Mustafa Shobeir, the goalkeeper of the Egyptian national team, revealed the secret behind his save of Lionel Messi's penalty kick during the match against Argentina in the round of 16 of the World Cup, which ended with the Pharaohs losing 2-3.

Shobeir said, during his interview on MBC Masr, that he made sure to study Messi's style in taking penalty kicks.

He pointed out that the Argentine star usually approaches calmly and waits for the opposing goalkeeper to move, then sends the ball to the opposite corner.

He noted, "Messi did that when he missed a penalty during the match against Austria, which prompted him to change his style in the Egypt match, but I remained still in my position until the last moment."

He indicated that luck plays a crucial role, citing his experience in previous matches, where he successfully saved a penalty against Iran, but could not save penalty kicks from the Australian team, which missed two shots off target.

Mustafa Shobeir confirmed that dealing with penalty kicks depends largely on "luck" first and foremost, in addition to careful study of the attacker's style and his stance before shooting.

— MBC Egypt (@mbcmasr) July 12, 2026