History, evolution and scouting of goalkeepers

Being a goalkeeper is one of the most thankless positions, because a mistake can be reflected in the score against you, which can cost you a match or even championships, so it is the position that carries the most responsibility within the team, being the last obstacle to overcome.

They usually fly without a cape, and with their miracles they drown out the cry of goal to the dismay of some and the joy of others. They are normally very undervalued. They are not the best paid, nor do they win the best individual awards (with a few exceptions), they constantly live on the edge of the abyss in terms of criticism and accusations, but without a doubt it is the most decisive position when it comes to deciding a match, because not only can they become figures within the ninety minutes and extra time, they can also be in the penalty shootout deciding titles for their clubs or national teams.

As with all positions on the field, the goalkeeper is one of the ones that has evolved the most over time. For example, until the 1930s, goalkeepers did not usually use gloves to save. The first goalkeeper to do so was Ricardo Zamora, a legend of Spanish football. Later, the Argentine goalkeeper Amadeo Carrizo, an important figure in the history of River Plate and the Argentine national team, also used them. In the 1958 World Cup in Sweden, the legendary Lev Yashin popularized them so much that it became common for all goalkeepers to wear gloves to provide greater protection to their hands and help their performance on the field.

Throughout the history of football, there have been great goalkeepers in different decades, such as the Englishman Gordon Banks, the German Sepp Maier, the Italian Dino Zoff, the Argentinean Ubaldo Fillol, all of them with the particularity that they were world champions with their national teams, leaving memorable performances and being fundamental in helping their teams reach maximum glory.

Only 30 years ago, goalkeepers were allowed to grab the ball with their hands once a teammate passed it to them with his foot. This was an allowed action that helped both to get a defender out of trouble and to “waste time” to take advantage when the occasion called for it. Until a revolutionary goalkeeper appeared who literally did crazy things. I am referring to the Colombian René Higuita. He was the pioneer who showed the world that the goalkeeper could also have skill with his feet, whether to pass, go out playing or even sometimes dare to take penalties and free kicks. He practically challenged the rules that FIFA had and this caused the highest football authority to seriously reconsider that the goalkeeper can no longer grab the ball with his hands once his teammate passes it back to him with a foot pass. That is why, from 1992 onwards, the goalkeeper also had the obligation to play with his feet once he receives a pass with his foot.

The change in this rule generated a great evolution in the goal, as goalkeepers were forced to not only be great savers but also flexible with their feet. Among the most outstanding are goalkeepers such as the Paraguayan José Luis Chilavert, who won everything at club level with Vélez Sarsfield, also the Mexican Jorge Campos and a little later the Brazilian Rogério Ceni, who not only won all possible titles with Sao Paulo, but is also the goalkeeper who has scored the most goals in the history of football, adding a total of 132 goals, being above many forwards such as the Italian Paolo Rossi, which makes his record difficult to beat.

The 21st century gave us great goalkeepers between the posts, among the most outstanding are Gianluigi Buffon and Iker Casillas, both recognized worldwide as the best in their position for several years, achieving conquests at club and national team level, but the goalkeeper who gave a different style in the modern era is the German Manuel Neuer, because in addition to being an excellent stopper, he also offers qualities as a free-wheeling goalkeeper, something that in today's football is highly valued by coaches and also by scouts when evaluating a goalkeeper, without forgetting that the analysis of a goalkeeper must prioritize his saving skills and if he also has good footwork, it is a plus that he contributes both in defense and attack.

In scouting, the recruitment of goalkeepers is a job that has evolved and we have gone from looking for a “good stopper” to the search for a complete footballer, who meets several characteristics and skills such as:

•Height

•Flexibility

•Communication

•Dominance of the area

•Positioning

•Blocking

•Reflexes

•Breakdown

•1 vs 1

•Footwork

Although these are not general rules, they can be considered as an observation guide for the analysis of the position, both for bases, youth and professional.

The successes and mistakes of the footballers are recorded in the retina of the spectator, and the goal has the fatal destiny of not forgetting or forgiving, which makes the goalkeeper always closer to being a villain than a hero.

Gustavo Paredes