Lionel Messi, Neymar, Kylian Mbappe or Sergio Ramos? Stats show who PSG's best penalty taker isย
Since PSG's 5-2 win against Montpellier, there has been plenty of talk about who among Lionel Messi, Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Sergio Ramos should be the club's primary penalty taker.
A statistic has emerged which clearly shows the conversion rate of all four PSG superstars from the spot:
Career penalty success rates:
Mbappe: 80% (20/25)
Neymar: 87% (71/86)
Messi: 78% (104/134)
Ramos: 86% (30/35)
#PSG
Based on the stats above, it is clear that Neymar and Sergio Ramos are by far the best penalty takers at the Ligue 1 club. Neymar, with 75 out of 86 penalties converted in his career, has a successful penalty coversion rate of 87%.
Sergio Ramos, who has taken some crucial penalties for Real Madrid in the past, is also extremely reliable from the spot, having scored 30 out of 35 penalties in his career so far. The legendary defender's conversion rate is just marginally short of Neymar at 86%.
Lionel Messi, on the other hand, was Barcelona's designated penalty taker for a long time. The seven-time Ballon d'Or winner has had some problems from the penalty spot though. The Argentine maestro has only converted 104 out of a possible 134 penalties, giving him a success rate of just 78%.
Messi also missed a penalty against Real Madrid last year in the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 first leg, which ultimately proved to be costly for PSG.
Kylian Mbappe has taken the least number of penalties compared to the other three PSG stars. However, his conversion rate is nowhere near that of Neymar and Ramos, with the French superstar having scored 20 out of a possible 25 penalties, giving him a success rate of 80%.
Mbappe most recently missed a penalty against Montpellier in PSG's 5-2 win and seemed frustrated by the fact that Neymar took the second penalty (from which he scored) in the match.
Neymar Jr offered the ball to Leo Messi to take the second penalty vs Montpellier, but Messi refused and told him to take it before Mbappe came to ask for it from Neymar jr. #PSG๐ด๐ต๐๐
Based on the stats, however, it is very clear that Neymar is the best penalty taker in the club, closely followed by Sergio Ramos. Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi might have to step aside in crucial matches to allow the Brazilian to shoulder the penalty-taking responsibilities for PSG.
PSG manager Christophe Galtier comments on the penalty-taking hierarchy between Lionel Messi, Neymar, Mbappe and Ramos
When asked about the penalty-taking hierarchy at PSG, manager Christophe Galtier said (via RMC Sport):
โThe hierarchy changes depending on who is on the pitch. Kylian number two shooter in this match against Montpellier. Neymar number two shooter in this one. Nothing happened on this penalty [the second penalty], there was a discussion and Neymar felt good [to take it].โ
โThere can be Messi and Ramos as a shooter as well. There is the preparation for the match and what is decided must be respected. Then there is the situation of the match, and it is up to the players to be smart depending on the situation. The situation of giving a gift to a partner or stepping aside to give him confidence.โ
๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ Wayne Rooney on Mbappe to @DeparSports: โA 22-23 year old player throwing his shoulder at Messi... I have never seen a bigger ego than this in my life. Someone remind Mbappe, when Messi was 22 years old, he had four Ballon d'Ors.โ https://t.co/jDuayftR5d
PSG next take on Lille on August 21 in Ligue 1. It will be interesting to see who among Messi, Neymar, Mbappe and Ramos will step up to the spot if the Parisian outfit do end up winning a penalty in this match.