Marcus Rashford has never taken a first team penalty but has already let it be known that he wants to step up if England find themselves in a World Cup shootout.
Rashford is expected to drop back to the bench when the Three Lions take on Colombia on Tuesday in the last 16, but if the game gets into extra-time the Manchester United forward would surely be on the pitch at Spartak Stadium.
The 20-year-old claims never to have missed from the spot at youth level but has never been given the chance by club or country to test his mettle on the big stage.
Yet England’s extensive preparations, which have been formally ongoing since March and have been a daily feature of their sessions at their Zelenogorsk base camp, have left him full of belief that he should be on Gareth Southgate’s list of takers.
“I think he knows the players who are confident in those circumstances. I’d be willing to step forward,” he said.
“Not everybody here is a penalty taker for their club. It’s more if you feel comfortable taking one, which I do, that’s the way you go about it. If you don’t feel comfortable you have to be honest with yourself. That gives the team the best chance.”
“Every player will tell you that it is always frustrating when you don’t start,” he said.
“(But) if I know I’m improving to the player I was a year ago or six months ago then that’s good enough for me. It’s not about competing against other people. Ultimately you’re competing against yourself.
“At the level we’re playing at here, being in an England camp or whether it is at the club, you have to really understand that and you can almost take bits from other people’s game to try and bring your own game on.
“(United manager Jose Mourinho) has got 20-25 players in the squad and he has to pick the best team to play each game. He got it right most of the time last season but we need a bit extra to push for the title.”