Positioning

A few weeks ago I faced a challenge in my coaching journey, as I was required to deliver some “theory” during one of our weekly training sessions. With just 30-40 minutes on the clock and players who “pay to play”, this was never going to be welcome news to the ‘keepers, but it was a necessary evil.

The task was to discuss positioning; where (and importantly why) the goalkeepers would position themselves on the pitch in various scenarios. This included situations where they were under pressure from the opposition with an incoming shot or cross likely, but also challenged them to think about where they might stand when the danger is not immediate and the ball is perhaps much further up the pitch.

I think many goalkeepers, myself included, can be guilty of “going to sleep” when the ball is far away in the opposition half, but the swing of a football match can change to quickly that it’s vitally important to be switched on at all times and constantly aware of the potential dangers around you.

Do you need to push up and act as a “sweeper keeper”? Should you always stay central to your goal or drift across with the pattern of play? There’s a lot to consider an important aspect of your game to focus on.

This was brought back to the forefront of my mind last night, after training, as I was catching up with the Champions League and Europa League highlights in bed.

Celtic eventually saw off Hungarian side Ferencvaros 2-0, but didn’t take the lead until just before the hour mark. The opening goal came about from a quick, direct counter attacking move that saw the hosts go from near their own corner flag to the back of the opposition net in around 8 or 9 seconds. One direct through ball over the top saw Kyogo run through and slot home, but the Ferencvaros goalkeeper’s positioning is what stood out to me.

Watch the video below, the replay starting at around 2:06 shows the best angle, with Dénes Dibusz clearly being caught out of position with the quick counter attack, and whilst he was able to recover somewhat, was always on the back foot and left the Celtic striker with a relatively easy finish at the near post.

Was he too high up? Too wide of the centre of his goal? Simply caught napping? Far be it from me to say for sure, but his positioning was certainly suspect in this instance.

My takeaway from this? Positioning is key. Whether your team is in possession or not, as a goalkeeper you need to be constantly aware of the potential dangers around, putting yourself in position to deal with them as best you can. You can’t predict how an attack will play out, but by being prepared early and reading the game, you give yourself the best chance of making the save.