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Kolo Touré always had to be the last player onto the pitch during his time at Arsenal – a situation which caused him trouble during a 2009 UEFA Champions League match against Roma. With team-mate William Gallas's half-time treatment for an injury delayed, Touré felt unable to re-enter the field until Gallas emerged, and the game resumed without either player. The Ivorian ended up being booked for rejoining the fray without the referee's permission.
Czech Republic captain Tomáš Rosický never sang the national anthem aloud, having realised while playing for his country at junior levels that whenever he belted out the anthem at the top of his voice, his team lost. Germany's Mario Gomez, meanwhile, got out of the habit of chorusing anthems completely after scoring in a youth match in which he had not sung.
Former Fiorentina coach Bruno Pesaola was so convinced the record he played to his side before matches brought good luck that he made a 500km round trip to pick it up after realising he had left it at home before an away game.
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Chelsea's John Terry is also bound by rituals. For long spells he would listen to the same Usher CD in his car before every match, park in the same spot, sit in the same seat on the team bus, and even use the same pair of shin pads for ten years – before losing them in a game at Barcelona.
Laurent Blanc planted a kiss on the head of goalkeeper Fabien Barthez before each match in France's 1998 FIFA World Cup success. Less well known is the fact the squad reportedly listened to Gloria Gaynor's I Will Survive in the dressing room before every fixture.
One-time Pisa president Romeo Anconetani felt putting salt on the pitch before big games was lucky, once dumping 26kg of the stuff on the turf before a particularly important encounter.
The Czech Republic decided not to shave during UEFA EURO 2012 as a good-luck charm, with goalkeeper Petr Čech refusing to get out his razor even when his wife called to tell him he looked awful and should smarten up immediately.
Strikers' secrets
In his Ajax pomp, Johan Cruyff reportedly slapped goalkeeper Gert Bals in the stomach before every match, also endeavouring to spit his chewing gum into the opposition half before kick-off. More amazingly, Cruyff's team-mate Gerrie Mürhen insisted on wearing team-mate Sjaak Swart's underpants during European Cup ties.
England striker Gary Lineker did not take shots on goal during pre-match warm-ups because he did not want to waste a goal. He also changed his shirt at half-time if he failed to score in the first half.
Filippo Inzaghi: lucky biscuits
Juventus, Milan and Italy forward Filippo Inzaghi had a sweet pre-match ritual; before games he was in the habit of tucking into a box of children's biscuits, crucially always leaving two in the box.
Dynamo Kyiv coach Serhiy Rebrov had an interesting habit as a player; after any win, he would do his best to replicate that day's pre-match routine for the next game, waking up at the same time, eating the same meals and talking to the same people.
Goalkeeping practice
Former Scotland goalkeeper Alan Rough's pre-match observances are perhaps the most complicated on record. "I got into a habit of not shaving before games," he remembered. "And I always had to hang my clothes on peg No13. I'd bounce a ball off the changing-room wall a certain number of times – I forget how many – being careful not to stand on the unlucky part of the floor.
"I wore a favourite old shirt under my top and always my own white socks, and continued to take them on Scotland trips when the Scottish FA started getting fussy about the team all wearing red. Away to Israel [in a 1981 World Cup qualifier] I forgot to wash them from the last match so they were soaking wet from the sink but there was me, squelching around, soapy bubbles popping in the eyelets of my boots, and playing one of my best games for my country. I should have made that another wee routine."
His in-game behaviour was every bit as complex. "I used to have a hat full of lucky charms to put behind the net," he said. "There was a scabby tennis ball, a thistle keyring, a couple of marbles, lots of daft wee trinkets – and when fans chucked more I'd have to put them in the bunnet [a type of cap] too. I liked to blow my nose a lot during games and ask the time a lot, and I'd always have seven pieces of [a certain brand of chewing gum] with me: three for each half and another for the last five minutes when things got exciting. So, yes, quite superstitious."
During his Liverpool stint, Pepe Reina – now of Napoli – was in the habit of filling up the fuel tank in his car at the same service station before every match (whether he needed petrol or not) and insisted on parking in bay 39 at Anfield.
Ex-England custodian David James's pre-match days consisted of a long litany of rites; most disgustingly, he would pay a pre-game visit to the urinals, wait until they were empty, then spit against the wall.
More Info...
www.uefa.com
Czech Republic captain Tomáš Rosický never sang the national anthem aloud, having realised while playing for his country at junior levels that whenever he belted out the anthem at the top of his voice, his team lost. Germany's Mario Gomez, meanwhile, got out of the habit of chorusing anthems completely after scoring in a youth match in which he had not sung.
Former Fiorentina coach Bruno Pesaola was so convinced the record he played to his side before matches brought good luck that he made a 500km round trip to pick it up after realising he had left it at home before an away game.
Chelsea's John Terry is also bound by rituals. For long spells he would listen to the same Usher CD in his car before every match, park in the same spot, sit in the same seat on the team bus, and even use the same pair of shin pads for ten years – before losing them in a game at Barcelona.
Laurent Blanc planted a kiss on the head of goalkeeper Fabien Barthez before each match in France's 1998 FIFA World Cup success. Less well known is the fact the squad reportedly listened to Gloria Gaynor's I Will Survive in the dressing room before every fixture.
One-time Pisa president Romeo Anconetani felt putting salt on the pitch before big games was lucky, once dumping 26kg of the stuff on the turf before a particularly important encounter.
The Czech Republic decided not to shave during UEFA EURO 2012 as a good-luck charm, with goalkeeper Petr Čech refusing to get out his razor even when his wife called to tell him he looked awful and should smarten up immediately.
Strikers' secrets
In his Ajax pomp, Johan Cruyff reportedly slapped goalkeeper Gert Bals in the stomach before every match, also endeavouring to spit his chewing gum into the opposition half before kick-off. More amazingly, Cruyff's team-mate Gerrie Mürhen insisted on wearing team-mate Sjaak Swart's underpants during European Cup ties.
England striker Gary Lineker did not take shots on goal during pre-match warm-ups because he did not want to waste a goal. He also changed his shirt at half-time if he failed to score in the first half.
Filippo Inzaghi: lucky biscuits
Juventus, Milan and Italy forward Filippo Inzaghi had a sweet pre-match ritual; before games he was in the habit of tucking into a box of children's biscuits, crucially always leaving two in the box.
Dynamo Kyiv coach Serhiy Rebrov had an interesting habit as a player; after any win, he would do his best to replicate that day's pre-match routine for the next game, waking up at the same time, eating the same meals and talking to the same people.
Goalkeeping practice
Former Scotland goalkeeper Alan Rough's pre-match observances are perhaps the most complicated on record. "I got into a habit of not shaving before games," he remembered. "And I always had to hang my clothes on peg No13. I'd bounce a ball off the changing-room wall a certain number of times – I forget how many – being careful not to stand on the unlucky part of the floor.
"I wore a favourite old shirt under my top and always my own white socks, and continued to take them on Scotland trips when the Scottish FA started getting fussy about the team all wearing red. Away to Israel [in a 1981 World Cup qualifier] I forgot to wash them from the last match so they were soaking wet from the sink but there was me, squelching around, soapy bubbles popping in the eyelets of my boots, and playing one of my best games for my country. I should have made that another wee routine."
His in-game behaviour was every bit as complex. "I used to have a hat full of lucky charms to put behind the net," he said. "There was a scabby tennis ball, a thistle keyring, a couple of marbles, lots of daft wee trinkets – and when fans chucked more I'd have to put them in the bunnet [a type of cap] too. I liked to blow my nose a lot during games and ask the time a lot, and I'd always have seven pieces of [a certain brand of chewing gum] with me: three for each half and another for the last five minutes when things got exciting. So, yes, quite superstitious."
During his Liverpool stint, Pepe Reina – now of Napoli – was in the habit of filling up the fuel tank in his car at the same service station before every match (whether he needed petrol or not) and insisted on parking in bay 39 at Anfield.
Ex-England custodian David James's pre-match days consisted of a long litany of rites; most disgustingly, he would pay a pre-game visit to the urinals, wait until they were empty, then spit against the wall.
More Info...
Friday 13 special: European football superstitions
Friday 13 is a date which strikes fear into the hears of some; UEFA.com dons its lucky pants to investigate some of the habits footballers use to keep on the right side of fate.
