Filed under: Dave Clarke, Soccer Coaching, Soccer Fitness, Soccer News, Soccer Skills, Uncategorized | Tags: blooper, crazy goal, Croatia, England, gary neville, goalkeeper, own goal, pass back, paul robinson
Watching a match a couple of weeks ago between two lower English league clubs, I heard the goalkeeper remark to his left back: “Don’t pass it back to me like that, you’re not in the Premier League now!”
The left back was on loan from a Premier League club and in his first game had given a hard pass to the goalkeeper – who it must be said has never been confident with back passes.
He likes them wide in the penalty area away from the goal and on his right foot. The young defender had used the goalkeeper to get out of a tricky situation without giving away a throw-in. It had been more like a pass to an outfield player, but the goalkeeper should be able to control the ball with one touch then kick it towards a team mate.
It is a pressure situation for a goalkeeper in youth soccer, and a pressure situation for those of us watching. If you’ve got a goalkeeper who just can’t get to grips with the back pass take the heat off them and yourself by getting your defenders to pass in the right place.
Passing so that if the goalkeeper misses the ball it goes out of play for a corner is better than passing so the ball goes into the net if its missed.
Check out the diagram of where the pass should be then watch Gary Neville pass back to the hapless Paul Robinson in an England Euro 2008 qualifier against Croatia.
