Messi’s penalties at the FIFA World Cup 2022: Seven steps to immortality

Penalties are often described as moments of stillness within chaos – brief pockets of time where execution and psychology collide. In Qatar 2022, Lionel Messi demonstrated to the world his ability to master these moments. Across seven attempts, from the group stage to the final shoot-out, he showed adaptability in both technique and temperament.

Before even kicking off Argentina’s historic campaign, Albiceleste’s number 10 had already taken over 100 career penalties, converting close to 80% of them. Yet his record at international cup competitions told a more complex story: a successful strike in Brazil 2014, a costly miss in the 2016 Copa América final, and questions about whether he could fully dominate from the spot in the tensest of moments.

In Qatar, Lionel Messi demonstrated two distinct techniques: a composed, deceptive side‑foot finish and a more forceful strike using his in‑step. Five of his successful attempts came from the former, and one came from the latter. Below we take a look at six components comprising the two techniques, revealing the similarities and differences.

1. Leadership and concentration

The Argentina captain was both the designated in-game penalty taker and the first to the spot during the two shoot-outs. Manager Lionel Scaloni had a strategy of letting his best taker go first, with statistics showing that converting the first penalty boosts the chances of winning.

2. Visual focus

Side‑foot (top image): Messi starts by looking at the ball, then shifts his eyes to the goalkeeper during the run‑up, reading their movement and directing the shot against the dive.
In‑step (bottom): Messi’s gaze stays fixed on the ball throughout, ensuring a clean, powerful connection without late adjustments.

3. Run-up length and angle

Side‑foot (left): Here Messi’s run-up consists of four steps from a steeper angle, which gives him the option to open his body and disguise his intention until the final step.
In‑step (right): Messi uses a straighter, more extended run-up, typically five steps or more. This allows him to generate more momentum and transfer greater force through the ball.

4. Body position during contact

When making contact with the ball in both techniques, he keeps his hips open, preserving access to the full width of the goal. His body weight, posture, and the coordinated use of his right arm help him stay balanced in both techniques. This is especially useful when delaying the shot or subtly changing its direction in the final instant during the side-foot approach (left).

5. Influence on the goalkeeper

Side-foot (left): Messi manipulates the goalkeeper’s decision-making and anticipation toward an early commitment, allowing him to direct the ball in the opposite direction.
In-step (right): There are no manipulative intentions. Instead, Messi relies on power and placement to beat the goalkeeper, irrespective of whether they correctly anticipate the direction.

6. Conviction and fluidity

For both techniques Messi executes the finish with full conviction. And despite the gulf in power generated by the two techniques, both are performed in one fluid motion. His calm, delayed side‑foot finishes require confidence under pressure. His firmer, driven shots demand the same commitment.

In Qatar, Argentina were awarded five penalties, the most ever by a team in a single edition of the FIFA World Cup. Messi took them all, in addition to two during shoot-outs. He missed the second of his seven spot-kicks. But that one miss was a poignant lesson learnt for Argentina captain: a reminder of the effectiveness of disguise, rhythm and composure during these moments of the game.

Breakdown of Messi’s penalties

Across his seven penalties, Messi never repeated the same kick twice. He alternated between his two techniques and varied the speed and height.

Messi’s penalty shot locations

For the two times he used his in-step, Messi directed his strike towards the right. His only unsuccessful penalty came using this technique.

Below we recount each of Messi’s seven penalties and analyse the visual focus, run-ups, body positions and influence on the goalkeeper in more detail.

Penalty no. 1 v. Saudi Arabia

Minute: 10’ | Result: Scored
Execution: Low to the keeper’s right

Argentina started brightly, and Messi stepped up early against Mohammed Al-Owais (who committed early towards the opposite side). Calmly striking low to the right, he gave Argentina the lead and scored his first goal of the tournament.

The routine was simple, reflecting his usual opener style: secure and low risk to build confidence.

Penalty no. 2 v. Poland

Minute: 38’ | Result: Missed (saved)
Execution: High to the left with power, saved by Szczęsny

VAR-awarded penalty added tension to an already balanced match. Facing Wojciech Szczęsny who had already stopped a Messi penalty in 2017 for Juventus against Barcelona, read him perfectly and made a stunning save.

This miss marked a turning point in Messi’s technique. From here, Messi would reembrace deception over power in high-pressure moments.

Using his in-step, Messi went high and powerful to the right.

Penalty no. 3 v. the Netherlands

Minute: 73’ | Result: Scored
Execution: Placed just inside the right post

With Argentina leading 1–0, Messi seized his moment. Facing Andries Noppert, a 2.03-metre debutant, he placed his spot-kick to the right after gauging that the goalkeeper’s feet were positioned for a dive in the other direction.

This penalty marked a return to the analytical run-up and open ball-striking position.

After the Poland miss, Messi adopted his side-foot technique against Noppert, taking a brief moment to see the goalkeeper’s movements before striking the ball.

Penalty no. 4 v. Netherlands (shoot-out)

Shoot-out Penalty #1 | Result: Scored
Execution: Rolled slowly, wrong-footing Noppert

Moments after a dramatic Dutch equalizer in the same game, Messi was Argentina’s first taker in the shoot-out. His run was slow, his touch even gentler than his previous penalty in the same match.

Composure again. It wasn’t just a goal; it was a captain’s message to his team-mates to stay calm during arguably the tournament’s most heated encounter.

Messi slowed his run and softly rolled the ball, sending the keeper the wrong way. It was even softer a touch than his previous penalty in the same game.

Penalty no. 5 v. Croatia

Minute: 34’ | Result: Scored
Execution: Roof of the net

Facing Croatia’s Dominik Livaković – already a penalty hero in Qatar – Messi reverted his technique, opting for power and height. His strike rocketed into the top corner.

This time there was no disguise or hesitation, just pure conviction. It pulled off.

For his fifth penalty of the tournament, Messi combined pace and height, striking the ball into the roof of the net.

Penalty no. 6 v. France

Minute: 23’ | Result: Scored
Execution: Slow, low, wrong-footing Lloris

The World Cup final brought maximum pressure. Facing Hugo Lloris, an experienced penalty saver, Messi reimbraced his disguised technique instead of power.

It was the essence of control – technique distilled into composure.

Messi chose deception over force, calmly sending Lloris the wrong way with a slow, low strike.

Penalty no. 7 v. France (shoot-out)

Shootout Penalty #1 | Result: Scored
Execution: Stutter, soft chip down the middle

After France’s dramatic comeback, the final shoot-out began. Messi approached with a stutter, then chipped delicately down the centre. Lloris froze – out-psyched by simplicity.

This was the culmination of Messi’s evolution in Qatar: from security to precision, from power to total poise. At the FIFA World Cup 2022, the tenser the moment, the more composure the Argentine magician seemed to exhibit.

With barely more than a walk for a run-up, Messi guides the ball just left of centre. Lloris dives in the correct direction, but his earlier hop in the opposite direction is enough to give Messi the edge.

In Qatar 2022, Messi turned repetition into ritual. He overcame his miss from his second spot-kick of the tournament to convert five more in increasingly pressurised moments, varying his technique along the way. What had once been doubt became design, a mastery forged through experience and refined under pressure.

This FIFA World Cup was not just his triumph, but the completion of an idea: that greatness is built on understanding, not domination. His composure at the spot mirrored the philosophy that defined his career.

“I always tried to go first in penalty shootouts, to take the full responsibility… I wasn’t thinking about where to shoot against Lloris, it was about waiting until the last moment. I waited for him, he moved, but I was very calm.”

Lionel Messi, after winning the final in Qatar