Luca Zidane saves three penalties but misses Panenka for France Under-17s

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2015/may/19/luca-zidane-son-zidenide-saves-misses-penalty

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Luca Zidane, son of French football legend Zinedine, played a pivotal role in France’s penalty shootout win over Belgium at the European Under-17 Championship in Bulgaria.

The 17-year-old Zidane, playing in goal for France, took – and missed – their fourth penalty, putting his chipped effort over the bar before recovering to immediately make the save that booked France’s place in the final.

Zidane, who currently plays as a goalkeeper for a Real Madrid youth side, and is on the Spanish club’s books along with brothers Enzo, Theo and Elyaz, saved two of Belgium’s first three penalties, after the semi-final match in Burgas had finished 1-1.

With the score also at 1-1 in the shootout, Zidane then stepped up to take a spot-kick – but his attempt at a Panenka-style chip drifted over the bar, appearing to draw a reaction from the opposing goalkeeper.

Zidane recovered to save Ismail Azzaoui’s penalty, clearing the way for Odsonne Edouard to score and put France into the final. They will play Germany in Sunday’s final, and are seeking a first title since 2004, when a side featuring Karim Benzema, Hatem Ben Arfa and Samir Nasri famously lifted the trophy.

Zidane’s effort from twelve yards also brought to mind his father’s chipped penalty against Italy in the World Cup final – on that occasion, Zidane hit the bar, but the ball bounced down over Gianluigi Buffon’s goal-line to give France an early lead.