Watching Figo's stutter-step PK try yesterday got me to thinking about something I used to practice by myself for fun (in fact, I was out trying it in the park this afternoon...) Is it legal to take a PK with no run-up at all? I mean, stand stationary behind the ball, pick a spot, and hit it? It's nothing I've ever tried in a game (and probably wouldn't, unless the game was way out of reach), but with a little practice it's fairly simple to send it into either side-netting this way, making it a very hard shot to stop (hypothetically). Can I get a ruling?
legal. i used to always start one step beyond the ball. the only movement was a single step to put my plant foot next to the ball.
Definitely legal. Best (or at least most memorable/most important) PK I ever saw was taken in this manner. Jugovic, for Juventus, took a PK like this against Ajax (the 6'8" Van der Saar in goal) in the 1995 UCL Final. Jugovic set the ball and took a half step backwards. When the Spanish referee, Diaz Vega, blew the whistle, he just stared back at him as though he wasn't ready. Van der Saar also looked towards him, seemingly waiting for another whistle (and probably anticipating Jugovic backing up). Diaz Vega whistled again and Jugovic barely took a step and hit the ball of the inside of the post and into the net. Van der Saar absolutely guessed correctly (hard to disguise your shot without a run-up...one of the drawbacks of the tactics), but the shot was so perfect, it missed his extended hand by inches. Juventus went on to win the shootout.
Figo's penalty So what was the reason for the retake- encroachment? I don't think so.. Figo basically did the same run up to ball the second time as the first. I saw one or two Marseille players in the area before the kick too. So if both teams players encroached on the first shot the goal should have stood correct? Those knuckleheads on ESPN2 are useless IMHO.
Re: Figo's penalty Yes. Figo encroached causing that goalkeeper to move prematurely and gaining unfair advantage. The second time he studder-steped. The first time he deffinately came to a full stop. The ruling was advantage to Marseille. If Figo missed the PK, then the advantage would have gone to Marseille as he was being called for the foul, not the Marseille players. But if both teams encroached, it still should be a rekick as Figo still gained unfair advantage with his full stop. If the ball had gone over, the ref could also have called a rekick as the Marseille players encroached. But we don't know as Figo scored on both PK attempts. Agreed.
Re: Re: Figo's penalty Well you should go check out the lengthy thread in this forum about this exact issue. The fact of the matter is that there is NO SUCH RULE in the FIFA rule book anywhere that mentions that a PK taker cannot stutterstep, come to a stop and in fact, if you download their Rulebook FAQ, there is actually a question about feinting and it claims that a kicker CAN... argue amongst yourselves
Re: Re: Re: Figo's penalty You are correct but if the player taking the penalty turns it into a joke the referee can book the player for delaying the restart of play or unsporting behaviour - take your pick. Crowdie.