Karim Benzema has explained his Panenka penalty against Manchester City.
The Real Madrid frontman played a key role in Los Blancos’ Champions League semi-final win over the Premier League title hopefuls.
The second leg provided much of the drama, but Benzema also scored two key goals in the first leg.
One of those goals was a superb penalty, which saw him chip the ball down the middle, executing an excellent Panenka.
It was a bold moment for Benzema to pull off the chip, but he took it brilliantly, and the magnitude of the moment is what allowed it to happen, according to the Frenchman.
“It took a lot of time practicing the Panenka and I just waited for the proper moment, in a game like this, where there is a lot of pressure,” he told RMC Sport.
“This type of pressure is what allows you to do things like this, or at least for me.”
Benzema is enjoying a superb season, scoring 44 goals across all competitions this season, assisting 15.
The Frenchman is flying, and he will be hoping to have a similar impact on the Champions League final, against Liverpool.
All well and good except the rules say a penalty should not be awarded when a player heads the ball onto his own arm.