The mistake by the Canadian from Juventus is only the latest in a long series of blunders in the execution of the Panenka penalty. Everyone remembers Maicosuel and Pellé, but also Messi, Inzaghi and Lineker…
If that time Antonin Panenka had chosen another option, we wouldn’t be here now pointing out David’s mistake from the spot, rightfully inserting it into the unfortunate chapter of unsuccessful spoons and mocking it, because it’s the way that still offends us. If Panenka – the mustache that was fashionable at the time, the silhouette of the discreet beer drinker – had shot inside the neck or if he had placed a nice dish in the corner, that day – it was 1976 – Czechoslovakia won the European Championship against West Germany, now it would be easier to dismiss David’s foolishness, attributing it to the tremor of the foot or the flash of vanity that unfortunately sometimes appears bankruptcy.