Jordan Pickford's penalty cheat sheet, taped to his water bottle. Photo: Fabrizio Romano/X
Jordan Pickford prepared detailed notes on how to save penalties from Argentina’s players ahead of England’s World Cup semi-final in Atlanta, but the goalkeeper never got to use them after his side lost 2-1 in normal time.
The notes, taped to Pickford’s water bottle, were discovered by Argentina’s players, including Lionel Messi, as they celebrated their comeback win on Wednesday night.
England had led through Anthony Gordon before Enzo Fernandez levelled for Argentina, who then scored twice late on to book their place in Sunday’s final against Spain, avoiding a shootout altogether.
According to a report by Talk Sport, Pickford’s cheat sheet carried the name of every Argentina player alongside specific instructions on how he planned to react if they stepped up to take a penalty.
