Bristol City and penalties remain a curious relationship as, having waited 469 days for their patience to be rewarded, they’ve received and scored two in their past two Championship encounters.
Nahki Wells has been the man assigned with executing from the spot, showing the requisite ice in his veins to fire home and earn four points with a draw at Sunderland and a win over Hull City on Saturday.
But what’s also been unique about this situation is the manner in which the penalties have been converted or, at least, the build-up and preparation.
Against Sunderland, Mark Sykes initially picked the ball up after Trai Hume had tripped Jay Dasilva, holding onto it for long enough to indicate the Irish international was going to be the taker, only to hand it to Wells moments before it was placed on the spot.
On the weekend, with Sykes not in the immediate vicinity after referee Samuel Barrott blew his whistle, it was Mehmeti who clasped his hands around it in the immediate aftermath of Cyrus Christie's handball before, again, it was finished by Wells.
As you've probably realised by now, these aren’t instances of the Bermudian going against orders or deliberately angering his teammates, it’s a very deliberate and premeditated tactic to take the heat out of the situation and put Wells in the best possible frame of mind to score.
At Sunderland, Ajibola Alese was booked for scuffing the penalty spot and delaying Wells’ kick. All the time Sykes held onto the ball, the striker had stepped out of the chaos inside the area and was able to gather his thoughts, removed from any verbals that might come his way.
The same was also true on Saturday, as any sledging that may have been directed at the 32-year-old to try and throw him off his technique amid the Tigers protests into the decision, were instead targeted at Mehmeti, allowing Wells to approach the crucial moment with as clear a head as possible.
“It turned out to be that last week but that wasn’t the intention,” Wells said, when asked if the process is to confuse the opposition. “We all knew I was taking a pen but there’s a lot going on and sometimes it can be distracting for the taker - somebody kicked the penalty spot, scuffed it up and got a yellow card so that delays things as the opposition are going to do, just to try and gain any advantage.
“I just walked away, Sykesy dealt with a little bit of the talking, meanwhile I just gather myself and prepare, run through the routine of what I need to do to execute the penalty. Hull was a bit shorter (in terms of waiting time) but Anis had the ball and I was just focusing on thinking about what I needed to do to score it. Picked up the ball, put it down and was able to score.”
Still, it takes serious stones to be able to convert after such a desperately long wait and with increasing interest around just when City were to be awarded a penalty.
At Sunderland, goalkeeper Anthony Patterson guessed correctly but the striker’s attempt low to his right was too well-struck for him to get it near it, while his attempt on Saturday was placed in the opposite corner, sending Karl Darlow in the wrong direction.
Wells may not show it but he is feeling the pressure and anxiety as much as anyone else, it’s just he has ways and means to suppress it to enable him to do his job.
“I’d like to think that one (Sunderland) definitely was a lot more pressured and I hadn’t been in that position for quite some time; away, big crowd, big moment for us to keep the run going but I stuck to my routine - I’ve been practising a lot - and just went with my instinct of going where I felt was best,” Wells added. “The keeper went the right way but he couldn’t get to it.
“Against Hull, I just didn’t let him beat me to it and try to go the same way, I just went the other way.
“It’s never easy. People that don’t take penalties or just watch from the side and have never really been in those moments probably find it very easy or you’re just kicking it in the back of the bet but there’s a lot of pressure, you have to have a routine which I go through, try to stick to it as much, try not to change my mind and focus and try and deliver.
“At times you’re going to miss but if you go to routine and you practise enough, more often than not you’ll see it hit the back of the net.”
Tuesday’s FA Cup tie for City could well be shaped by such moments. Certainly if the Robins are to make a game of it they will need to take their chances when presented, and while the probability of them receiving a third successive penalty is unlikely - not to mention the fact delivering the same levels of pressure inside the opposition 18-yard box will be challenging - Wells has shown he has the temperament for such an opportunity, should it present itself.
The Bermudian is, though, just excited by the prospect of playing in front of a sell-out Ashton Gate against some of the world’s best defenders and the sense of occasion that will be created, one way or the other.
Then again, City aren’t just here to turn up and be the convivial hosts. With an unbeaten run of 12 games behind them, and Manchester City’s focus on the Premier League title race, Champions League Round of 16, and this being the final leg of a run of five away games that has taken them to London, Nottingham, Leipzig, Bournemouth and now Bristol, who knows what could be possible?
“For all of us, it’s an amazing cup tie; something we haven’t had the chance to experience since I’ve been here in terms of a packed out stadium against the elite in the country and what better time to play them?” Wells said. “We’re in our best form, they have a lot going on outside the competition, so we know it’s a free hit for ourselves but one we’re trying to win and get to the next round.
“We’re playing against the best players in the world and we’re all looking forward to it, but to go into it 12 unbeaten, at home, full house, with major support behind us you never know. We’ll just be relishing this tie.”
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