What is the best technique when it comes to taking penalties?Ultimately, there is no right or wrong answer because there isn’t one technique that guarantees a 100 per cent success rate.Goalkeepers now go into games knowing exactly how the opposition team’s penalty taker prefers to take his spot-kicks, so it’s more important than ever before for players to mix things up.While most penalty takers will make their minds up before games and practice in training during the week, some prefer to improvise when the moment comes.One of those players is Nottingham Forest’s Lyle Taylor, whose unorthodox penalty technique requires nerves of steel.p1fge7s7ptt2g1n411gluh391i79d.jpgThe Montserrat international has struggled to score goals on a consistent basis since joining Forest from Charlton Athletic in 2020, but he’s usually reliable from the spot thanks to his ‘disrespectful’ penalty technique.Taylor begins his ‘walk-up’ from outside the box and locks focus on the goalkeeper’s eyes as he calmly approaches the ball.At the final second, the centre-forward picks his spot and shoots.p1fge7rnak1m7s1bb211fa1v8v1l9tb.jpgFor example, Taylor scored this dramatic winning penalty in the seventh minute of stoppage-time against Coventry City back in November 2020.Forest were drawing 1-1 at the time and although all the pressure was on his shoulders, Taylor stuck by his unusual penalty technique and converted past Marko Marosi.He then rubbed salt into Marosi’s wounds by giving the ‘keeper some stick during his celebrations.Watch the clip here:

Ice in his veins.

Charlton fans were also forced to hold their breath on several occasions while watching Taylor take their penalties.

"To be fair, I didn't fancy Lyle to score! When he's walking up to take the penalty I didn't fancy him to score, but obviously he does,” former Charlton boss Lee Bowyer said after a late Taylor penalty snatched point for Charlton against Barnsley in 2019.

"He's so calm in that situation and he's the person you'd want to be taking the penalty so, thankfully, it went in."

Here are some other clips of Taylor showing off his unusual but effective penalty technique:

Cool as you like!