An Insult To Antonin: Five of the Worst Panenkas Ever | ES | Translation

On this day in 1976, Antonin Panenka made history. Czechoslovakia faced West Germany in the final of the European Championships and, after 120 minutes of gripping action, the game went to penalties. Uli Hoeneß missed his spot kick for the Germans, and Antonin Panenka stepped up to the spot. The 26-year-old Czech had the chance to win Euro '76 for his country.

He took that chance, and he took it well.

Facing Bayern Munich keeper Sepp Maier, Panenka feigned as if to shoot towards the bottom corner. Maier dived to his left, at which point Panenka boldly chipped the ball down the middle of the goal. The Panenka penalty was born, and has been imitated by the world's best footballers ever since.

Some of those imitations have been better than others, mind. Such is the brazenness of the technique that, when someone fails to score with a Panenka, they inevitably come across as an absolute prick. On the 40th anniversary of the greatest penalty ever, let's take a moment to remember the times that people tried and failed to pull off the chipped penalty, and made themselves look like complete dickheads in the process.

Let's start with the most recent example of someone getting themselves in a Panenka-based pickle, shall we? Whether Luis Seijas was aware of this week's Panenkaversary or not, he tried to mimic the technique during Venezuela's Copa America clash with Argentina on Saturday. With Venezuela trailing 2-0, La Vinotinto were handed a way back into the match when Sergio Romero brought down Josef Martinez in the box.

Seijas stepped up to the spot, gave Romero the eyes and, subsequently, lofted the ball softly towards the keeper. Venezuela went on the lose 4-1. What a total plum.

When most of us think of Andrea Pirlo's defining Panenka, we think of the penalty that knocked England out of Euro 2012. That effort was a thing of beauty, a moment of sublime skill and almost impossible daring.

Pirlo hasn't always been so proficient when it comes to dinking his spot kicks, however. Playing for AC Milan in a pre-season game against Barcelona back in 2010, the maestro of the Italian midfield sent a telegraphed chip sailing gently into the welcoming grasp of José Manuel Pinto.

Sometimes, even the best of us end up looking like tossers.

It's hard not to admire Alexandre Pato here, simply for having produced something so sublimely shit. During the early days of his unhappy spell with Corinthians, Pato was handed the opportunity to become a club hero in his side's Copa do Brasil clash with Gremio. Needing to score to keep Corinthians in the tie, he set the ball on the spot with meticulous care.

He then proceeded to kick the ground a bit, and send the ball bouncing into the goalkeeper's outstretched arms. Cue elation for Gremio. Cue a series of underwhelming loan spells for Pato.

Neymar is a cheeky sod, isn't he? He's the sort of footballer that turns your grandad's face puce with rage. He's canny, conniving and never afraid to deceive a referee. He is an enemy of the good old days, when a footballer had to have his shin broken in three places before anyone even considered awarding a penalty kick, let alone handing out a card.

As such, it's hard to feel sorry for him when he fluffs his lines in spectacular fashion. Playing for Santos in the summer of 2010, Neymar won a penalty against Vitoria with an infuriatingly clever stepover in the box. Taking the spot kick himself, he chipped it nonchalantly into the keeper's gloves. Chances are that your grandad punched a hole in the wall in celebration, then had a series of minor heart palpitations and had to go for a lie down.

This is one of the lesser known Panenka fails in recent years, but it still makes for compelling viewing. With Atlas hosting fierce regional rivals Guadalajara in the Mexican league last April, the home team were awarded a penalty in the 95th minute of the game. Atlas midfielder Arturo Gonzalez was given the opportunity to secure a rare win over the club's old foes.

Instead, his Panenka was clawed back off the line by the prostrate keeper. Unsurprisingly, Atlas fans were massively, massively pissed off.