How to approach penalties from a goalkeeper's perspective? Proven positioning and deceptive movements

A penalty, or spot kick, has been a part of football for over 130 years, and although it was invented by goalkeepers, it represents a challenging and often critical game situation for them. A well-known football rule even states that a penalty cannot be saved poorly, only kicked poorly. Many goalkeepers, however, have had very successful saves that prove the opposite is true. What are their tips for physically and mentally handling penalties? And what do statistics or studies from sports psychologists say?

Calm standing and testing the opponent

Some goalkeepers handle penalties with ice-cold calmness and instead of confusing the opponent with quick movements, they remain standing on the goal line until the last moment. Others, on the other hand, jump and spread their arms to visually shrink the goal and make the penalty taker nervous. Alternatively, both approaches can be combined depending on who is on the other side. A universal solution therefore doesn't exist, and most experienced soccer players and coaches advise focusing on the specific player and adapting to the given situation, which always requires a bit of luck and intuition.

The center of the goal as a certainty?

From a statistical standpoint, you have the best chance of saving a penalty from a position in the center of the goal. However, the overall probability of a successful save only reaches around 12 to 16 percent. According to experts, it pays off to put the opponent in unpredictable conditions and try to unsettle them, whether by:

• jumping
• spreading arms
• gesturing
• other striking movements

At least partially, you can divert their attention elsewhere and make the save more difficult for them. From a psychological perspective, it works better to focus attention on factors that can be influenced. These factors might be the target focus and the movement of the ball, but definitely not the goalkeeper's behavior. This testing tactic has proven effective for goalkeepers many times, as confirmed by various studies. The question remains, however, to what extent to involve facial expressions when saving penalties, as we know many successful goalkeepers from the past who had stone faces as well as those with smiles and undisguised good moods.

When details decide

The outcome of a football match can change in an instant, during which the opponent scores a goal or briefly pauses to think about the penalty kick. Before such a shot, the goalkeeper should be especially alert, as data shows that it ends in a successful finish up to 80 percent of the time, while for very quickly taken penalties, it's less than 60 percent.

Additionally, the goalkeeper's equipment can be key, such as quality boots orgoalkeeper gloves for maximum control over the ball. The first footballers started without them, but back then the game was significantly slower, and the role of the goalkeeper has changed, as they now often get involved in play and have more options overall.

Inspiration from famous saves

Football is still evolving, but some saves by famous goalkeepersremain unmatched. A great legend in this regard is the German goalkeeper Oliver Kahn or the Pole Jerzy Dudek, but at one time, Petr Čechalso raised concerns, known for his preparedness and study of graphs, analyses, and video breakdowns. Goalkeepers, more than any other player, benefit from tracking this information to prepare for the most risky game situation, which is the penalty.

Penalty kick during a match versus penalty shootout