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Most football fans tend to take penalties for granted. From just 12 yards out, with no one but the keeper to beat, a penalty kick is often seen as a slam dunk for the kick-taker. The truth, however, could not be any further.
The weight of expectations, combined with the ability of the goalkeeper, can throw off even the best in the business. If that is not enough, fans can also play an active role in distracting the player, heavily whistling from the stands and even shining lasers in their eyes. For the aforementioned factors and more intangibles, even the most confident goalscorers have failed to convert all their penalties.
Today, we will shine a light on some of the sharpest players who have missed the mark multiple times from the spot. Below are the five superstars who have missed the highest number of penalties in the 21st century for their clubs and country.
Special note: Only the top five European leagues have been considered. All competitions included.
Stats: Transfermarkt
#5 Antonio Di Natale — 14 penalties
Italian football has primarily been dominated by three clubs, AC Milan, Inter Milan, and Juventus in the 21st century. Thanks to their excellent domestic track record and European ambition, most top players have signed with one of the three teams. Antonio Di Natale, who spent most of his career at Udinese, was a stark exception.
The former Italy international was one of the best in the business in his heyday, scoring plenty of goals and actively contributing to Udinese’s build-up play. He spent 12 seasons at the club between 2004 and 2016, joining from Empoli. Di Natale featured in 445 games for Udinese across competitions, recording 227 goals and 66 assists.
Unsurprisingly, Di Natale was Udinese’s designated penalty kick taker for most of his career. He took 53 penalty kicks for them, scoring 40 and missing 13 times. He took two more (one scored and one missed) during his time with Empoli. He was at Empoli for six seasons (had loan spells in between), registering 55 goals and three assists in 179 appearances across competitions.
#4 Zlatan Ibrahimovic — 16 penalties
At 40 years old, AC Milan star Zlatan Ibrahimovic is one of the oldest active players in the top five European leagues. Throughout his life, the Swede has defied logic and exceeded expectations, forging a legacy very few can hold a candle to.
He has played in four of the five most revered European leagues (except for the Bundesliga), scoring a bucket load of goals and helping his teams to important wins. His international career has also been just as colorful, with him initially retiring after Euro 2016 and then spectacularly coming back in March 2021. Had Sweden not failed to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, we probably would have seen the veteran in all his glory in Qatar.
Having scored 554 goals so far in his career (in 936 games for all clubs and Sweden), Ibrahimovic has firmly established himself as one of the best goalscorers of the century. He has been the designated penalty-kick taker for pretty much every team he has played for, with him impressively dispatching 84 of the 101 penalties he has taken so far. Seventy-four of those penalties have come for Sweden and the European clubs he has played for (10 for MLS outfit LA Galaxy).
Discarding his miss in the MLS against Sporting Kansas City in September 2019, Ibrahimovic has thus far missed 16 penalties in his career.
#3 Francesco Totti — 17 penalties
Widely hailed as the most loyal man in football, Roma legend Francesco Totti is one of the best second strikers football has had in the 21st century. Sitting behind center forwards, Totti regularly created goalscoring opportunities and, of course, was not shy of hitting the back of the net himself.
Totti spent his entire career at Roma, playing 787 games for them across competitions, scoring 307 goals and providing 191 assists. He helped the Italian outfit to one Serie A title, two Italian Cups, and two Italian Super Cups before retiring in July 2017.
Totti was quite formidable for Italy as well, scoring nine times and claiming 24 assists in 58 games. He scored once and provided four assists during Italy’s triumphant World Cup campaign in 2006.
Thanks to his confidence, Totti was regularly trusted with penalty-taking responsibilities when on the pitch. He converted 86 penalty kicks in his career for Roma and Italy, missing 19. In the 21st century, however, he scored 73 penalties and missed 17.
#2 Cristiano Ronaldo — 29 penalties
Five-time Ballon d’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo hardly needs an introduction. With 815 goals to his name for clubs and country (in 1125 games), the Manchester United superstar is the record holder for the most goals scored in men’s football.
Over the course of his illustrious career, in which he has won a European Championship, five Champions League trophies, and seven league titles, Ronaldo has scored an abundance of world-class goals. He has beaten players with his pace, left them for dead with his trickery, and even caught keepers off-guard with long-range piledrivers.
Unsurprisingly, the Portuguese superstar is also a gifted penalty-kick taker. Ronaldo has taken a whopping 173 penalty kicks in his career, converting 144 of them and missing 29. The number of misses can seem quite high for a player of his stature, but considering how many kicks he has attempted, it is hardly surprising.
Ronaldo’s last penalty miss came in the FA Cup against Middlesbrough in February 2022. Manchester United lost the game 9-8 on penalties.
#1 Lionel Messi — 30 penalties
Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have been pushing each other all their lives. So, seeing the Argentine keeping the Portuguese company at the summit should not come as much of a surprise.
The seven-time Ballon d’Or winner is arguably the best footballer in the history of the sport. He has scored some unbelievable goals for Argentina, Barcelona, and Paris Saint-Germain, showing everyone why he fully deserves all the praise he gets. From finding teammates with inch-perfect passes to scoring outrageous solo goals, he can do it all. Unfortunately, however, converting penalty kicks is not the Argentine’s strongest suit.
Over the course of his decorated career, during which he has won a Copa America trophy, four Champions League titles, and 11 domestic championships, Messi has taken 134 penalties. He has been successful 104 times, missing 30. His conversion rate of 77.6% is considerably lower than that of his arch-rival Ronaldo’s (83.2%).
The PSG superstar’s last penalty kick in a competitive fixture came in February 2022, in the first leg of the Champions League round-of-16 clash against Real Madrid. Los Blancos keeper Thibaut Courtois denied him from the spot, restricting PSG to a 2-1 win in the first leg. The Whites turned it around in the return leg at the Santiago Bernabeu, sealing a 3-1 win (3-2 aggregate victory).
