Jordan Pickford created extensive notes on saving penalties from Argentina’s players before England’s World Cup semi-final in Atlanta, but the goalkeeper never utilized them as his team lost 2-1 in regulation time.
The messages, affixed to Pickford’s water bottle, were found by Argentina’s players, including Lionel Messi, while they reveled in their comeback victory on Wednesday evening.
Anthony Gordon put England ahead, but Enzo Fernandez equalized for Argentina, who netted two late goals to secure their spot in Sunday’s final against Spain, thus eliminating the need for a shootout.
A report from Talk Sport indicates that Pickford’s cheat sheet included the names of all Argentina players along with detailed guidelines on how he intended to respond when they approached to take a penalty.
Certain directives requested the goalkeeper to feign a dive or postpone his action, while others were more concise.
For attacking midfielder Thiago Almada, Pickford had merely noted that he would proceed based on instinct that day.
For Messi, who had previously missed a penalty in the tournament, Pickford’s notes allegedly advised him to dive one way after initially appearing to go the other, anticipating that the Argentina captain would change his usual approach.
Tottenham’s Marcos Senesi was observed showing the instructions to a confused Messi, as the notes were in English, according to Talk Sport.
For Fernandez, whose distant shot had levelled England’s first goal, Pickford had merely acknowledged that he anticipated the midfielder would aim his shot centrally.
Fernandez allegedly showed clear relief upon recognizing that his typical routine had been accurately deciphered, gesturing upward after noticing the note.
Talk Sport stated that the picture of Pickford’s bottle was posted on Instagram by Argentina’s fitness coach Luis Martin.
Football transfer reporter Fabrizio Romano also posted the image on his account, and it has quickly spread across social media.
Goalkeepers regularly analyze penalty shooters before significant knockout games, considering previous penalties, favored shooting directions, body posture prior to a shot, and whether a player is likely to alter tendencies under stress.
Pickford continued to make several saves throughout the semi-final, yet his shootout readiness was never put to the test after Argentina finished their comeback.
AS USA indicates that the disclosed notes might be beneficial as the final approaches.
Now that Argentina’s routines are known, Spain’s goalkeeper Unai Simon might not have to begin anew, and Fernandez, in particular, may have to reconsider taking his penalties straight down the center.
A penalty shootout is not new for Argentina, who triumphed over France in 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
