Penalty kicks should be an almost guaranteed way to score in FIFA 21, but they remain as tricky as ever and need time to perfect
Penalties updated in FIFA 20, making them harder to score than ever. The same penalty system has been carried over into FIFA 21, meaning that players who mastered the process last year can be masters again this year.
FIFA 19 used to have an arrow which you powered up with the shoot button, but this was replaced by a cursor in FIFA 20 which you could aim anywhere in the goal but was trickier to point than the previous arrow indicator.
At first, this can seem a little daunting, but once you get used to aiming and powering up your shots correctly, penalties will become an almost guaranteed way to score goals.
Follow our expert advice on how to score penalties in FIFA 21.
How to aim penalties in FIFA 21
The first and most difficult part of scoring penalties in FIFA 21 is deciding where to aim your shot.
Players with high penalty attribute ratings are better at aiming as their shot cursor moves slowly.
To aim your penalty, choose the destination by using the left stick.
The analog sticks are very sensitive, so you want to hold it in place when you have found the correct spot – usually in the top corner of the net.
Once you are holding the stick on the correct spot, you can power up your penalty.
Be careful, though, if you spend too long trying to aim, the player will just take a weak penalty down the middle.
If you are playing a two-player game and do not want your opponent to see where you are aiming, you can turn off the cursor by pressing Up on the D-Pad.
Turning it off just hides the icon on the screen, but aiming and shooting remains the same.
How to power up penalties in FIFA 21
Powering up penalties is easier than aiming them and is a quicker skill to perfect too.
The ideal penalty will fill two or two-and-a-half bars, which gives it more than enough power to ensure the goalkeeper cannot reach it.
Timed finishing has also been integrated into FIFA 21’s penalties, meaning that you can improve the accuracy of your spot kicks by pressing the shoot button at the moment of impact.
To do this, watch the animation of the player and ball rather than the power bars after you have initially powered up your shot and press shoot when you see the player’s foot hitting the ball.
The best way to perfect this and the aiming system is to practice in the Skill Games section of the game.
How to do a panenka penalty in FIFA 21
Once you have perfected taking proper penalties, you can add some flair to your spot kicks and troll your opponents from the penalty spot.
To do a chipped or panenka penalty, aiming is the same, but when powering up your shot, hold L1 on PlayStation or LB on Xbox to attempt to dink the ball over the goalkeeper.
A proper panenka will aim right down the middle of the goal, but you can use a chipped penalty while aiming towards the sides of the goal as well as down the middle.
Beware, if your opponent guesses right, these will be extremely easy saves for the goalkeeper.
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