Valencia have been riding the crest of a steady wave of late, and when things are going for you, they really do help. Osasuna looked bound to equalise late on at El Sadar on Monday night, when what will already be an infamous penalty incident occurred.
After a lengthy VAR review in stoppage time, it was ajudged that Osasuna’s top scorer Ante Budimir had been fouled by Hugo Guillamon. With just over a minute remaining of the seven initially added on, Budimir then stepped up to the spot.
Trying to outfox giant Georgian goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili, Budimir stuttered his step, and delayed still further as he waited for the Valencia ‘keeper to move, but he did not. The result was an effort that will haunt Budimir for some time. After nine straight years of scoring from the spot, Budimir made the exception to prove the rule.
"It's the worst penalty you'll see, certainly this season and maybe ever!"
What was Ante Budimir thinking?! 🫢 pic.twitter.com/qyAvE6mme1
— Premier Sports (@PremSportsTV) April 15, 2024
❌ Con el empate en juego y la lucha por el Pichichi también, Budimir hizo esto en el minuto 97 😲😲 #OsasunaValencia pic.twitter.com/EcpQbbACxf
— MARCA (@marca) April 15, 2024
Este penal de Budimir es realmente insólito.pic.twitter.com/C5zWQEHhdx
— VarskySports (@VarskySports) April 15, 2024
GIORGI MAMARDASHVILI EASILY SAVED THE WORST PENALTY KICK ATTEMPT IN HISTORY BY ANTE BUDIMIR!!!
📽️ @FootColicpic.twitter.com/NjSn2X3qvB— Football Report (@FootballReprt) April 15, 2024
OH MY. What did Budimir just do on this penalty attempt??
A goal here would have tied him atop the La Liga scoring board this season. pic.twitter.com/TNhO6iYHdS
— CroatianSports (@CroatianSoccer) April 15, 2024
It could take a while for Budimir to see the funny side – he is just a goal behind Jude Bellingham (16) and two behind Artem Dovbyk (17) in the top scorer race in La Liga. It will be a true test of his mettle to see if he can recover his lethal form for the home stretch.
