A Closer Look: The Man Between the Sticks, with Paul Robinson
Former Leeds, Tottenham, and England Goalkeeper Paul Robinson shares his insights on the art of Goalkeeping, and what it takes to be one.
Growing up in Singapore, impromptu football games before and after school filled many of my childhood hours, with the memories of scruffy hat-tricks and improvised balls accompanying the images of bloody knees on sandy pitches and having to clean the mud off of otherwise pristine white school shoes.
Everyone wanted to be Ryan Giggs or David Beckham. Everyone strived to emulate Gianfranco Zola or Alan Shearer. Ronaldo (the original one) and Gabriel Batistuta were the icons you could only hope to mimic, and there was even the oft-shared video of a certain Swedish striker at Ajax who looked to be some kind of footballing wizard. We would wonder if he would ever be the real thing.
The one thing nobody ever wanted was to be a goalkeeper in those games beneath apartment blocks, on school pitches, or the courtyards of any building we could find. It was often a sign of your team-mates assessing you as the worst player on the side when they asked that you go in goal.
It was some sort of punishment, and you would then either go on to concede sloppily or make a brilliant save, either scenario cementing the fact you should stay on as the goalkeeper. This week, I had the chance to speak to one man who did choose to play there and was able to talk about many topics about what it means to be the man between the sticks.
“What sets a goalkeeper out from the rest is his ability to have an impact on the team and also be worth at least 10 to 12 points for his side a season. A world-class one is someone that can be relied on to do everything that he is expected to do on a regular basis without errors and also pull off the sublime and excellent at times when called upon.”
Now, I was far from a world-class goalkeeper as a kid, and it has always struck me about how unfair it was that a player may be lauded for scoring the winning goal in an important game, but oftentimes the goalkeeper on the same side making a dozen saves is forgotten. Ryan Giggs was immortalized - if he had not already been - in Manchester United folklore when he scored that goal against Arsenal in the last ever FA Cup Semi-final replay, but very few remember the Great Dane Peter Schmeichel saving a penalty from Dennis Bergkamp (who never took a penalty again) to set the stage for Giggs’ goal.
So surely a big save should be as well-regarded as a goal scored? Both affect the scoreline in the same aggregate way, one positive and one negative. But we rarely see the same kind of emphasis on a big save, outside of a penalty shootout.
Even then, however, the narrative is often framed as the outfield player missing rather than the goalkeeper saving, unless the goalkeeper in question has made more than one, and so his “heroics” would take the headlines. Goalkeeper errors, however, are almost never lived down.
“Top goalkeepers have such a big impact through the rest of the team. You only have to look at Liverpool now with Adrian in goal when they’re not playing particularly well. The uncertainty and unrest that spreads through the team."
"Alisson has an immediate effect on the players around him. Shots to goals ratio, the ability to distribute from the back, and the all-around aura that a world-class goalkeeper brings.“
I remember watching the 2018 Champions League Final in the office at beIN, having to craft the closing music montage for the entire tournament. As a fan of one of Liverpool’s domestic rivals, I admit I let out a chuckle at the misfortune (or lack of ability) of Loris Karius, his two mistakes handing the trophy to Real Madrid. When Liverpool went out to sign Alisson, however, their greatest flaw was immediately rectified, and as Paul stated, the Brazilian brought with him so much more than just shot-stopping, much like many other modern-day goalkeepers.
Manuel Neuer’s presence (and footwork) may have heralded a new era of goalkeeping, even if Victor Valdez (and Pep Guardiola in general) for Barcelona may argue he had been pioneering the style before the German.
The same assured aura is exuded by many goalkeepers that fans speak fondly of, with legends of the game like the previously-mentioned Schmeichel, David Seaman, Gianluigi Buffon, Dino Zoff, Peter Cech, Iker Casillas, and Hugo Lloris among the list of such shot-stoppers.
That presence seems to have deserted Lloris (and Neuer) in recent seasons, however, both below their best making uncharacteristic mistakes, something Paul suggests is due to their state of mind more than anything else.
“Consistency and confidence is a huge part of a goalkeeper’s make up. Even if at times you don’t feel confident in yourself, the persona that you give off and emit to your teammates is hugely important.”
“My goalkeeping hero as a child was Neville Southall at Everton. he was different from the rest and had his own individual style. His distribution on the half volley was like something you would never see in the modern game. His shot-stopping was phenomenal and he was a very single-minded individual.”
With Ryan Giggs as my all-time favourite player, I was somewhat familiar with his Welsh team-mate Southall. My memories of the former Everton goalkeeper were hazy at best, however, aside from his moustache and snarling visage. Paul’s other hero, however, was more down my alley.
“Another goalkeeper that I looked up to as I was getting older was Peter Schmeichel at Manchester United. He brought a whole new individuality to goalkeeping and threw the textbook out of the window due to his handball background. He would make saves that didn’t seem physically possible and he was key to Manchester United winning so many trophies during that era.”
“Nigel Martyn had a huge impact on my development as a goalkeeper. He signed for Leeds from Crystal Palace the year that I became an apprentice and from his first day we began to forge a relationship and a friendship that lasts through to today. Nigel was the model pro on and off the field and did everything he could to help advise and support me. I went from cleaning his boots and kit to eventually taking his place in the team!”
Perhaps the individual development and mentoring of a goalkeeper is markedly more important than that of outfield players, then. Goalkeepers may require a wholly different kind of upbringing and coaching (indeed, almost every professional club has dedicated goalkeeping coaches) even beyond matters of shot-stopping and distribution. Paul went on to talk about how he could have done better.
“In hindsight, I think I could’ve improved on the mental side of things as it’s very tough to not let things get to you and affect you. Crossing was also one thing that at times I struggled with I think more because of confidence and mentality. If you’re playing well and confident you feel great leaving your line going through a bunch of bodies to collect the ball whereas if you’re low in confidence you misjudge the flight of the ball or you shy away on their line because of the fear of making another mistake.”
That fear is something I can attest to, even if I never played quite close to the level Paul Robinson did. I was always terrified playing in goal, afraid of conceding (again) so that my team would lose (again). I always felt small between the posts, even when playing in the smaller confines of indoor or futsal 5- to 7-a-side games. How do you cover your near post and stop getting lobbed? What if you are nutmegged? How do you reach that cross? Why isn’t that defender following the runner? Why is the position one that makes you feel so alone?
Perhaps the answer is both simple and profound. There is little difference, after all, in a defender and a striker, in the Laws of the Game. A libero and trequartista perform vastly different roles in the team, but they are both part of the set of players consigned to using their feet and head.
Players across the pitch influence the game in contrasting ways but be it, sweeper or striker, forward or fullback, they are all outfield players, and it is only the man between the sticks who wears the gloves.