Ranking the 4 penalty taker options at Arsenal after Aubameyang missed his fifth spot-kick for the club in 1-0 Premier League win over Watford. (Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)
When Alexandre Lacazette was cynically fouled by Danny Rose in the first half against Watford an interesting conundrum arose: who should take the resulting penalty for Arsenal?
It’s quite simple, really, that Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is the first choice spot-kick taker at the club: he is the captain, the top goalscorer in the squad and dangerous in the 18-yard box whether the ball is dead still or alive.
Well, he missed. Again. Ben Foster’s save meant that Aubameyang had missed his last two penalties, a feat he had fortunately avoided prior in his career. What made this one tougher to swallow was the lack of a rebound to mop up his mistake. No Emi Martinez-esque tears from the goalkeeper.
But he was on the pitch with Lacazette at the time, someone who is rather formidable from the ol’ penalty spot.
Ranking the 4 penalty taker options at Arsenal after Aubameyang missed his fifth spot-kick for the club in 1-0 Premier League win over Watford
The two have started playing together more recently under Mikel Arteta as the manager has shuffled his pack around to include both players centrally. And while it may not have been a debate previously, the question has since become more prominent in Arsenal circles.
Who should be the first choice penalty taker for the club? According to Arteta, there is no reason to change:
“He [Auba] will stay on penalties if he’s happy to do so,” the boss said. “You will miss when you take penalties – that’s part of your career and the job – [but] we’ll try to help him. “
Is it really that cut and dry, though? Should Aubameyang be ahead of the pack when other notably effective options are on the pitch? In glorious ranking format, here are the four options to take penalties.
LONDON, ENGLAND – AUGUST 01: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang of Arsenal scores a penalty for his team’s first goal during the FA Cup Final match between Arsenal and Chelsea at Wembley Stadium. (Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images)
4. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Is Aubameyang even in the top three penalty takers at the club? Possibly.
Based on what he has done throughout his time at Arsenal, however, it might be best that he is taken off spot-kicks with a few other options at the club somewhat more secure.
Across his entire career the striker has netted 30 penalties and missed 10, excluding penalty shootouts. That leaves him with a 75% success rate.
In terms of Arsenal alone, he’s netted ten goals from the spot and missed four for an overall success rate of 71.43%. That isn’t great. Only Ian Wright has missed more for the club.
Notable misses include away in the final seconds of the North London Derby and at home to Manchester City. There is some ambiguity on his miss against Norwich, however, as he missed the initial penalty only for it to be retaken as it was ruled Tim Krul had stood off his line. He made no mistake the second time, so it could be unfair to claim that he’s missed a total of five.
If we’re looking at it from a pressure point of view, then scoring twice against Manchester United, in the FA Cup final, at home to Spurs and in the penalty shootout win over Liverpool in the Community Shield, he has the ‘cojones’ to take one. Of that there is no doubting. He has a technique (starting centrally then side stepping out to the left) and he never wanes from that.
But it’s hard to overlook the numbers, which at Arsenal means he averages two missed penalties every seven taken.
The debate over whether it’s important that the captain takes them as he is the man who needs to be scoring the majority of the goals for Arsenal is moot. You want someone reliable, and there are more reliable candidates than him. His record isn’t dreadful, nor is it great.
Continued on next page…
November 8, 2021</a></p></blockquote>
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<h2>Ranking the 4 penalty taker options at Arsenal after Aubameyang missed his fifth spot-kick for the club in 1-0 Premier League win over Watford</h2>
<p>The two have started playing together more recently <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/11/09/arsenal-4-penalty-takers-ranked-auba/"https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/11/08/arsenal-next-watford-win-january-window/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">under Mikel Arteta</a> as the manager has shuffled his pack around to include both players centrally. And while it may not have been a debate previously, the question has since become more prominent in Arsenal circles.</p>
<p>Who should be the first choice penalty taker for the club? According to Arteta, there is no reason to change:</p>
<blockquote><p>“He [Auba] will stay on penalties if he’s happy to do so,” the boss said. “You will miss when you take penalties – that’s part of your career and the job – [but] we’ll try to help him. “</p></blockquote>
<p>Is it really that cut and dry, though? <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/11/09/arsenal-4-penalty-takers-ranked-auba/"https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/11/07/arsenal-watford-5-talking-points-arteta/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Should Aubameyang be ahead of the pack</a> when other notably effective options are on the pitch? In glorious ranking format, here are the four options to take penalties.</p>
<div id="attachment_120762" class="wp-caption aligncenter">
<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-120762" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/11/09/arsenal-4-penalty-takers-ranked-auba/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_389,w_590/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2017%2F07%2F1263169739-850x560.jpeg" alt="Arsenal, Auba" width="590" height="389"><div class="fs-center-img">
<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">LONDON, ENGLAND – AUGUST 01: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang of Arsenal scores a penalty for his team’s first goal during the FA Cup Final match between Arsenal and Chelsea at Wembley Stadium. (Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images)</p>
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<h2>4. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang</h2>
<p>Is Aubameyang even in the top three penalty takers at the club? <em>Possibly</em>.</p>
<p>Based on what he has done throughout his time at Arsenal, however, it might be best that he is taken off spot-kicks with a few other options at the club somewhat more secure.</p>
<p>Across his entire career the striker has netted 30 penalties and missed 10, excluding penalty shootouts. That leaves him with a 75% success rate.</p>
<p>In terms of Arsenal alone, he’s netted ten goals from the spot and missed four for an overall success rate of 71.43%. That isn’t<em> great</em>. Only Ian Wright has missed more for the club.</p>
<p>Notable misses include away in the final seconds of the North London Derby and at home to Manchester City. There is some ambiguity on his miss against Norwich, however, as he missed the initial penalty only for it to be retaken as it was ruled Tim Krul had stood off his line. He made no mistake the second time, so it could be unfair to claim that he’s missed a total of five.</p>
<p>If we’re looking at it from a pressure point of view, then scoring twice against Manchester United, in the FA Cup final, at home to Spurs and in the penalty shootout win over Liverpool in the Community Shield, he has the ‘cojones’ to take one. Of that there is no doubting. He has a technique (starting centrally then side stepping out to the left) and he never wanes from that.</p>
<p>But it’s hard to overlook the numbers, which at Arsenal means he averages two missed penalties every seven taken.</p>
<p>The debate over whether it’s important that the captain takes them as he is the man who needs to be scoring the majority of the goals for Arsenal is moot. You want someone reliable, and there are more reliable candidates than him. His record isn’t dreadful, nor is it great.</p>
<p><em>Continued on next page…</em></p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/11/09/arsenal-4-penalty-takers-ranked-auba/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> 3. Who is third in line? </a>
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<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-78253" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/11/09/arsenal-4-penalty-takers-ranked-auba/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_389,w_590/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2017%2F07%2F1009157096-850x560.jpeg" alt="Arsenal, Ainsley Maitland-Niles" width="590" height="389"><div class="fs-center-img">
<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">DUBLIN, IRELAND – AUGUST 01: Ainsley Maitland-Niles of Arsenal takes a penalty in the shoot out during the Pre-season friendly International Champions Cup game between Arsenal and Chelsea at Aviva stadium on August 1, 2018 in Dublin, Ireland. (Photo by Charles McQuillan/Getty Images)</p>
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<h2>3. Ainsley Maitland-Niles</h2>
<p>Let’s start by pulling up the stats on Ainsley Maitland-Niles:</p>
<p><strong>Penalties scored:</strong> 0<br>
<strong>Penalties missed:</strong> 0</p>
<p>Oh. That doesn’t seem right. How can anyone be above one of the greatest strikers Europe has seen over the past eight years if he hasn’t even taken a professional penalty?</p>
<p>Well, he has, just not outside of pre-season or penalty shootouts. And in those five he’s taken as an Arsenal player, he’s yet to miss.</p>
<p>His style is pure <em>vibes</em>. Ignore everything you get taught as a youngster in training or from watching the best there has been to play the game; what Maitland-Niles does is him in a nutshell. One that is very hard to crack.</p>
<p>As he nonchalantly struts up towards the ball with his shoulders languid, not until the final seconds does he commit to an area of the net as he waits for the goalkeeper to make his move. This has resulted in an array of finishes in the five he’s taken, including bottom corners, top corners and Panenka’s. And, after he’s scored, he continues the same stroll-like pace all the way back to the halfway line. It’s confidence, and borderline arrogance, by the shedload.</p>
<p>The sheer calmness he exudes is replicated in his performances on the pitch, where he comes across so laid back anyone would think he was playing the game on a console not in real life.</p>
<p>Do we trust him to do so in the <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/11/09/arsenal-4-penalty-takers-ranked-auba/"https://www.90min.com/leagues/premier-league" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Premier League</a>? There is little reason to doubt him, as he sure as anything doesn’t doubt himself.</p>
<p><em>Continued on next page…</em></p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/11/09/arsenal-4-penalty-takers-ranked-auba/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> 2. Who should be second? </a>
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<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-120764" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/11/09/arsenal-4-penalty-takers-ranked-auba/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_389,w_590/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2017%2F07%2F1176373941-850x560.jpeg" alt="Arsenal, Nico" width="590" height="389"><div class="fs-center-img">
<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">LONDON, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 22: Nicolas Pepe of Arsenal converts his sides penalty and scores their first goal of the game during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Aston Villa at Emirates Stadium on September 22, 2019 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images)</p>
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<h2>2. Nicolas Pepe</h2>
<p>How about this for a success rate on spot-kicks? Across Nicolas Pepe’s career he has taken 12 penalties and missed only once. Now that is an impressive record, one that amounts to a 91.67% success rate.</p>
<p>Of course, most recently at Arsenal fans will think back to one that doesn’t come up on the stats board, that being his miss against Hibernian. But that’s only pre-season and it doesn’t count, right?</p>
<p>In terms of his style, there are a few quick steps from a standstill before he comes into striking the ball in just as you’d expect from a left-footer. He has been known to change his technique up, like away at Liverpool in the Carabao Cup shootout defeat, but he does have a preference of going down the middle by feinting that he will aim towards what would be his inside post.</p>
<p>Most importantly is that he is an excellent finisher. In and around the box there are few players in the squad you’d want to have pulling the trigger in those areas more than Pepe. That is no different from the penalty spot. There is always the risk he runs of going down the middle that it will catch the keeper’s legs, sure, but that’s yet to unfold.</p>
<p>His first goal for the club came from a spot-kick and he’s since scored away at Sheffield United in the FA Cup, away at Everton in the Premier League and away at Villarreal in the Europa League.</p>
<p>What’s stopping him from being the regular penalty taker? One supporters would majorly back? Well, he has to be on the pitch first.</p>
<p><em>Continued on next page…</em></p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/11/09/arsenal-4-penalty-takers-ranked-auba/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> 1. The number one penalty taker </a>
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<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-120763" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/11/09/arsenal-4-penalty-takers-ranked-auba/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_389,w_590/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2017%2F07%2F853764142-850x560.jpeg" alt="Arsenal, Laca" width="590" height="389"><div class="fs-center-img">
<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">TOPSHOT – Arsenal’s French striker Alexandre Lacazette shoots from the penalty spot to score his team’s second goal during the English Premier League football match between Arsenal and West Brom. (Photo credit should read IAN KINGTON/AFP via Getty Images)</p>
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<h2>1. Alexandre Lacazette</h2>
<p>Putting all the cards on the table, if Alexandre Lacazette is on the pitch then nobody else in the team should be ahead of him on penalty duties. Nobody, not even the captain.</p>
<p>Seeing how indomitable he is from the spot for Arsenal, it might then surprise a few supporters to find out he has missed five across his whole career. That’s where the surprise ends, as when balanced out with the 31 he’s scored, results in an 86.1% success rate. A <em>very</em> healthy rate.</p>
<p>But is anybody bothered about his record at Lyon? Fans of the club wax lyrical about Lacazette’s perfect record in north London. Rightly so.</p>
<p>Scoring all eight of his penalties taken for Arsenal, most striking of all is that each one has been near perfect. The goalkeepers haven’t got close. Funnily enough, Ben Foster when he played for West Brom was the closest who has come to saving one of Laca’s penalties (which was his first one for Arsenal) and even then all he did was guess the right way.</p>
<p>There is a wonderful elegance to how Lacazette takes his penalties. It’s almost ballerina-esque in the way the tip-toes up, takes a split second halt in his stride to see where the goalkeeper is positioned and then strokes it into the bottom corner. It’s nothing frilly where he’s going top corner each time, it’s solely on giving himself the best possible chance of scoring.</p>
<p>Watching anyone take a penalty for your football team is nerve-wracking (see: Watford), but there is no doubting the outcome when Lacazette is involved.</p>
<p>Being the close friends they are, maybe Lacazette could take over the reins from Aubameyang just when they’re on the pitch together, perhaps as a parting gift on his final season at the club?</p>
<div class="fs-shortcode" data-type="StoryLink" data-theme="dark" data-text="Arsenal's new confidence" data-url="https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/11/09/arsenal-improved-defense-new-confidence/" data-call-to-action="Next"> <div class="story-link-next"> <a class="story-link-next-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="story-link-next-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/11/09/arsenal-4-penalty-takers-ranked-auba/"https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/11/09/arsenal-improved-defense-new-confidence/"> <span class="call_to_action">Next:</span> Arsenal's new confidence </a> </div>
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