Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford utilized a “cheat sheet” attached to his water bottle, detailing the preferred penalty directions of Manchester City’s key players.

Jordan Pickford’s water bottle strategy came to light following his impressive penalty save against Erling Haaland during the Manchester City vs. Everton match.

Haaland had the chance to restore Man City’s lead when they were awarded a penalty shortly after halftime. The penalty was given after Vitaly Mykolenko fouled Savinho in the box, with referee Simon Hooper pointing to the spot. However, Haaland missed his shot from 12 yards, as Pickford dived to his right to make a crucial save.

After the save, it was revealed that Pickford’s water bottle contained detailed notes about Manchester City’s penalty takers, including Phil Foden, Jeremy Doku, Jack Grealish, and Mateo Kovacic. The notes featured graphs showing each player’s favored penalty placement. Despite the focus on others, Pickford’s preparation paid off as he thwarted Haaland’s attempt.

This pivotal save helped Everton secure a valuable point at the Etihad against Pep Guardiola’s team. Seamus Coleman, who had been booked for engaging in mind games with Haaland before the penalty, commented after the match: “We came here looking for a point, and you do what you can to achieve that. There was no swearing or anything like that.”

Notably, this isn’t the first time Pickford has relied on such tactics. During Euro 2024, he had similar notes on Swiss penalty takers, including instructions to dive left for Manuel Akanji, a decision that led to another crucia

l save.