Mbappe’s missed penalty in Real Madrid vs. Barcelona match had a story behind it, reveals goalkeeper Szczesny
Just a few days ago, Real Madrid earned a decisive victory over Barcelona in the first Clasico of the 2025–26 season. In that match, Kylian Mbappe missed a penalty during the second half. Now, goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny has revealed the details behind that save.
“It was quite obvious, he scored the last penalty against me taking it like that,” Szczesny said during a live interview on Barcelona’s official YouTube channel. “He was in a good moment of confidence, I knew he would choose the same side. Then you have to pray to reach the ball.”
Indeed, the goalkeeper had faced Mbappe in a similar situation just five months earlier, during Matchday 35 of the 2024–25 La Liga season. In that match, the French forward took a penalty early in the game after a foul committed by Szczesny himself.
The shot was powerful and low to the right side of Szczesny, who guessed correctly but couldn’t get to the ball in time. This past weekend, the Polish goalkeeper recalled that earlier encounter and dove to the same side — this time managing to deny Mbappe and prevent Real Madrid from scoring a third goal.
Szczesny’s approach to penalty saves
Throughout his professional career, Wojciech Szczesny has shown impressive efficiency when facing penalties. In regulation play, he has faced 96 penalty kicks and saved 21 of them — a success rate of 21.8%.
When asked about the secret behind those numbers, the Polish goalkeeper was candid. “I study a lot. Before each match, I watch the last 20 penalties taken by the two or three main penalty takers,” he revealed, making it clear that beyond natural ability, there’s plenty of hard work involved.
“Sometimes you pick up information during their career,” he added, referring to opposing penalty takers. “Some shoot differently depending on the moment in the match or the score. I try to have as much information as possible.”
Szczesny names his all-time top goalkeepers
During the same conversation on Barcelona’s official YouTube channel, Szczesny was asked to name his top five goalkeepers in the history of soccer. He quickly listed the first four — a mix of current and recent stars along with legends of the past.
“Buffon, Yashin, Neuer, the best version of Cech,” picked the Barcelona player at first, before adding an unexpected fifth name. “And I’ll include myself too,” Szczesny said with a smile.
That list includes an icon of world soccer, Lev Yashin, the former Soviet Union legend who shined during the 1950s and 1960s and after whom France Football named the annual award for the world’s best goalkeeper, presented during the Ballon d’Or ceremony.
Two of the other players on Szczesny’s list are retired but much more recent: Gianluigi Buffon and Petr Cech. Both were contemporaries of Szczesny and faced him numerous times at club and international level. The final name on the list, Manuel Neuer, remains a key figure for Bayern Munich to this day.