Quick guide to surviving penalty-kick shootouts at World Cup

Editor's note: Croatia advanced to the World Cup semifinals by beating Brazil in a penalty shootout on Friday. How does anyone keep their composure during these nail-biters? Here's your guide. The original story follows below.

AL RAYYAN, Qatar — Do you love penalty shootouts or hate them?

Don’t lie. Of course, you love them — unless you’re a player in the knockout rounds at the World Cup, in which case, welcome to the stage, good luck, and make sure your aim is true if needed.

The end of group action was frenetic enough, with wild conclusions on every night of action but especially the last three, with glorious triumphs and gut-wrenching eliminations.

Even the great Leo Messi has had a penalty kick saved in this World Cup. Poland goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny made the stop here. (Photo by ANP via Getty Images)

Yet nothing quite tugs at the emotions quite like a shootout, which surely ranks among the cruelest, most contentious and most entertaining ways of deciding the fate of a sports contest.

They happen in every World Cup, are always enthralling and the first opportunity to see one from Qatar will be when the United States takes on the Netherlands at Khalifa International Stadium on Saturday (10 a.m. ET on FOX and the FOX Sports app).

"Penalty kicks," USA coach Gregg Berhalter said, matter-of-factly, "which we practiced yesterday and will practice again today."

Dutch coach Louis van Gaal comes from a nation that has had its heart broken numerous times by penalties, so perhaps it was no surprise he was a bit more expansive.

"It is extremely important," van Gaal said, remembering how the Oranje lost to Argentina in the 2014 semifinal. "We missed the finals because of that. We were the best squad on the pitch, but we lost because of penalties. I always learn from so-called mistakes. I learn from those lessons.

"The big advantage is that the goalkeepers as well as the takers, through the entire season, have worked on penalties, so I think that could be an advantage. A small advantage, but I will do anything it takes."

The USA has never taken part in a World Cup shootout. The Netherlands’ most painful experience came in the 2000 European Championships, on home soil, missing two kicks in regulation and three more in the shootout in a game they dominated against Italy.

Despite his brief answer, expect Berhalter to be meticulously prepared, and he has no shortage of methods to choose from.

Mind games are critical for both sides on penalty kicks. (Photo by GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images)

In recent times, goalkeepers have frequently tried to make themselves appear as big as possible, waving their arms, standing close to the shooter until as late as possible.

At the World Cup in 2018, England coach Gareth Southgate ordered goalkeeper Jordan Pickford to retrieve the ball and personally hand it to each new England shooter, as added reassurance.

For keepers, visualization comes into it — and it would also be no shock to see Matt Turner handed a list telling him where each of the Dutch players prefer to place their kicks.

Some teams practice relentlessly. Others don’t, reasoning that you can’t replicate the pressure, noise and intensity on a training field.

Penalties even played into van Gaal’s selection process for picking a goalkeeper for the tournament. Andries Noppert is the tallest player at the World Cup but had never played for the national team before the event before being plucked from relative obscurity.

"We came up with all sorts of arguments and reasons as to who would be the best goalkeeper," van Gaal added. "We substantiated our choices on that basis. Plus the sequence (of kickers) and so on."

From the spot, you’re looking for a calm mind and a clean strike.

Expect Christian Pulisic, if it happens, to step up first for the Americans. Captain Tyler Adams would be another lock. Yunus Musah hits a clean ball. If it goes 120 minutes with extra time, it is unlikely Weston McKennie would still be on the field, but Giovanni Reyna might have been introduced as substitute.

Christian Pulisic is a good bet to be the first U.S. penalty taker should the Americans go to a shootout. (Photo by Robin Alam/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Tim Weah and Sergiño Dest would also be high candidates, and it is entirely possible players who have rarely featured in the tournament could be called in, possible even as a late sub for that purpose only, such as Jordan Morris or Kellyn Acosta.

In 2014, the Netherlands even subbed in goalkeeper Tim Krul specifically for spot-kicks in the quarterfinal against Costa Rica, and Krul made a key save after speaking to opponent Bryan Ruiz in Dutch to distract him.

They didn’t do the same trick in the semis, having used all their subs already, and Jasper Cillessen couldn’t prevent them going out to Argentina.

Goalkeeper Tim Krul came off the bench to become a hero for the Netherlands in the quarterfinals of the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. (Photo by Lars Baron - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)

Maybe it won’t be Saturday's game when we see penalties. Probability demands that a shootout will come around sooner or later, and there have been at least two in every tournament since 1986.

An unfair way to decide a nation’s hopes and dreams? Probably.

Drama that you can’t tear your eyes away from, even for a second? Nothing is definite in a penalty shootout. But … definitely.

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Martin Rogers is a columnist for FOX Sports and the author of the FOX Sports Insider newsletter. You can subscribe to the daily newsletter here.