Spherical Planet
Well-known member
I am/was a goalkeeper. It wasn't by design, it was decided purely on the fact that I was a terrible footballer.
Once I committed to being a keeper, I didn't have any regrets and loved the responsibility and the high stakes that went with the position.
I earned money from being a goalkeeper and I still ponder the 'what might have beens' if I didn't rupture my knee ligaments at 17. I kicked my last meaningful ball at 25 and have spent the last 25-years boring pub punters into submission about the 'nearly' times.
As a goalkeeper during the 80's and 90's, you knew that you were going to get badly hurt at least three times per match. You knew you were going to 'get it', but you also knew that you had a bit more licence to 'give it' back as well.
I think goalkeeping is a completely different discipline in football. It is a unique role that cannot be determined by the way you might judge an outfield player. Modern goalkeeping tends to focus on physicality, stature and presence, but the actual art of goalkeeping has been lost due to specialist coaching and a heavy concentration on technique. What coaching cannot provide is the fearlessness and courage to be a goalkeeper. It cannot provide you with the arrogance or confidence to put your neck on the block as the last line of defence.
I was never the most technically gifted keeper. There were far better shotstoppers than I ever was. There were far better keepers at dealing with cross balls, and there were far more impressive physical specimens than me (not as handsome though). My strength could be found in two specific areas: I talked my way through games and had a constant flow of dialogue with my teammates and the second big attribute I had was that I did not give two fucks about anything.
I didn't like conceding goals and I took it personally, but even if I threw one in - I just got back up and didn't let it affect me one way or another.
In my humble opinion - it is confidence and arrogance that will decide how good a goalkeeper you are.
Buffon was/is a reasonable keeper, but forget the hype - he was as dodgy as a ten-bob note. It was/is his confidence, arrogance and self-belief that set him apart from the majority of his contemporaries.
Much has been made of our current keeper and what makes his position all the more daunting is that we are directly comparing him to Fraser Forster. However - those of us who can recall Fraser's first season will likely remember that his early performances were questionable and he didn't look altogether convincing. It wasn't until the Ne'ers day game at the midden that he started to inspire a bit of confidence and even then, he still had a few dodgy games in the run-in. We were absolutely awful in Inverness, but Fraser had a 'mare that night and the league would eventually be lost as a consequence.
Barkas cost the club a lot of money, but more than any other position - the importance of being able to clearly communicate with your defence is never more necessary than when you're a keeper. It takes time to forge that bond and it is nowhere near being cemented as it currently stands. A lot has been made of his apparent inability to come up with critical saves, but my argument has always been that (with strong communication) a keeper shouldn't have too many saves to make in the first instance.
Barkas will need time to grow into the shirt; unfortunately - Celtic don't have a lot of time to allow that transition to naturally develop. Scott Bain is a good goalkeeper, but he is not a genuine Celtic No.1. For Barkas to develop at the required rate, he needs a stable, consistent defence that plays in a settled formation. His defenders need to be defenders first and not expose him to unnecessary danger. He needs to work on his English and coach these players in front of him through games and he needs to understand the emphasis on crossing in Scottish football.
Being a goalkeeper isn't easy. Being a goalkeeper for Celtic multiplies the difficulty by three due to the expectations. There aren't many hiding places at Celtic Park, but he might just need that one massive matchwinning game to give him the confidence to be a Celtic keeper.
I'll keep the faith a while longer, but he's on a steep learning curve and he needs to learn very quickly.
Once I committed to being a keeper, I didn't have any regrets and loved the responsibility and the high stakes that went with the position.
I earned money from being a goalkeeper and I still ponder the 'what might have beens' if I didn't rupture my knee ligaments at 17. I kicked my last meaningful ball at 25 and have spent the last 25-years boring pub punters into submission about the 'nearly' times.
As a goalkeeper during the 80's and 90's, you knew that you were going to get badly hurt at least three times per match. You knew you were going to 'get it', but you also knew that you had a bit more licence to 'give it' back as well.
I think goalkeeping is a completely different discipline in football. It is a unique role that cannot be determined by the way you might judge an outfield player. Modern goalkeeping tends to focus on physicality, stature and presence, but the actual art of goalkeeping has been lost due to specialist coaching and a heavy concentration on technique. What coaching cannot provide is the fearlessness and courage to be a goalkeeper. It cannot provide you with the arrogance or confidence to put your neck on the block as the last line of defence.
I was never the most technically gifted keeper. There were far better shotstoppers than I ever was. There were far better keepers at dealing with cross balls, and there were far more impressive physical specimens than me (not as handsome though). My strength could be found in two specific areas: I talked my way through games and had a constant flow of dialogue with my teammates and the second big attribute I had was that I did not give two fucks about anything.
I didn't like conceding goals and I took it personally, but even if I threw one in - I just got back up and didn't let it affect me one way or another.
In my humble opinion - it is confidence and arrogance that will decide how good a goalkeeper you are.
Buffon was/is a reasonable keeper, but forget the hype - he was as dodgy as a ten-bob note. It was/is his confidence, arrogance and self-belief that set him apart from the majority of his contemporaries.
Much has been made of our current keeper and what makes his position all the more daunting is that we are directly comparing him to Fraser Forster. However - those of us who can recall Fraser's first season will likely remember that his early performances were questionable and he didn't look altogether convincing. It wasn't until the Ne'ers day game at the midden that he started to inspire a bit of confidence and even then, he still had a few dodgy games in the run-in. We were absolutely awful in Inverness, but Fraser had a 'mare that night and the league would eventually be lost as a consequence.
Barkas cost the club a lot of money, but more than any other position - the importance of being able to clearly communicate with your defence is never more necessary than when you're a keeper. It takes time to forge that bond and it is nowhere near being cemented as it currently stands. A lot has been made of his apparent inability to come up with critical saves, but my argument has always been that (with strong communication) a keeper shouldn't have too many saves to make in the first instance.
Barkas will need time to grow into the shirt; unfortunately - Celtic don't have a lot of time to allow that transition to naturally develop. Scott Bain is a good goalkeeper, but he is not a genuine Celtic No.1. For Barkas to develop at the required rate, he needs a stable, consistent defence that plays in a settled formation. His defenders need to be defenders first and not expose him to unnecessary danger. He needs to work on his English and coach these players in front of him through games and he needs to understand the emphasis on crossing in Scottish football.
Being a goalkeeper isn't easy. Being a goalkeeper for Celtic multiplies the difficulty by three due to the expectations. There aren't many hiding places at Celtic Park, but he might just need that one massive matchwinning game to give him the confidence to be a Celtic keeper.
I'll keep the faith a while longer, but he's on a steep learning curve and he needs to learn very quickly.