Michel Vorm has championed the need to do your homework, with his spot-kick heroics down to hours of study carried out off the field.
Swans keeper reveals the secrets behind his spot kick success
Michel Vorm has championed the need to do your homework, with his spot-kick heroics down to hours of study carried out off the field.
Swansea's Dutch keeper saved his second penalty of the season on Saturday, with Fulham's Clint Dempsey unable to beat him from 12 yards.
His crucial stop paved the way for the Swans to pick up a 2-0 win and cement their mid-table standing in the Premier League.
Vorm admits that luck plays a big part in any penalty save but he is also of the opinion that if you take the time to study your opponents, your hard work will pay off.
He said: "Those kind of moments are very important. Had they scored it would have been 1-1 with a couple of minutes to go.
Pressure
"If you can stop a penalty you can do something very important for your team. The pressure was on Dempsey - it was a very big moment for them.
"It's very hard to stop a penalty, you have to be lucky sometimes and I have been lucky two times this season.
"But if you do your homework right you have a good chance of stopping the penalty.
"I always try to prepare myself for stopping a penalty. I had seen Dempsey take a penalty before.
"He didn't take this one that badly, I think it was a good save, but if he shoots it very well you cannot stop it."
Concentration
Vorm, who joined Swansea from Utrecht over the summer, also believes that it is important to win the mental battle when readying yourself to face a spot-kick.
He added: "What's my secret? It's all in the eyes.
"I like to look at the taker to tell what he is going to do. I also try to wait as long as possible before committing myself. Then when I go, I go with all my life.
"I took my time - not to get Dempsey out of concentration, but so I could concentrate on the moment.
"I got a yellow card but I tried to wait as long as possible. He was watching me until the last second but I was waiting for him to go for a corner. In the end I went for the right one with everything I had and stopped it."
