Let’s try to learn how to become the best goalkeeper we can possible be. It doesn’t matter if you’re tall or short, a goalkeeper can develop their own style of play. Take Real Salt Lake goalkeeper Nick Rimando or Real Madrid keeper Iker Casillas, both goalkeepers are not very tall, but they’re both quick and read the game extremely well so they’re always in the right position to make the save. What matters for goalkeepers is that you’re positioned correctly and ready to make the save. But how to you become a great goalkeeper? How do you become a world class goalkeeper? The best keepers in the world make all the basic or simple saves consistently, and then they make that one big game winning save when they’re called upon. Usually, every game requires a goalkeeper to make one goal stopping save, along with all the other simples saves that they should make. David De Gea’s Top 10 Premier League Saves for Manchester United. One thing that’s unique about De Gea is he loves to use his feet to make saves, and often big time saves by sliding out his foot to block a shot. Well, as a goalkeeper, you’ve got to master the fundamentals of the position. Some people say to play goalkeeper you’ve got to be a little crazy, since you’re constantly putting yourself in dangerous positions, whether that’s stopping a one on one or coming out to win a cross. But the key to playing goalkeeper is to read the game soccer and limit the number of times you have to make difficult saves or react at the last second since you’re out of position. Understanding the game of soccer is crucial, which comes with experience. As a goalkeeper you want to get to the soccer ball before anyone else, obviously, and that means reading the game and positioning yourself properly. Let’s take a look at some of the fundamentals of playing keeper and some goalkeeper drills to make you a better keeper overall. Here’s a run down of the fundamental skills needed to play goalkeeper at a high level:
Coerver Coaching Goalkeeping Essentials: adapting the usual Coerver pyramid method to the folks who wear gloves even in high summer. Learn more about this goalkeeping training program which gives you a good foundation of concepts to build off. Also, increasingly, in the modern game of soccer, goalkeepers must be good with the soccer ball at their feet, both feet at that. Teams like Barcelona and Bayern Munich, use their keeper to keep possession of the soccer ball and sometimes even the keeper or act like a sweeper in the case of Manuel Neuer. Simply knock the soccer ball back and forth against a wall will help improve your touch on the soccer ball. Watch Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea in this saves compilation video below to get inspired. A big part of being a goalkeeper is being confident in yourself. Even if you get scored on you have to rally yourself to make the next save. After all, it’s all about helping your team win and a win is a win whether you keep a clear sheet or take in a goal but still win 2-1. It’s about keeping your team in the game.
Check out Chelsea’s Petr Cech working on his goalkeeper reaction time in this drill – using tennis balls: More Goalkeeper Information: |
Goalkeeper Fundamentals
