Antonín Panenka

Antonín Panenka (born 2 December 1948) is a Czech former footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. He played most of his career for Czech club Bohemians Prague. Panenka won UEFA Euro 1976 with Czechoslovakia. In the final against West Germany, he scored the winning penalty in the shootout with a softly-chipped ball up the middle of the goal as the goalkeeper dived away; this style of penalty is now called the Panenka penalty.[2] In 1980, he won Czechoslovak Footballer of the Year and his team finished third at Euro 1980.

Antonín Panenka
Panenka in 2013
Personal information
Full name Antonín Panenka
Date of birth (1948-12-02) 2 December 1948
Place of birth Prague, Czechoslovakia
Height 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Playing position(s) Attacking midfielder
Club information
Current team
 Bohemians Praha (Chairman)
Youth career
1958–1967 Bohemians Praha
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1967–1981 Bohemians Praha 230 (76)
1981–1985 Rapid Wien 127 (63)
1985–1987 VSE St. Pölten
1987–1989 SK Slovan Wien
1989–1991 ASV Hohenau
1991–1993 Kleinwiesendorf
National team
1973–1982[1] Czechoslovakia 59 (17)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only
Signature of Antonín Panenka (2004)

Club career

An attacking midfielder known for the quality of his passing and his free kicks, Panenka played for Bohemians Praha for most of his career, joining the club in 1967. In 1981, Panenka left Bohemians for Austrian club Rapid Wien, where he won two Bundesliga titles and an Austrian Cup. In 1985 Rapid reached the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup final; Panenka played as a substitute, but his side lost 3–1 to Everton. Later that year, Panenka moved to VSE St. Pölten and played two more seasons before moving into the lower leagues in Austria, playing from 1987–89 for Slovan Vienna, from 1989–91 for ASV Hohenau and from 1991–93 for Kleinwiesendorf.

Panenka penalty
Main article: Panenka (penalty kick)

Panenka came to international prominence playing for Czechoslovakia at UEFA Euro 1976, where Czechoslovakia reached the final, facing West Germany. After extra time, the match finished 2–2, and so the first penalty shootout in a European Championships final ensued. The first seven kicks were converted until West Germany's fourth penalty taker, Uli Hoeneß, ballooned his shot over the bar. With the score 4–3, Panenka stepped up to take the fifth Czechoslovakian penalty, to win the match under immense pressure. He feigned shooting to the side of the goal, causing German goalkeeper Sepp Maier dive to his left, and then gently chipped the ball into the middle of the net.[3] The sheer cheek of the goal led a watching French journalist to dub Panenka "a poet", and to this day his winning kick is one of the most famous ever, making Panenka's name synonymous with that particular style of penalty kick.[2]

Since 1976 there have been numerous attempts to emulate Panenka, both successfully and others unsuccessfully, at every level of the sporting pyramid across the world, including in critical match winning moments such as international cup finals.[2]

Post-playing career

Today, Panenka works as a president of Bohemians 1905.

Honours

Club
Rapid Wien

International
Czechoslovakia
  • UEFA European Football Championship: 1976

Individual

References
  1. "Antonin Panenka – International Appearances". The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation.
  2. "The cult of the Panenka penalty". FIFA.com. 25 June 2012. Retrieved 3 July 2012.
  3. Tom Bryant. "Football - Knowledge: the footballers who have moves named after them". the Guardian.
  4. "Historie ankety Fotbalista roku" (in Czech). fotbal.cz. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
  5. "Legends". Golden Foot. Archived from the original on 25 September 2015. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
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