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Argentina’s players might have stumbled upon a few secrets in their victory over England that could be helpful moving forward.
Following Argentina’s 2-1 victory in the 2026 FIFA World Cup semifinal on Wednesday, Lionel Messi and Argentina teammates Nico Gonzalez and Enzo Fernández huddled around a water bottle. They read the back of it as if it had a secret recipe.
It might as well have, as it seemed to show a strategy for how England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford would have approached each Argentina player if the match were to go to a penalty shootout.
For Messi, it read “Fake Left — Dive Right.” For defender Nahuel Montiel, it said, “Dive Left.” What would Pickford do if Leandro Paredes stepped up to the spot? “Stand Left — Dive Right,” according to the water bottle.
Pickford would have been more precious about keeping his water bottle, and his secrets close to his chest had the game gone to a penalty shootout. So don’t blame Argentina for being curious once Pickford left his trash behind. In fact, it might help them moving forward.
While every goalkeeper certainly goes about their penalty-shootout prep differently — watching different film, gathering different information — they might think alike. Argentina’s players got a look into that thinking.
The information could help them prepare for a potential penalty shootout against Spain and goalkeeper Unai Simón. It could also result in the opposite — Argentina’s players getting in their heads and doubting their approach because the goalkeeper knows their tendencies.
In the end, penalty shootouts are a game of strategy and mentality. The manager chooses who gets to step up to the spot, and the penalty taker has to have the confidence to come through. This information being out there only adds to that intrigue, that suspense, as certain players will weigh the importance of it differently.
