The best place to put a penalty.

tazzabear

tazzabear

Well-Known Member
Just watching a piece showing the area of the goal where most penalties are scored.
It seems to be shoot outs only but I’m not sure a wider sample would show anything different.
It’s appear that anything shot over five, maybe six foot, ends up a goal.
Either side of the keeper.
These results don’t surprise me.
It’s something I was taught nearly fifty years back.
Keepers don’t dive up the way!
Expanding this a bit, it never ceases to amaze me how many players insist on keeping the ball low when shooting close in, inside the penalty box, just to make a distinction.
Defenders diving in getting a block, again they aren’t diving or falling up the way, keepers and defenders getting a block with their legs or feet.
Lifting the ball a bit takes the lucky legs out of the equation leaving only the ball being at a “good height” for the keeper to negotiate.
Why do players keep doing it?
I put it down to a couple of things.
One, the “you must hit the target/make the keeper work” idea.
Okay, if it’s not on target you don’t score but if the ball is too near the keeper, what’s the point.
What is the target anyway?
I’d say a foot inside the post, hit the inside of the side netting.
The second reason is that they’re sh1t scared of putting the ball over the bar and being accused of ballooning it.
So, they just err to much and make the keeper look good.
But, it was on target!
Well, that’s my rant for tonight.
 
I used to vary technique. Sometimes try to get keeper to move and go the other way but before I stopped playing I was confident blasting straight down middle towards the keepers head as they'd generally move one way or other and never missed that way out of around 15.

Missed a few in younger days going for a corner and keeper guessing correctly
 
In the summer of 2000 I lived across the road from university of San Diego and an immaculate grass park you could just go on and kick a ball about. Over that summer with mates we discovered the shearer two step close your foot and aim top left (keepers right) with a specific foot shape was impossible to put over the bar and literally nearly every penalty was either high near the top corner or actually roof of the net. Not sure I’d have the balls to recreate that in a Seville situation mind.
 
Coza said:
In the summer of 2000 I lived across the road from university of San Diego and an immaculate grass park you could just go on and kick a ball about. Over that summer with mates we discovered the shearer two step close your foot and aim top left (keepers right) with a specific foot shape was impossible to put over the bar and literally nearly every penalty was either high near the top corner or actually roof of the net. Not sure I’d have the balls to recreate that in a Seville situation mind.
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La Jolla loyal
 
Left or right, high of the keeper and they’re going to struggle to get there

I didn’t play at high level, high pressure but always went high

Those who go left or right low are risking keeper making right choice imo
 
I used to hit them at amateur level for my team, 100% success rate by putting them keepers bottom right (I'm a right footer.)

Much easier when you know the keeper's can't have done their homework.
 
A couple of my theories:

Penalty takers keep it low because you can hit the ball over the goal, you can't hit it under.

Top corners are the most difficult to save, but the most difficult to score. Gravity will affect a keeper's dive so most keepers will reach a bottom corner quicker than a top corner.

I don't watch a lot of football outside Rangers but I think Harry Kane is the best I've seen at consistently putting penalties in the top corner (not saying he's the best ever). I don't remember many (if any) penalty saves in the top corner, there has been plenty in bottom corners, not least by our very own, Shagger!
 
Always used to put them hard, low and as close as possible to the side netting. Didn’t take a lot but three of them were in semi finals and I never missed a pen.
Was cocky on a couple of occasions and gave the keeper the eyes and sent him the wrong way, it’s amazing how many keepers will fall for that.
If I was really competent I would smash them in the top corner every time because it looks as cool as f.uck.
 
WinkieWATP said:
Bottom corner of which ever foot the keeper kicks the ball with
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The piece I watched on Sky has the goal split into eighteen (not twenty four as originally posted) areas, three rows of six.
The ground level shows success of between 60 and 86%.
The top row, something like six to eight foot from the ground, show six boxes all at 100%.
Thems the facts.
 
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TerryArcade said:
A couple of my theories:

Penalty takers keep it low because you can hit the ball over the goal, you can't hit it under.

Top corners are the most difficult to save, but the most difficult to score. Gravity will affect a keeper's dive so most keepers will reach a bottom corner quicker than a top corner.

I don't watch a lot of football outside Rangers but I think Harry Kane is the best I've seen at consistently putting penalties in the top corner (not saying he's the best ever). I don't remember many (if any) penalty saves in the top corner, there has been plenty in bottom corners, not least by our very own, Shagger!
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Of course, this is true but, body shape takes care of that very easily.
I’m not trying to be smart saying “body shape” but we all probably know if you’re leaning back you’re likely to lift the ball.
 
SHOTTSLOYAL said:
I used to hit them at amateur level for my team, 100% success rate by putting them keepers bottom right (I'm a right footer.)

Much easier when you know the keeper's can't have done their homework.
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The piece I’m referring to does suggest going to the keepers right is very much more successful than to his left.
There is a simple reason for this though and it is because most are right footed.
Going to the keepers right allows us to hit the ball harder with the front of the foot.
Its not so easy for right footers to hit the ball with the front of the foot aiming to the keepers left.
 
tazzabear said:
Of course, this is true but, body shape takes care of that very easily.
I’m not trying to be smart saying “body shape” but we all probably know if you’re leaning back you’re likely to lift the ball.
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Totally agree, but even professional players can't always execute that simple act of keeping it down when the pressure is on. That's why some take the safe option of keeping it low to make sure the option of missing the goal vertically is removed. Players can't get "over it" if they're trying to put it in the top corner, there's an extra risk of hitting it over with that shot that doesn't exist with a shot that's aimed at the bottom corner.
 
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Somewhere up high above waist height makes sense. The laws of physics dictate that the goalkeeper will drop to the ground. Yet so so many penalties are trundlers that are easily saved. Ghana today was a shocking penalty.
 
I usually put them head height to the keeper's left. Sometimes faked a left foot run up and toe bashed it with the right foot into the top left corner.
 
Partickblue said:
Somewhere up high above waist height makes sense. The laws of physics dictate that the goalkeeper will drop to the ground. Yet so so many penalties are trundlers that are easily saved. Ghana today was a shocking penalty.
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Ramsey. What a signing he was, can't even hit a penalty with a bit of power. Only time penalties should be hit soft is if your doing a chip down the middle, like Messi.
 
In my younger days and as a right footed striker, i always aimed for the bottom left corner (to the keepers right). I felt it was easier to disguise your kick if you stood fairly to the left of where you were kicking and just a couple of paces back. Too straight a run up and it was easier for the keeper to read as you open your foot up. I think a lot of keepers try and read your body shape

i only ever missed once in a game and that was when i changed my routine and went for top right, never again!!

In my older days as i moved further and further back until i was keeper, i always preferred to dive to my left as you spend most of your time springing off your standing leg. saved a lot pens that way, but none the other way
 
Statistically playing it right down the middle is the most successful but it’s not done as often because you look like a fud when it doesn’t come off. There’s a cracking chapter about it in the Freakenomics book about it. The success rate on the data set was 81%.
 
OlegKuznetsov said:
Straight down the middle high

Goalie always dives

ALWAYS
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If I was a goalie, I’d stand still. You can cover 1/3 of the goal by standing. As soon as you dive you cover 1/4 at best and if you dive too early you make it easy for the taker
 
tazzabear said:
The piece I watched on Sky has the goal split into twenty four areas, three rows of six.
The ground level shows success of between 60 and 86%.
The top row, something like six to eight foot from the ground, show six boxes all at 100%.
Thems the facts.
Click to expand...
This proves why I should have stayed in the classroom more than being on the football pitch.
I would count that as 18 areas o_O
 
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Numans_Left_Peg said:
None of your Jorginho or Pogba pìsh.

Just a normal run up and fùcking leather it into the net.
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I’d have thought they’d have amended the rules on these types of kicks by now.

I wouldn’t thank any Rangers player for using it as their preferred method.

Granted both Jorginho and Fernandes get the rewards for their technique.

Jorginho- 41 scored, 7 missed.

Fernandes - 44 scored, 5 missed.
 
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