Pickford's Penalty Notes Found by Messi and Argentina - Report

Jordan Pickford made detailed notes on how to save penalties from Argentina’s players before England's World Cup semi-final in Atlanta. Sadly, he never used them because England lost 2-1 in normal time.

The notes were taped to Pickford’s water bottle. Argentina’s players, including Lionel Messi, found them while celebrating their comeback win on Wednesday night.

England took the lead with a goal from Anthony Gordon. Enzo Fernandez equalized for Argentina, who then scored twice late in the game to secure their spot in Sunday’s final against Spain, avoiding a penalty shootout.

A report from Talk Sport says Pickford’s cheat sheet listed all Argentina players with instructions on how he planned to respond if they took a penalty.

Some notes suggested Pickford should fake a dive or delay his movement. Others were brief. For attacking midfielder Thiago Almada, he simply wrote that he would go by feel on the day.

For Messi, who had missed a penalty earlier in the tournament, Pickford’s notes reportedly said to dive one way after pretending to go the other. He thought Messi might change his usual penalty style.

Tottenham defender Marcos Senesi was seen showing the notes to a confused Messi since they were in English, according to Talk Sport.

For Fernandez, who scored the long-range goal that tied the game, Pickford noted he expected the midfielder to shoot down the middle.

Fernandez reportedly looked relieved when he saw his usual routine had been noted, pointing to the sky after reading it.

Talk Sport reported that Argentina fitness coach Luis Martin shared a photo of Pickford’s bottle on Instagram. But PUNCH Online could not find the post on Martin’s account.

Football transfer journalist Fabrizio Romano also posted the image, and it quickly spread on social media.

Goalkeepers often study penalty takers before big knockout matches. They look at past penalties, preferred shooting sides, a player’s body language before a shot, and if a player changes their style under pressure.

Pickford still made some saves during the semi-final, but his penalty preparation did not matter since Argentina turned the game around.

AS USA reports that these leaked notes could help as Argentina heads into the final. With their strategies now known, Spain goalkeeper Unai Simon may not have to start fresh. Fernandez might also need to rethink his plan to shoot down the middle.

Argentina is no stranger to penalty shootouts. They beat France on penalties to win the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.