Ross Barkley insists he would be happy to take another penalty for Chelsea, despite missing the crucial late spot-kick in their Champions League defeat by Valencia on Tuesday.
Barkley’s 87th-minute penalty skimmed the bar as Chelsea went down to Rodrigo’s second-half goal.
Barkley (right) who had been on the pitch only five minutes when the penalty was awarded, is Chelsea’s designated taker. Outside shootouts, however, the England midfielder has only ever taken five spot-kicks, missing two. Against Valencia, he took his first competitive penalty since February 2016.
Nevertheless, manager Frank Lampard is ready to persist with Barkley as the team’s penalty specialist, knowing taking the responsibility away from him could damage confidence.
Barkley said: "If there was another penalty in the game, I would have been confident of taking it. You can miss penalties. It’s not the end of the world. We’ve got five more group games to go that we’re aiming to win."
Barkley blasted over the kick after an apparent dispute with Willian over who should take it. Willian and Jorginho spoke to Barkley on the edge of the area before the penalty was taken.
Chelsea's Ross Barkley looks dejected as he applauds the fans at the end of the match against Valencia. Photo: Reuters/Tony O'Brien
Speaking after the game, however, Barkley claimed he had the backing of his team-mates.
"It was more, 'Good luck with the penalty' type of thing, encouraging me," Barkley said. "They would have been willing to take it as well, but I felt confident. They were just encouraging me to score. I’m gutted I missed, but these things happen."
Willian told a different story, saying: "I wanted to take it but he was confident to take it.
"This is football. He missed the penalty but it could be me that missed, or Jorginho or whoever. When we win, we win together, and when we lose, we lose together."