7 Tips For Great Soccer Goalkeeping

By Jim Smoot 

The soccer goalkeeping position is one of the most physically and mentally demanding positions on the soccer team. The player in that position is the last line of defense, and the first line of attack. When you begin to learn to coach youth soccer, and to get to learn more about the different positions, don't forget to spend time developing players for this position. Here are 7 tips for being successful as a soccer goalkeeper.

1. Focus on the Ball

One of the toughest jobs for a keeper is to ignore everything that is happening on the field in front of them, and keep their eye on the ball. You need to be able to see the ball through a tangle of legs in front of the goal in order to know when it gets within your reach. This is true whether the ball is coming at you or all the way on the other end of the field. When the keeper loses sight of the ball, they get scored on.

2. Don't Get Caught in the Box

A mistake many young soccer goalkeepers make is to feel afraid to leave the 18-yard box to go after the ball. You need to remember that your job is to stop the ball before it reaches your goal. Sometimes that means going out after the ball. A word of caution: don't get too over confident when you get a few successes leaving the box. While it is something you have to so when the situation calls for it, if you do it too often you will get burned.

3. Know When to Jump

One of the more dramatic plays in soccer is when the keeper leaps to the side to get to successfully stop a shot on goal. It is one of the tools a successful goalkeeper needs to develop. Along with that knowledge is the knowledge of when to use that tool. When you jump for balls that you cannot reach you are taking away your ability to recover for the next shot. If the ball does reflect off of another player, or off the post, you will be lying on the ground, unable to do your job.

4. Learn From Experience

The best way to learn how to play the goalkeeper position is to get into games and play. The more you play, the quicker you will learn. Will you make mistakes? Yes, and a lot of them. Don't let that discourage you. Every player makes mistakes when they learn to play soccer. It's just that the keepers mistakes are more noticeable, and there is nobody playing behind them to fix their mistakes.

5. Make the Attacker Commit

A good keeper knows when to go out after the ball, and when to stay back and wait for the play to come to them. A big mistake is to go out too soon instead of waiting for the attacker to commit to the play. When you go out after the ball too soon you give the attacker the opportunity to pass or dribble around you. If you wait (but not too long) the attacker will have to commit to either passing or taking the shot. Once they commit you are in a much better position to successfully stop the ball.

6. Know Where the Goal Is

Most keepers typically play about a yard away from the goal line when the attack is coming at them. However, when your team has the ball the keeper will play further away from the net. Make sure you know exactly where the goal is regardless of where you are on the field.

7. Don't Be Timid

The soccer goalkeeping position is the most physically and mentally demanding positions on the field. It requires concentration and a willingness to dive through kicking feet in order to grab the ball. It is not a position for the faint of heart. You need to have a certain amount of aggressiveness, and to be willing to take on players, regardless of their size. When you play in fear, you will hesitate to make the moves that are necessary for your success, and you will get scored on.

The soccer goalkeeper is one of the most important, and least appreciated players on the field As you learn to coach youth soccer, and learn more about the different soccer positions, make sure you spend time developing a solid goalkeeper. Your team's success depends on it.