Toney shares secret of incredible 'no-look' penalty technique

Ivan Toney amazed millions of English football fans when he scored in Saturday's UEFA EURO 2024 quarter-final penalty-shootout win over Switzerland... despite never looking at the ball during his run-up. 

In such a high-pressure moment, Toney walked slowly towards the ball and kept his eyes locked on Switzerland goalkeeper Yann Sommer. Without breaking his stride or looking where the ball was, he scored into the bottom-left corner. 

You can see his incredible technique in the video below by BBC Sport. 

If you wondered how he executes such a skill, Toney revealed exactly that to Michael Owen in a Premier League Masterclass last season. 

“I wait for the 'keeper to make his move, and wait until the last split second. If the keeper doesn’t move I’ll put it either side of him. But nine times out of 10 the keeper will move and I’ll put it in the opposite side," Toney revealed.

“My run-up helps. I know where the ball is [on the penalty spot] and the ball doesn’t move. So you can still hit the corners of the goal."

But where did he get the idea to take a penalty in such a way?

“I noticed how Paul Pogba took a slow run-up and that the 'keeper always used to move before he kicked the ball. 

"So there was a bit of inspiration there!

“I’m a relaxed, ‘do it my way’ kind of person. If it doesn’t work out, it doesn’t work out, but I’m never afraid."

Toney's penalty technique certainly works. He has scored 92 per cent of the spot-kicks he has taken for Brentford in the Premier League and has become renowned as a penalty expert. 

But that wasn't always the case. He revealed he only changed his style after missing a penalty with a different technique. 

“When I first started taking penalties, ages ago, I used to smash it," Toney said.

"But then I missed one and so I thought about ways to give myself the best chance of scoring. And I think it’s quite obvious. The closer you are to the ball, the less time the keeper has to react to what you’re doing, or where you’re going to go."