Redbrick Sport recently explored the dangers of misguided criticism of goalkeepers. In order to fully understand the unique challenges faced by those between the sticks, we spoke exclusively to professional keepers to hear their first-hand experiences at the top level.

Richard Lee made almost 200 career appearances for Watford and Brentford between 2002 and 2015. Lee made played ten Premier League games for the Hornets and is a strong advocate for regular goalkeeping analysis. This stems from his own experience of how difficult and technical goalkeeping is.

‘There is so much going on. It’s very easy to look at goalkeepers in isolation and mistakes in isolation and consider that maybe it’s just a shot that’s coming in that’s maybe been mishandled. But there’s so much that’s gone into it before that shot’s taken place,’ Lee tells Redbrick.

‘It’s very easy to look at goalkeepers in isolation and mistakes in isolation’

This is one of many references Lee makes to multi-tasking, and the need to ‘compute in a split-second’ so many factors. ‘There’s so many different small things that maybe aren’t necessarily considered,’ he says. ‘Should you be five yards from your goal, three yards, or one yard? Is the shot one that might dip over your head? Is it right or left-footed? Is it likely to curl or curve? Is it going to be driven?’

All of this must be accounted for before the ball has left the player’s foot, and all of this will affect a goalkeeper’s positioning, stance, and handling. There are even more considerations after this: ‘Is it a top-hand save, or am I looking to catch the ball? And if so, a cup, scoop, or ‘w’ technique? Is the ball slippery?’

This also applies to crosses and through balls, where a goalkeeper must also compute multiple factors instantly, Lee says. ‘How is the wind going to affect the ball? Is the through ball going to skip through or hold up in the turf? Is the striker ahead of the defender or is the defender ahead of the striker? This will impact a goalkeeper’s decision whether or not to engage.’ In the broader context of the game, a goalkeeper must also communicate with and organise the defence and bellow instructions throughout, adding yet another dimension to a goalkeeper’s job. ‘You’re forever computing,’ he reiterates.

Lee suggests that probability governs these decisions, especially regarding positioning. ‘Using the experience and coaching they’ve had, and from watching others, what gives you the best chance of saving it?.’ This emphasis on positioning is important, as it seems to be one of the most misunderstood aspects of goalkeeping. Many goalkeepers will say that their biggest gripe with commentators and pundits is the made-up rule that a keeper must never be beaten at their near post. This completely undermines all of the above factors that have determined a goalkeeper’s positioning.

One such goalkeeper is Nathan Ashmore, the current number one for Borehamwood in the National League, whom Ashmore recently helped to reach the third round of the FA Cup. ‘It’s such a typical outfield comment’, he says to Redbrick. ‘You can’t stand on your near post because the striker has all the goal to aim for, or he can square it. But a lot of keepers will have it in their head, so they’ll now be out of position because they’re too worried about being beat at their near post.’

This reiterates how the misguided opinions of outfield pundits has filtered through to all levels of the sport and had negative consequences. In contrast, former England goalkeeper Rob Green was been widely praised for his recent guest appearance on Sky’s Monday Night Football coverage. Ashmore agrees that having regular goalkeeper pundits will be beneficial for goalkeepers at all levels, while also suggesting – as Rob Green did when comparing the different set positions of Hugo Lloris and Jordan Pickford – that there is not always a right way or a wrong way.

‘Everyone has their own opinions on how a keeper should be set, and how they should save things, but there isn’t a right way or a wrong way for me’ Ashmore argues. ‘I was self-taught for years, so my technique is going to be completely different to someone who has been in an academy for all their life. But it doesn’t mean to say that I’m worse than he is.’

‘I think it was really good having Rob Green on TV’

‘I think it was really good having Rob Green on TV. Young kids will listen and know it’s made a lot of sense. The Prem has been so lucky to have so many good keepers, if not the best in the world[…]because we’ve got such a high standard, when a mistake does happen, I think it gets publicised too much[…] it’s misleading people that when a shot comes in now everyone gets in their head that the keeper should always save it.’

Ashmore’s belief that there is not always a definitive right or wrong technique highlights the improvised nature of goalkeeping at times, and Lee is aware of this. ‘You can practice everything, but goalkeeping is a position where you’re going to be dealing with a lot of new situations all the time’, Lee explains. ‘You can’t control everything that’s going to come your way in a game, and some of the stuff we see from time-to-time are effectively brand-new situations. It’s then about having the confidence to deal with the unknown, that’s a big thing in goalkeeping’.

It is not just on the field that goalkeepers face unique challenges. An outfielder makes multiple forgotten mistakes in a game, and they can be saved by a covering defender. In contrast, the life of a goalkeeper can be very lonely, with no one to cover for them. Any perceived mistakes are exposed and amplified and dealing with this is a difficult challenge faced by all goalkeepers.

‘People just look at you and think “how’s he not saved that?” and it can be demoralising,’ says Ashmore. ‘As a keeper you’ve got to be mind-strong and head-strong, and not think about what people are thinking about you. That’s part of being a keeper.’

‘As a keeper you’ve got to be mind-strong and head-strong’

The frequency of such criticism means that that how well goalkeepers deal with it is a crucial component of goalkeeping. This applies not only to the wider picture of one’s career, but also within a game, where a keeper cannot be affected by a mistake or criticism from fans behind the goal. Lee believes that goalkeepers should have strategies in place to deal with these repeated episodes of intense criticism and pressure.

‘The very best goalkeepers are so quick at dealing with criticism. It’s not one where it takes them hours to process – they’ll hear it and it’s gone. And that’s the best way ordinarily, certainly when it’s from a source that’s not going to benefit you,’ Lee says. ‘You might be able to dismiss it, but a lot of people can’t because they’ve already internalised it and felt sensations from that criticism. So again, it’s just having strategies for how to get rid of it.’

‘The very best goalkeepers are so quick at dealing with criticism’

Such strategies recommended by Lee include self-talk and affirmation, and plenty of other strategies are suggested on Keval Patel’s The Goalkeeper’s Mindset podcast. Patel is a training sport psychologist specialising in goalkeeper mindset, as well as being a semi-professional keeper himself.

‘Decatastrophising is a good technique – training your brain to recognise that the worst criticisms and outcomes aren’t actually that bad,’ Patel tells Redbrick. ‘Cognitive restructuring too – working out whose opinion actually matters.’

Keval also believes that the extra responsibility of goalkeeping, such as ‘organising the back four, set-pieces, and the team, and doing your job which is to keep the ball out of the net,’ heightens the need to be able to deal with extra pressure.

‘With responsibility comes pressure and with pressure comes mistakes,’ he warns.

Overall, it is clear to see that there is far more to goalkeeping than meets the eye. This is why goalkeepers ask fans, teammates and pundits to be less hasty in any criticism.

---

Like this? Check out more from Redbrick Sport: 

In Conversation with Footy Adventures

Ellyse Perry Joins Birmingham Phoenix in Stellar Signing

Warwickshire CCC Season Preview