Chelsea striker Daniel Sturridge missed the crucial penalty as Great Britain were eliminated by South Korea.
As an Englishman and a pained onlooker of many a penalty shootouts, it becomes second nature to guess when a player is about to miss a penalty.
For Daniel Sturridge, it was plain to see as soon as he began his convoluted run-up.
He positioned himself more acutely than necessary, but the killer blow was his deliberate stutter two strides from the ball.
It was an attempt to outgun South Korea’s goalkeeper, which failed as Lee Bum-Young refused to be out-psyched and waited for him to place his kick.
When a player stutters during his run-up, he hopes the ‘keeper will dive to one side, and leave a gaping gap for him so simply place the ball. Job done.
Or not so. Nowadays goalkeepers are increasingly wise to such a move – Cristiano Ronaldo tried it unsuccessfully in the Champions League Final in 2008 and was left temporarily red-faced.
From the quirky angle of Sturridge’s run-up it was clear he might be one to try something, and so it proved.
Does he regret it? He should. The teammate who preceded him showed him exactly how it was done.
Ryan Giggs took a clear run up and leathered it into the net. A man of his experience is one to follow, and Sturridge made a big error in trying to be clever, there was no need for it.
Now it has backfired on him, can you defend his decision to choose to take a penalty like that?
It was a technique Robbie Fowler once proved himself an expert at, but more than a decade on, goalkeepers are wising up.
It is a harsh lesson for Sturridge to learn, and hopefully in the future he will keep it simple and hit the back of the net.
The penalty stutter – A do or don’t?
image: © Ben Sutherland
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