Gary Neville. Jamie Carragher. Jamie Redknapp. Graeme Souness. Roy Keane. Rio Ferdinand. Steve McManaman. Owen Hargreaves. The list goes on. But what do all of these regular tv football pundits have in common? Other than the fact that they all suspiciously played for either Manchester United or Liverpool…

The answer is that none of them are goalkeepers. Meaning that these so-called experts are paid to analyse what goalkeepers have done right and wrong, especially the latter. Granted, former Manchester United number one Peter Schmeichel used to be a regular on Match of the Day and Sky Sports’ Super Sunday, but one would imagine that this had more to do with the club he played for rather than his position. Currently, former Wolves and England Under 21-goalkeeper Matt Murray stands out as the only established goalkeeper-turned-pundit regularly seen on our screens.

This is deeply problematic. Besides infuriating goalkeepers of all levels each weekend, it also has detrimental effects on the perception of goalkeeping amongst fans and grassroots footballers, despite it being a specific and entirely unique skill. There are many instances in a game where goalkeeping positives are not picked up on by commentators and fans alike, especially when it comes to starting positions or narrowing the angle when an attacker is preparing to shoot. There is so much more to goalkeeping than saves, kicking, and collecting crosses.

This was brilliantly summarised by Leicester and Denmark goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel in multiple interviews last spring. Speaking to The Athletic, Schmeichel criticised how pundits readily ‘get into technicalities about goalkeeping’ and suggested that it is impossible for outfielders to truly understand these characteristics unless they have stood between the posts.

‘Don’t dive into technicalities because unless you’ve been there, you really don’t know,’ he respectfully urged pundits. ‘You shouldn’t be giving people false information if you don’t know what you are talking about because people will make snap judgements on a goalkeeper,’ he added. He was referencing common statements that have been ‘plucked out of thin air’ such as ‘never get beat at your near post’ or ‘use this hand not that one’ for example. This will ring true for goalkeepers at all levels and should be taken on board by football fans and players everywhere.

It is mindboggling that more goalkeepers are not asked to give any insight into their specialist craft during Premier League matches. This became even more ridiculous when BT began using referees to do exactly that for their respective profession, despite the fact that goalkeeping is far less black-and-white and subsequently even more technical.

‘The Modern-Day GK’ is an in-person and online goalkeeping service ‘hoping to change goalkeeping for the better.’ Like Schmeichel, they feel strongly about how difficult it is for non-goalkeepers to fully understand the art of the position. ‘The Goalkeeper is still the most misunderstood and scrutinised position in football’ as their pinned tweet reveals. ‘It will never be truly appreciated until people really understand the demands of the position during training & games – technically, physically, psychologically, tactically.’

It is due to these feelings, of being misunderstood and mistreated, that goalkeepers share a formidable ‘goalkeepers’ union,’ a term which has become part of everyday football language. It suggests not only that goalkeeping is extremely different from other positions, but it also highlights the mental challenges of being a goalkeeper. After all, a midfielder makes countless mistakes every game safe in the knowledge that it will be forgotten about in seconds, however a goalkeeper is so exposed that any error will be amplified for all to see and frown upon. One only has to look at the public and media obsession with Jordan Pickford and Kepa Arrizabalaga to realise how thick-skinned goalkeepers need to be.

All goalkeepers will recall a time at school when they put in a great performance in a struggling team, only for a few clueless teammates to say, ‘but you conceded x amount of goals so that’s rubbish.’ In the media and especially on social media, the majority of attention shone on goalkeepers is directed at their errors, rather than the positives. The above anecdote is concerning evidence that ill-informed and imbalanced goalkeeping analysis has created misconceptions that filter down to all levels of the game. This further highlights the need for goalkeeping pundits who can attempt to rectify this issue.

The crucial message of this article is the following: when pundits, fans, friends, or your teammates make a comment about a goalkeeper, remind yourself that goalkeeping is not so black and white. Indeed, the next time someone says, ‘the keeper could have done much better there,’ do not just accept this as gospel. Every situation is different and, as Schmeichel reiterates, ‘goalkeeping a lot of the time is about improvisation.’ For example, has the ball gone through crowds of players? Is the keeper’s view restricted? Is it just a great strike? Unless you have spent countless hours in goal facing thousands of different scenarios, then you will never understand the difficulty facing a goalkeeper in that situation.

And just remember: a goalkeeper can only make an error if multiple outfielders have made a mistake in the first place.

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