The Craziest Missed Last-Minute Penalties Misses Ever - Ranked

08 November 2020 16:15

Penalties are hard enough at the best of times, but when they come in the last minute and the game depends on it, the pressure is something else.

One kick of a ball can decide who wins the day, week or even the year, so when a player misses, it leaves an entire fan base with their heads in their hands... and it gives every other fan base something to enjoy for years to come.

Here are the ten craziest missed last-minute penalties of all time.

10. Michael Moffat vs Forfar (09/04/16)

Michael Moffat could have bagged a hat-trick | Ian MacNicol/Getty Images

A relatively low profile start but no less painful, we're taking a trip to the Scottish League One for this first entry.

During his time with Dunfermline United, striker Michael Moffat had the chance to complete a hat-trick when he stepped up to the spot in the dying embers of a meeting with Forfar in April 2016.

Moffat's effort soared over the bar, but the referee ordered a retake, and Moffat missed again!

9. Kenedy vs Cardiff (18/08/18)

Kenedy's penalty miss against Cardiff wasn't particularly bad, but it's the context of the whole game which makes this hilarious.

The Chelsea loanee put on one of the worst performances the Premier League has ever seen, becoming the first player since 2010 to play 45 minutes without completing a pass and somehow avoiding a first-half red card for a kick on Victor Camarasa.

He had the chance to save the day for Newcastle when he took a late penalty, but it was comfortably kept out by Neil Etheridge, putting the rotten cherry on top of the rancid icing.

8. Ademola Lookman vs West Ham (07/11/20)

Fulham's start to the 2020/21 Premier League season had been pretty poor, but they had the chance to snatch a point when VAR awarded them a 98th-minute penalty against West Ham.

It fell to on-loan winger Ademola Lookman, the 23-year-old who had impressed since joining from RB Leipzig.

Clearly feeling confident, Lookman opted for a Panenka, but his tame effort was plucked out of the air by Lukasz Fabianski, who watched as the Fulham man held his head in his hands.

7. Christian Benteke vs Bournemouth (09/12/17)

Benteke's miss was controversial | Jordan Mansfield/Getty Images

Christian Benteke's goal struggles at Crystal Palace are well known, but he didn't help himself by missing a penalty in his side's 2-2 draw with Bournemouth in 2017.

Regular penalty taker Luka Milivojevic had already scored one in the first half, but Benteke wrestled the ball away from the Serb and refused to listen to the cries from his teammates and manager to reconsider his decision.

His side-footed effort was hit with some of the worst technique you've ever seen, and Asmir Begovic made a routine save to leave Benteke with egg on his face.

6. Pierre Wome vs Egypt (08/10/05)

Wome had the chance to be a national hero | JACQUES DEMARTHON/Getty Images

Cameroon needed a win over Egypt in October 2005 to seal a spot in the 2006 World Cup, and with the score tied at 1-1, the Indomitable Lions were awarded a 95th-minute penalty.

Up stepped Inter defender Pierre Wome, who later claimed (via BBC Sport) that regular penalty taker Samuel Eto'o had bottled it over fears of what might have happened if he missed. The responsibility was left to Wome, who sent his effort crashing wide via the post.

Cameroon took the miss so badly that Wome as frozen out of the international picture for four years, and he even received death threats over the whole thing.

5. Miroslav Dukic vs Valencia (14/05/94)

The early 1990s in Spain were all about Super Depor. Deportivo La Coruna, who had only been promoted to La Liga in 1991, blossomed into one of the league's top teams and had the chance to win the title in 1993/94.

They led La Liga for most of the season and entered the final day of the season knowing that a win over mid-table Valencia would get the job done. With the score tied at 0-0 a final-minute spot kick gave Miroslav Dukic the chance to write his name in the history books...

His effort was saved, and that allowed Barcelona to swoop in and win the title on head-to-head record.

4. Don Givens vs Walsall (02/05/81)

Before they were flying high in the Premier League, Sheffield United were one of English football's strugglers. They were relegated to the fourth tier for the first time in their history in May 1981, but it's how they were relegated which made the headlines.

The final day of the season saw Sheffield United meet Walsall, with the Blades needing just one point to avoid the drop and instead relegate their opponents.

Don Givens, who had only been at the club for two months at the time, had the chance to save the Blades with a late penalty, but his effort was kept out and it was Walsall who survived.

3. Asamoah Gyan vs Uruguay (02/07/10)

Perhaps the most famous entry on this list, 2010 World Cup underdogs Ghana had a chance to book a spot in the semi-final when they were handed a last-minute penalty against Uruguay.

Luis Suarez was caught (and sent off for) intentionally handling the ball on the line with the score tied at 1-1 in the 120th minute, so he could only watch on from the sidelines as Asamoah Gyan stepped up for the biggest moment of his life.

Gyan sent his effort crashing off the bar, and Ghana went on to lose the subsequent penalty shoot-out.

2. Marcelo Trotta vs Doncaster (27/04/13)

Doncaster Rovers and Brentford were battling it out for the final promotion spot from League One in April 2013, with Doncaster needing a point when the two sides met on the final day of the season to get the job done.

Their hopes appeared to be crushed when Brentford had the chance to snatch a 1-0 win with a 94th-minute penalty, but Marcello Trotta's ferocious strike ricocheted back off the bar and was subsequently cleared.

Doncaster went down the other end and scored a winner of their own, and it actually proved to be enough to win them the league title after leaders Bournemouth were surprisingly held by Tranmere.

But just a month later, the drama of that game was forgotten...

1. Anthony Knockaert vs Watford (12/05/13)

Here we are. There has never been a greater last-minute penalty than this, and there never will be.

Leicester City had the chance to beat Watford in the Championship semi-final when they were awarded a controversial late penalty, but Anthony Knockaert's effort (and the subsequent rebound) were both denied by Manuel Almunia.

And then, down the other end...

HERE'S HOGG... DEENEYYYYYY!

Troy Deeney went down the other end and finished off a counter which gave Watford the win, and it was so exciting that nobody even remembers that they lost to Crystal Palace in the final.

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Source: 90min