The 10 greatest, most clutch penalty takers of all time: Ronaldo, Messi, Toney…
Penalty-taking is no longer just a battle of bottle, but a measure of technique, body language, mind games, ball striking and more, all in a matter of seconds. In short, it’s undoubtedly an art form.
‘Art form’ might not even be doing it true justice, with penalty kicks essentially boiling down to science in the modern game. A moment that looks like the most simple and easiest way to score a goal from the outside can actually be one of the most difficult positions to score from, with just how easy it is to psyche yourself out.
As the game progresses, players are getting better and better at mastering the spot kick. Based on a combination of technique, record and how good they ought to have been based by the position they play, we’ve produced our list of the top 10 penalty-takers of all time.
10. Lionel Messi
Rather hilariously, the one part of the game that proved Messi was human for many years were penalties, which were his kryptonite for a while.
That all changed soon enough, though, and these days the internet likes to call him ‘Pessi’ which is when you know you’re good at spot kicks.
9. Neymar
We don’t associate him with something as mundane as a spot kick due to how exciting he is to watch in full stride, but Neymar is actually exceptionally reliable from the spot.
He’s missed 18 in his career so far, but the Brazilian has also scored a whopping 87 on top of that. He also makes that delayed run-up look ridiculously easy.
8. Ledio Pano
We can’t justify putting this fella any higher, purely on the basis that he’s up against tough competition who have all done it at a higher level, but Pano is the best penalty taker you’ve never heard of.
The Albanian, who played between 1986 and 2002 and was capped nine times for his country, scored 50 penalties out of 50 in his career. A 100% record from 50 spot kicks. That’s outrageous at any level.
7. Matt Le Tissier
Le Tiss was once remembered for being way ahead of his time on the football pitch and for being a dab hand at penalties, so why isn’t he higher up than seventh?
Well, that’s easy. Did he really score 47 out of 48 career penalties, or is that what the World Economic Forum simply wants us to believe?
We will not conform.
6. Rogerio Ceni
We really wish we could put Ceni higher – and we probably should – but the competition is just too high.
Still, sixth in our all-time ranking as a goalkeeper is simply unheard of. Scoring 129 goals throughout his career, the iconic Brazilian combined goalkeeping penalty and free-kick duties. He’s a freak of nature.
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TRY A QUIZ: Can you name every player to score a Premier League penalty for Man Utd?
5. Frank Lampard
He splits opinion, but he was also pretty good at splitting goalkeepers’ hands in half if they dared to stick it in front of his spot kicks.
Lampard kept his penalties simple, almost always tucking them into the side-netting on the goalkeeper’s right. It was predictable, but unstoppable.
4. Alan Shearer
The Premier League’s record scorer, 56 of Shearer’s 260 goals in the English top-flight came from the spot.
He missed just six in his entire career, which is mightily impressive given the goalkeepers he faced for club and country and the longevity of his career.
READ: Comparing Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi’s penalty records
3. Robert Lewandowski
They don’t call him ‘Lewan-goalski’ for nothing. Well, it’s only Thomas Muller who calls him that, but you get the point.
It’s no surprise that a player as prolific as the Polish gunman is a sure thing from 12 yards. Lewandowski has scored 80 career penalties and missed just nine. Solid. He’s not always glamorous, but he’s effective.
2. Ivan Toney
Call us mental, call us reactionary, call us whatever you like – Ivan Toney is fully deserving of this spot, ahead of Lewandowski and the rest.
He’s just ice-cold, isn’t he? Have you ever seen someone step up to take a penalty and look so assured? It’s freakish. Superhuman, possibly.
Staring the keeper in the eyes is his signature move and we don’t think there’s anyone else in football who could pull it off. Toney is an absolute madman, but every time he stands over a ball for a spot kick, you know it’s going in. There’s not a shred of doubt.
1. Cristiano Ronaldo
Muller might call Lewandowski ‘Lewan-goalski’, but there’s an entire population of people online dedicated to calling Cristiano Ronaldo ‘Penaldo’.
And for good reason. He’s missed 30 in his career, but scored 163. One hundred and sixty-three. That is unthinkable.
Mentality, technique, mind games, repetition, all of the above. An anomaly.