Particle.news
Download on the App Store

Ball Boy Admits Taking Donnarumma’s Penalty Notes in Bosnia’s World Cup Clincher

The confession puts a spotlight on sideline gamesmanship after Italy fell on penalties with no saves from their goalkeeper.

Overview

  • Bosnia and Herzegovina beat Italy in a penalty shootout in Zenica to seal a first World Cup berth, with Gianluigi Donnarumma failing to stop any kick.
  • Fourteen-year-old Avan (Afan) Cizmic, a local ball boy, says he took a paper by Donnarumma’s towel that listed Bosnia’s penalty habits.
  • Cizmic told Bosnian TV he recognized the sheet as scouting notes and hid it, saying the loss forced Italy’s keeper to guess by instinct.
  • Donnarumma angrily confronted Bosnia goalkeeper Nikola Vasilj during the shootout, and Vasilj later said the Italian tried to tear up his own prep notes.
  • Cizmic has drawn wide praise at home and says he plans to auction the paper for charity, highlighting how keepers rely on such ‘cheat sheets’ in shootouts.