University News Last updated 29 June 2021
Rising stars such as Bukayo Saka and Phil Foden could be the key to success for England’s if they face a Euro 2020 penalty shootout, according to a leading sports academic.
Dr Natalie Walker, Head of Sports and Exercise at Birmingham City University, believes that if the national team’s last 16 qualifier against Germany today comes down to spots kicks their emerging players should have been prepped to step up.
England famously have lost two penalty shootouts to the Germans in major football tournaments – at the 1990 World Cup and at Euro 96, with both defeats coming at the semi-final stage. England’s record in penalty shootouts overall is poor – they have won only three out of eight in total – whereas Germany have lost only one of the seven spot kick deciders that they have been involved in.
But two of England’s three victories have come in their two most recent attempts – at the 2018 World Cup when they overcame Columbia in the last 16 and against Switzerland in the UEFA Nations League the following year. And Dr Walker believes that should the game against the Germans end up in a shootout, England’s best chance of repeating their recent successes would be for their young stars to be among the early takers.
Dr Walker, who has advised professional cricket, rugby and swimming teams, as well as carrying out research into sports psychology, points to research that backs up her claim. She said:
“Studies have shown that up and coming players who went on to win top individual accolades were 20 per cent more likely to find the back of the net than those who had already achieved international acclaim. Further research suggests that the psychological impact of a penalty shootout on younger players can be completely different to what we see in established stars.
“The fear of destroying a reputation can overwhelm those who have already have high profiles while for younger players it can be a motivating factor which drives them on to enhance their own standing in the game.
“So selecting players like Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden and Marcus Rashford who, while making names for themselves at both club and international level are still at relatively early stages of their careers, could be the difference between England maintaining their recent momentum to secure another spot kick success and another disappointing exit.”
Following last night’s dramatic shootout between France and Switzerland, Dr Walker also warned against the often touted belief that penalty shootouts are a “lottery” determined more by luck than skill.
She said: “Just before the shoot took place, the presenter of last night’s match made the point to the panellists, who were all former players, that the shootout was not a ‘lottery’ but was actually about skill.
“That was good to hear and makes a change as footballing pundits have often tended to perpetuate the ‘lottery’ myth, almost as if the chances of scoring in a shootout are completely random.
“Their rationale is that no amount of practice can prepare players for the pressure of a real life, high stakes situation. But while it may be difficult, in fact almost impossible to produce the atmosphere of a big game scenario, there are little things players can do to improve their chances of scoring when it really counts.
“Not rushing the kick immediately after the whistle but instead waiting a second or two – as a few of the successful penalty takers did last night – appears to work well. Celebrating with teammates after a successful kick has also been shown to breed confidence and positive emotions.