10 Footballers Who Recovered From World Cup Disgraces

10. Stuart Pearce

Just ask Stuart Pearce.

Wearing the crestfallen looks of a man who had let his entire country down, the defender's miss against West Germany at Italia '90 left him ashen-faced and totally devastated. He wasn't the only one to miss a penalty that night (Chris Waddle did it too), but Pearce's tear-filled walk off signified that his hurt bad.

Six years later, Stuart was handed a chance at redemption on home turf. At Euro '96, Pearce stepped up to take a quarter final kick in the shootout against Spain. Refusing to mess about, the then-Nottingham Forest player smashed the ball into the net and roared his defiance.

The whole thing felt cathartic. That misery Pearce felt in July 1990 was suddenly washed away by the exhilaration of scoring a vital penalty at Wembley. He'd net again in the shootout against Germany four days later, but most England fans probably don't want to talk about that one.