It is arguably the coollest trick in football when done right – but nothing is more cringeworthy than when it goes wrong.
Achraf Hakimi was a vision of Baltic poise as he feathered his penalty straight down the middle of Unai Simon’s goal to give Moroccan football its greatest moment on Tuesday night.
The effort sent the African side past Spain, and through to a World Cup quarter-final against Portugal.
It was also a new entry near the top of the charts for all-time great “Panenkas”.
Here is a list of five of the best – as well as five of the worst fails.
HITS
Antonin Panenka (Czechoslovakia v West Germany, 1976). Beating the Germans on penalties is flash enough. Doing it in such cool fashion the manoeuvre would forever be named after you? What a dude.
Achraf Hakimi (Morocco v Spain, 2022). Against the country of his birth. To give his country of origin their greatest ever win. Not so much cool as Arctic.
Andrea Pirlo (Italy v England, 2012). The epitome of cool. And the penalty wasn’t bad, either.
Zinedine Zidane (France v Italy, 2006). Added a frisson of drama by chipping it in off the underside of the bar, and just over the line. All part of a nice quiet night for the retiring France great …
Omar Abdulrahman (UAE v Japan, 2015). One of the biggest upsets in Asian Cup history, and perhaps UAE’s greatest ever win. In the midst of the shoot-out, their maestro dinked in a Panenka.
MISSES
Gary Lineker (England v Brazil, 1992). One short of Sir Bobby Charlton’s record number of goals for England, he botched his showy penalty in a pre-Euro 1992 friendly at Wembley.
Eric Cantona (Bordeaux v Beauvais, 1989). So much swagger, he juggled the ball all the way from halfway to the spot in a French Cup shoot out. Then his chip was so heroically limp in barely reached the goalline.
Sergio Aguero (Manchester City v Chelsea, 2021). Chipped the ball into Edouard Mendy’s hands, sparking a comeback which at least briefly delayed City’s inevitable Premier League title charge.
Aleksandar Mitrovic (Serbia v Montenegro, 2018). Thrillingly prolific - except when attempting Panenkas. “I have no idea why I’ve done that,” he said, after ballooning his penalty over the bar.
Ademola Lookman (Fulham v West Ham United, 2020). His horror effort cost his side vital points in the battle against relegation. “I couldn't even describe the devastation,” he later said of the incident.
