Spain is one of the greatest teams in the modern game. They can boast both world-class players and a coach who makes smart tactical decisions. Against Croatia, the reigning European champions had a chance to go up 2-1 after referee Bjoern Kuipers awarded them a penalty that was a harsh call on the Croats, but was nonetheless given. Spain coach Vicente del Bosque, with a big decision to make and an exhausting list of attacking talent, picked Sergio Ramos to take the penalty. This was a horrible decision.
Why does Spain have famous penalty-misser Sergio Ramos on penalties?
Can anyone explain this?
Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images
The decision is already questionable enough when a center back is sent to take a penalty kick. Yet, Ramos’ choice as designated penalty taker is even worse when considering that the defender has a reputation for taking awful penalty kicks, missing historically against Bayern Munich in the 2012 Champions League semifinal.
Ramos stepped up to the penalty spot, and despite goalkeeper Danijel Subašić stepping off his line and Croat players encroaching the penalty box before Ramos hits the ball, Ramos still managed to miss the penalty.
The miss was of no surprise to many, and brought back memories of the 2013 Confederations Cup final, when Ramos missed another penalty, that time against Brazil.
When Ramos steps up to take a penalty pic.twitter.com/JBscu4GWQy
— J. (@PsychoCesc) June 21, 2016
Spain ended up losing the match 2-1 through a late goal by Croatia's Ivan Perisić and finishing second in their group. Chalk it up as another one for the future video compilation titled "Sergio Ramos Worst Penalty Kick Taker," set to some techno bangers.
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