The Italy captain’s formidable reputation from 12 yards crumbled in a disastrous night in Bosnia
Italy’s hope of returning to the World Cup was extinguished in a clinical 4-1 penalty shootout defeat to Bosnia and Herzegovina on Tuesday night.
While the collective failure of Gennaro Gattuso’s side will trigger an inquest, the individual collapse of Gianluigi Donnarumma’s legendary shootout record has left many fans in a state of disbelief.
Entering the qualifying playoff final, the Manchester City goalkeeper possessed an aura of invincibility in these scenarios.
His international pedigree was defined by the summer of 2021, where he famously secured the Euro 2020 title by winning his only two previous shootouts for Italy back-to-back: the semi-final against Spain and the final against England.
Before the nightmare in Zenica, Donnarumma had never lost a shootout in an Italy shirt, and his career record for AC Milan and PSG further cemented his status as a specialist.
Gianluigi Donnarumma’s penalty shootout record
Donnarumma had previously secured victory from the spot three times for his boyhood club AC Milan and twice for Italy during that historic European campaign.
He even added a Champions League shootout win for PSG against Liverpool to his CV. Until 2022, his only taste of defeat in such a contest came in the Coupe de France against Nice, a match where he actually saved a penalty from Andy Delort.
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The 4-1 capitulation to Bosnia and Herzegovina – in which Donnarumma failed to make a save – comes as a major surprise for his incredibly high standards.
And it’s not just in shootouts where the City keeper has flourished. Throughout his career, he has a record of denying one penalty for every four he faces, having conceded 45 out of 62.
By failing to stop a single Bosnian attempt on Tuesday, Donnarumma saw his pristine international shootout record vanish, falling behind the rare company of Jean-Marie Pfaff and Lukas Hradecky.
Pfaff remains the gold standard of the discipline, having won eight out of eight career shootouts across his time with Bayern Munich, KSK Beveren, Trabzonspor, and the Belgium national team. Similarly, Bayer Leverkusen’s Hradecky has maintained a perfect record, winning all six of the shootouts he has faced.
Antics during Bosnia-Italy penalty shootout
The World Cup playoff defeat in Zenica was further marred by reports of controversial behaviour from the Italian captain as the pressure mounted.
Despite attempts to unsettle the Bosnian kickers, which eventually forced referee Clement Turpin to intervene, Italy’s players failed to find the net themselves.
Pio Esposito and Bryan Cristante both missed their attempts, while the Bosnian side remained perfect.
