Watch: Hakimi's 'Panenka' penalty upsets Spain, leads Morocco into World Cup quarterfinals

Achraf Hakimi became the most talked about player of the night after he provided an amazing strike to lead Morocco to a 3-0 win against Spain in the penalty shootout and advance into the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 quarterfinals. The 24-year-old Moroccan footballer took the football world by storm by acing a ‘Panenka’ penalty and then celebrating it with his mother in the stands. With the victory, Morocco earned qualification for the next stage and will now face Portugal in the quarterfinals. 

FIFA World Cup 2022: What is a ‘panenka’ kick in football?

As per the footballing dictionary, the Panenka is a technique of striking the ball used by players while taking a penalty. It is a simple say of taking a penalty kick, where players lightly push the ball into the goal after waiting for the goalkeeper to lunge, instead of using full force. Coming in as Morocco’s fourth player to attempt the penalty shot, Hakimi displayed his street smartness by going for the panenka penalty.

Watch: Achraf Hakimi's 'panenka' penalty kick against Spain

After two attempts each at the penalty, Morocco led the score 2-0 from the 2010 World Cup champions Spain, before players from both teams failed in the third attempt. Taking the fourth attempt, Hakimi waited to Spanish goalkeeper Unai Simon to lunge to his right before lightly pushing the ball into the centre of the goal. The penalty kick technique used by Hakimi is named after Czech player Antonín Panenka, who introduced it to international football for the first time during the 1976 European Championship final.

Know more about the Moroccan superstar Achraf Hakimi

As reported by the Associated Press, Morocco midfielder Azzedine Ounahi revealed his thoughts about Hakimi’s panenka penalty and said, “If you’re brave enough to do it, then you can do it. It doesn’t matter how the ball goes in”. The midfielder further revealed Hakimi’s stature in the squad and said, “He’s fast, he’s skillful. He gives assists, he scores goals. A panenka in the penalty shootout. So he does everything. (And) he’s a team player.”

Hakimi is widely regarded as the most talented player in the Moroccan lineup and is one of the 14 members of Morocco’s 26-man squad who were not born in the country. The 24-year-old plays for Paris Saint-Germain, and was born in Madrid to Moroccan parents. He spent 10 years in Real Madrid’s youth system, where his father worked as a street vendor and his mother used to clean houses.