Sergio Ramos “not trying to offend or humiliate anyone” with Panenka penalties

Sergio Ramos

The 32-year-old used a dinked finish to score against Girono in a 4-2 Copa del Rey win last month, after taking on penalty duties following Cristiano Ronaldo’s move to Juventus last summer.

Ramos defended his use of the technique pioneered by Czech player Antonin Panenka in the 1976 European Championship Final, saying he has never wanted to cause offence.

"When Cristiano was with us, we'd always practice them,” he said to El Hormiguero.

“We never lost a game when he scored from the spot and now I've taken on the job taking penalties. It's a combination of execution and expression.

“I'm not trying to offend or humiliate anyone. That wasn't my intention if anyone has felt offended.

“It's a fraction of a second when you have to decide how to ensure the ball enters and trick the keeper. It's about making something difficult easy.

“Sometimes, the craziest ideas are the best. Occasionally you have to improvise and I wait until the very last moment to see where the keeper is moving.

“I'll place the ball in the opposite side to where the keeper is going. Once or twice I may have seemed very self-confident and that has annoyed people, but I've never set out to offend. It's a crazy technique which has served me well so far".

Alasdair Mackenzie is a freelance journalist based in Rome, and a FourFourTwo contributor since 2015. When not pulling on the FFT shirt, he can be found at Reuters, The Times and the i. An Italophile since growing up on a diet of Football Italia on Channel 4, he now counts himself among thousands of fans sharing a passion for Ross County and Lazio.