A damning figure after the draw against Angers

During the match between FC Nantes and Angers, Alban Lafont once again failed to stop a penalty. This fact, far from being insignificant, highlights a frustrating statistic for the Canaries goalkeeper: he has not stopped a single penalty in three seasons. Against Himad Abdelli, last Sunday, Lafont conceded his 18th consecutive penalty, a figure that is starting to raise questions.

18 penalties in a row conceded by Lafont

Since the 2021-2022 season, Lafont has not stopped a single one of the 18 penalties taken against him. In the 2022-2023 season, nine attempts were converted against him, and in 2023-2024, this figure rose to eight. The current season has not started differently, with this new goal conceded against Angers. This contrast with his past performances is all the more striking, because the Nantes goalkeeper previously had a reputation as an excellent specialist in this exercise.

Indeed, during the 2021-2022 and 2019-2020 seasons, Lafont displayed remarkable success. Over these two seasons, he stopped three penalties out of six and seven attempts, with almost 50% success. The highlight of this period remains his memorable save against Neymar in February 2022.

However, since then, Lafont’s effectiveness on penalties has gradually collapsed. This long series of failures raises questions about a possible loss of confidence or a lack of adaptation to opposing shooters. While a goalkeeper cannot be judged solely on his ability to stop penalties, this statistic is starting to weigh heavily on his performance.

FC Nantes, who still count on Lafont’s experience in goal, hope that this bad cycle will end soon. In a championship as competitive as Ligue 1, every detail counts, and finding his effectiveness on penalties again could be a decisive asset for Lafont and the Canaries in the rest of the season.