It was the 17th time in his professional career that the former Inter and Manchester City star had stepped up to the 12-yard mark. And it was the 17th time he had scored in such a situation. First minute or last, big game or small, game on the line or dead and buried, Mario just does not miss.
And the striker himself suggests that it is no accident that he is constantly successful from the spot. He has explained in the past how his superior ability to play mind games is key in his record in one-on-one situations.
"It's just like a mind game between me and the goalkeeper," he told the Daily Mirror . "Me, I know how to control my mind. When the keeper moves before me, it means that in this mind game he has lost."