Penalty specialist Jaume Doménech continues spot kick success

Valencia CF's progression to the Copa del Rey quarter finals had a main protagonist, as the Last 16 encounter with Cultural Leonesa went to a penalty shootout. It's a time for goalkeepers to shine, and Jaume Doménech came to the fore by saving the Segunda B side's first two spot kicks.

That made things a whole lot more straightforward for VCF, and allayed some of the nerves that had been present during the regulation 90 minutes and extra time. It is not the first time Jaume has been the standout when it comes to penalty shootouts, however: In January of 2018 he took the team into the semifinals after a quarter final against Deportivo Alavés went down to the wire, again saving a pair of penalties.

His breakthrough into the first team was also courtesy of his decisive saves from 11 metres, against Alianza de Lima in a friendly summer tournament in Peru. There, he dedicated each stop to his grandfather, who had recently passed away. It is something that he still does to this day.

"Luckily we're through to the next round of the Copa del Rey. We were able to help by saving those two penalties and we're happy to have gone through," said Jaume after ousting Cultural Leonesa from the cup competition.

"You always have to have the mentality that you're going to do it. We always prepare, and we have ways of analysing the takers," he revealed."

"It's never ideal when things get so tricky, but we have to look at the context. The pitch was very soft, the opposition had a good game, and we had chances to score. In the end we have gone through, and we have to give credit to Cultural; they knocked out Atletico Madrid and made things difficult for us."