have won only once, against Spain at Euro ‘96.
Gareth Southgate’s playing career was defined by the shot he side-footed into the hands of Andreas Kopke as England then lost in the semi-finals at Wembley to Germany.
“I have had a couple of decades thinking it through,” Southgate said last week.
His experience has informed his own approach now as coach, with a last 16 tie against Colombia to come today and the possibility of penalties looming again.
Southgate was in the World Cup squad in 1998 under Glenn Hoddle, who believed shootouts were a lottery, impossible to replicate in training and therefore not worth any form of practice.
England duly lost to Argentina on spotkicks and missed out on the quarter-finals.
If there is one thing Southgate has been determined to drill into the preparation of his players, it is that penalty shootouts are not decided by chance.
“It’s a skill and every skill takes time to learn and to perfect. It’s never a chance. It’s just about being able to perform it with pres- sure,” said Marcus Rashford on Sunday.
England have been practising penalties since March. The players rehearse the walk from the halfway line as well as their shot. Southgate has deployed video analysts and psychometric testing to gauge his most reliable takers.
England’s goalkeeper Jordan Pickford has saved five out of 30 penalties faced during matches, a similar record to his two back-ups, Jack Butland, whose record is four from 25, and Nick Pope, who is three from 13.
Belgium’s Thibaut Courtois has suggested Pickford, at 1.85m tall, carries a disadvantage but Colombia’s stopper David Ospina is even smaller at 1.83m.
England might take heart too from Ospina’s record. In spot-kicks awarded during games, he has saved only three out of 38 and one in his last 15. In shootouts, he helped Colombia past Peru in the Copa America two years ago by blocking Miguel Trauco’s effort with his legs.
For England, half the battle will be mental. How heavy will the past weigh on the present?
Rashford said he would be willing to put his hand up, as did Dele Alli when he was asked on Saturday.
Harry Kane, who slammed two penalties into the top corner against Panama, would certainly be one of the five, while Jamie Vardy, who takes them for Leicester, is an option off the bench.