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Replies

Rodger Sherman @rodger.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

after the Champions League final, I looked at data from over 45,000 penalty kicks across international and club competitions and have come up with a hugely important breakthrough of what will likely be a shootout-filled World Cup: Soccer players should kick the ball at the net on penalty kicks

sports.beehiiv.com

Today in Sports! Just shoot the ball at the goal

With the World Cup coming up, I just have one piece of advice for players: shoot the ball *at* the net. PLUS, the Thunder's future suddenly looks a lot less rosy, the National Spelling Bee went to a S...

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James @roljamas.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

Big if true

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Eelaware @eelaware.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

@mrsan.bsky.social

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SJ is Not South Jersey @sjgooner.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

Man don’t let the red sky look at this- I’m holding back myself

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samyeahthatsam.bsky.social @samyeahthatsam.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

How are The Netherlands and Morocco somehow so bad at this???

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TinkTonkWolicyPonk she/they @shannonhey.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

It really doesn’t seem to work when they kick the ball at not the goal.

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Mumko69 @mumko.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

Actually not all of them should. I am happy with who missed in the Champions League final

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Scott M @smcp19.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

Kepa’s 2022 FA Cup Final shot just made its 10000th orbit around our planet. If he’d have shot it at the net, it wouldn’t need to do that much traveling.

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Shawn Foss @shawnfoss.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

Found this data in a Medium post written back in Feb. Shocked how successful kicks to the middle of the net are, but so few people try it, I wonder if more players took your advice and just kicked down the middle if keeper tactics would change and the success rate would drop.

The Data
I analysed 212 decisive penalties from elite men’s football between 2010 and 2023. These were not just any penalties; they were the ones where the match was literally on the line, from the following competitions:

UEFA Champions League
UEFA Europa & Conference League
FIFA World Cup
UEFA European Championship & Nations League
CONMEBOL Copa América

Penalty attempt frequency by side - 109 attempts to the left, 24 attempts to the centre, and 79 attempts to the right

Conversion rates by zone:
Top left - 60.7%
Middle left - 47.6%
Bottom left - 71.7%
Top middle - 100%
Middle middle - 88.9%
Bottom middle - 88.9%
Top right - 52.9%
Middle right - 85%
Bottom right - 59.5%

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Davoin Shower-Handel @davoinshowerhandel.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

I hear what you’re saying but it’s almost impossible for the keeper to make a save when it’s not on net.

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[seasonal] pacanukeha❌ @pacanukeha.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

reminds me of a cartoon of Jonny Wilkinson coaching David Beckham how to take penalties like he did to win the world cup in 2003: "Straight forward, between the uprights and over the crossbar!"

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Robert Baker @kerba1123.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

this is the old "over 90% of the putts that don't make it to the hole don't go in" joke the 83-year-old starter at every golf course tells, that along with "the other starter shot 66 last friday. But then he played the back nine"

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