Luis Enrique reveals Spain have taken 1,000 penalties in training to avoid World Cup shootout heartbreak

Spain manager Luis Enrique revealed that his players had been getting plenty of practice from 12 yards ahead of their last-16 match against Morocco. 

​Spain exited Euro 2020 on penaltiesManager gives players penalty “homework”Highlights importance of practice

WHAT HAPPENED? Spain were eliminated from the semi-finals of Euro 2020 by eventual winners Italy in a penalty shootout following a 1-1 draw after 120 minutes. Luis Enrique divulged that, following that defeat, he had set his players the “homework” of taking “at least 1000” penalties, as they aim to avoid a similar fate in Qatar.

WHAT THEY SAID: “I imagine that they have done their homework. Over a year ago, in one of the Spain camps, I told them they had to get here with at least 1,000 penalties taken. If you wait until getting here to practise penalties… [it won’t be enough],” he told reporters. “It’s a moment of maximum tension, a time to show your nerve and that you can shoot the penalty in the way you have decided, if you have trained it a thousand times. It says a lot about each player. It’s trainable, manageable, how you manage the tension. It’s increasingly less luck – the goalkeepers have more influence. We have a very good goalkeeper, any of the three can do very well in this situation. Every time we finish training, I see a lot of players taking penalties.”

THE BIGGER PICTURE: The words of the Spain manager obviously had their desired effect, with forward Ferran Torres converting from 12 yards in the 7-0 drubbing of Costa Rica in their group opener. However, a draw and a loss followed that resounding win which meant La Roja eventually qualified second from Group E, setting up a meeting in the last 16 against Morocco on Tuesday.

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DID YOU KNOW? Striker Alvaro Morata has scored nine goals at the World Cup and European Championships since 2016, more than twice as many as any other Spain player in this period.

WHAT NEXT FOR SPAIN? With Luis Enrique’s penalty preparations in place, he will lead his side out against Morocco on Tuesday knowing a quarter-final against either Portugal or Switzerland awaits.