The Polish goalkeeper Wojciech Szczęsny, star of FC Barcelona, revealed the method he used to save the penalty taken by French striker Kylian Mbappe during the recent match against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium, as part of the Spanish league competition.

In statements reported by the Spanish newspaper "Mundo Deportivo", Szczęsny explained that he pays great attention to studying his opponents before each match, especially when dealing with penalties, saying: "I study a lot before any match, I watch the last 20 penalties taken by the main penalty takers of the opposing team, and I analyze their methods according to the match result and its circumstances, to be fully aware of all the details."

The Polish goalkeeper added that he recalled how Mbappe took his last penalty against him in the previous Clasico at the Montjuïc Stadium, which helped him predict the angle of the shot this time, saying: "I was confident he would choose the same side, and after that, you just have to reach to get to the ball."

Szczęsny also spoke about the importance of meditation and breathing exercises in improving his performance on the field, explaining: "I detach myself from emotions during matches, as they don’t help me. After the Clasico, everyone was discussing the loss, and I jokingly said: We only lost one match. I do breathing exercises before every match and during the break, and I don’t care if others look at me."

He also touched on some of his teammates, noting that Robert Lewandowski hates losing even in table tennis, while he described Marcus Rashford as an exceptional talent that is hard to stop when he is at his best.

The Polish goalkeeper praised the abilities of La Masia academy players, saying: "Every player from La Masia who comes to train impresses me technically, but the biggest challenge for them is getting regular playing minutes."

Szczęsny concluded his talk by confirming that he is progressing well in learning Catalan, adding jokingly: "I was impressed by your eyes," before revealing his choices for the best goalkeepers in history, saying: "Buffon, Neuer, Yashin, the best version of Cech, and I will also put myself among them."