Aston Villa: Gareth Barry reveals his penalty success secrets
Jan 24 2009 by Bill Howell, Birmingham Mail
Gareth Barry celebrates his winning goal with Craig Gardner.
GARETH Barry has become Villa’s Mr Dependable from the penalty spot, having gone almost a year since missing from 12 yards.
Barry, who struck his first penalty for the club in an Intertoto Cup tie against Celta Vigo in August 2000 after Paul Merson’s earlier spot-kick had been saved, has moved to third place on Villa’s all-time list with 21 successful kicks – four behind Allan Evans.
Barry ranks joint-tenth in the all-time Premier League penalty-scorers, having taken 21 in total and scored 17 of them.
That puts him level with Robbie Fowler and Gary McAllister but behind Alan Shearer, 58, Matthew Le Tissier, 24, Thierry Henry, 23, David Unsworth, 23, Teddy Sheringham, 21, Frank Lampard, 19, Ruud van Nistelrooy, 19 and Peter Beardsley, 18.
Barry has been successful with all four of his penalty-kicks this season, having scored against Sunderland, Arsenal, Wigan and Litex Lovech.
Last season, Barry netted five out of six – missing only at Reading. The previous year, it was six out of eight.
Barry says the key is to be decisive: “Penalties always carry pressure. The spotlight is always on the person taking the spot-kick and it is nerve-wracking.
