Antonín Panenka

Antonín Panenka

Panenka in 2009
Personal information
Full nameAntonín Panenka
Date of birth2 December 1948
Place of birthPrague, Czechoslovakia
Height1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Playing positionAttacking Midfielder
Youth career
1958–1967Bohemians Praha
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps†(Gls)†
1967–1981Bohemians Praha230(76)
1981–1985Rapid Vienna127(63)
1985–1987VSE St. Pölten
1987–1989SK Slovan Wien
Total357(139)
National team
1973–1982[1]Czechoslovakia59(17)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.
† Appearances (Goals).
Signature of Antonín Panenka (2004)

Antonín Panenka (born 2 December 1948 in Prague) is a Czech former footballer. He played most of his career for Bohemians Prague. Panenka won the 1976 European Championship with Czechoslovakia. In the final against West Germany he scored the winning penalty in the shootout with a softly chipped ball up the middle as the goalie dived away; this style of penalty is now called the Panenka penalty.[2] In 1980 he won Czechoslovak Footballer of the Year and his team finished third in the 1980 European Championship.

Club career

An attacking midfielder known for the quality of his passing and his free kicks, Panenka played for Bohemians Praha for most of his career, joining the club in 1967. In 1981 Panenka left Bohemians for Austrian club Rapid Vienna, where he won two Bundesliga titles and an Austrian Cup. In 1985 Rapid reached the Cup Winners' Cup final; Panenka played as a substitute, but his side lost 3–1 to Everton. Later that year Panenka moved to VSE St. Pölten, and played two more seasons before moving into the lower leagues in Austria, playing from 1987–89 for Slovan Vienna, from 1989–91 for ASV Hohenau and from 1991–93 for Kleinwiesendorf.

Panenka penalty

He came to international prominence playing for Czechoslovakia in the 1976 European Championship; Czechoslovakia reached the final, where they faced West Germany. After extra time, the result was 2–2, and so the first penalty shootout in a European Championships final ensued. The first seven kicks were converted, until West Germany's fourth penalty taker, Uli Hoeneß, ballooned his shot over the bar. With the score 4–3, Panenka stepped up to take the fifth Czechoslovakian penalty, to win the match under immense pressure. He feigned shooting to the side of the goal, causing German goalkeeper Sepp Maier dive to his left, and then gently chipped the ball into the middle of the net.[3] The sheer cheek of the goal led a watching French journalist to dub Panenka "a poet", and to this day his winning kick is one of the most famous ever, making Panenka's name synonymous with that particular style of penalty kick.[2]

The Panenka penalty has since been successfully duplicated by Gonzalo Pineda in the 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup,[2] Sebastián Abreu in the 2010 World Cup,[2] Younis Mahmoud [4] and Omar Abdulrahman in the 2015 Asian Cup, both Andrea Pirlo and Sergio Ramos at UEFA Euro 2012 and at UEFA Euro 2016 Qualifying,[2] Hélder Postiga at UEFA Euro 2004,[2] Francesco Totti at UEFA Euro 2000, and Jozy Altidore in his first game for Toronto FC.[2] Lionel Messi in the 2015 La Liga match with Getafe which he considered the best panenka penalty. A few who have tried unsuccessfully have been Neymar,[2] Mickaël Landreau,[2] Antonio Calle, Rogério Ceni,[2] Maicosuel,[5] Marko Dević, Graham Zusi, Robin van Persie, Svetoslav Dyakov, Antonio Cassano and Alexandre Pato.[6][7]

As well as winning the 1976 European Championship, Panenka helped Czechoslovakia come third in the 1980 tournament, after scoring once again in a 9–8 penalty shootout win. In the finals of the 1982 World Cup; Panenka scored twice with penalties, but these were the only Czechoslovakian goals, and the team did not progress beyond the first group stage.

Coaching career

Today he works as a president of Bohemians 1905.

Honours

International

References

  1. ↑ "Antonin Panenka – International Appearances". The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9 "The cult of the Panenka penalty". FIFA.com. 25 June 2012. Retrieved 3 July 2012.
  3. ↑ Football – Knowledge: the footballers who have moves named after them | Football | guardian.co.uk
  4. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=6e2YbM-yEMU&app=desktop
  5. ↑ "EPIC FAIL: Watch two moments of hilarity and anguish as Udinese miss out on Champions League". Mirror Football. 29 August 2012. Retrieved 8 November 2013.
  6. ↑ "The Anti-Panenka! Alexandre Pato's awful penalty easily saved by Dida, costs Corinthians penalty shoot-out v Gremio". 101 Great Goals. 24 October 2013. Retrieved 8 November 2013.
  7. ↑ "Pato perde pênalti com cavadinha, Grêmio vence o Corinthians e vai à semi" (in Portuguese). UOL Esporte. 24 October 2013. Retrieved 8 November 2013.

External links