Like Kingsley Coman, Aurélien Tchouameni joined a closed circle during the World Cup in Qatar, that of the players who precipitated the loss of the Blues by missing a penalty. The two men therefore joined Maxime Bossis, Didier Six, Reynald Pedros and David Trezeguet.
The former Bordelais had crossed his shot too much, the ball passing close to Emiliano Martinez’s post. However, the Madrilenian does not regret having taken his responsibilities. Quite the contrary. “I prefer to look at myself in the mirror the next day and say to myself: “You missed but you went there”, rather than telling myself that I was scared. And if in July 2026 it ends with such a session, we have to go.”he confides in an interview with The Team.
Aurélien Tchouameni assures that he stayed “focused on my goal, to score”. “When I was younger, when my mom said something to me, I replied: ‘It’s okay, it’s not the World Cup final either!’ Well there… (He smiles.)”, he continued, adding: “There you go, this is part of my story. My penalty was taken badly, it’s true. »
“It’s an exercise that needs to be worked on”
And contrary to what Carlo Ancelotti or Didier Deschamps may think, the French midfielder is convinced of the need to work on penalties in training. “Tomorrow, if I have another opportunity, I will do everything to do better. But against Croatia, in the Nations League (March 23, 2025), I shot in the same place. I had to, mentally, have an image of myself taking a penalty from that side and scoring it. And so, it’s an exercise that needs to be worked on”he explained, adding: “For me, it’s the memory of the gesture. If you practice every day taking your penalty right, close to the post, I’m sure that the day you need to take your penalty in a World Cup final, you have a better chance of taking it than someone who never takes a shot. »
Since the last World Cup, the Blues have been practicing much more than in the past. “In addition, there is Mike (Maignan). If you want a goalkeeper who makes you work on penalties, Mike is very good,” he further indicated on the subject.
