Playing Big; Whether You Are or Not.

Please allow me to rant to you for a little bit. I have coached Goalkeeper's for five years now and there has always been one comment that I will never agree with nor understand.

"He/She could be good if they were taller" or  "He/She is tall, they'd make a good GK" 

Let me tell you something right off the bat. Height does not matter when it comes to goalkeeping. Some of you probably disagree, but I'll hopefully prove to you why I know this to be a myth. Obviously, It helps to be 6'7" but lets be honest, being that tall doesn't come with a free professional contract. In the same way, being 5'9 doesn't mean that you have no hope what so ever. 

Goalkeeping is all about mentality. No matter how tall you are, it is more about how "Big" you play rather than your actual height. When it comes down to it, if you raised your arms, you are taller than everyone on your team and that is without even jumping. 

When I speak about mentality I am also referring to the GK's confidence. Playing confident will get you to the next level. If you believe in yourself, you are already better than the GK who plays timid or scared and as GK's we can set the tempo in the game strictly by our mentality or playing confidently. Disclaimer - Playing confidently does not mean playing cocky and/or risky.

I always suggest you set the tone early on in the match. For example; Collecting the first 2-3 crosses or making 2-3 through ball saves. By doing this, you can change the strategy of the other team in your favor. If you catch every cross in the beginning, do you think their coach will want the to cross it anymore? NO. Or if you play brave and win each 50/50 ball, the opposing team will be forced to change their game plan. These are just two examples of how to play big. 

Did you know that some of the wold's best Goalkeepers aren't very tall? The Legendary Iker Casillas was only 6'1". Nick Rimando just broke the MLS all time record for most wins as a GK (187) at the height of 5'10". Or how about Hope Solo, arguably the best women's Gk in history, is only 5'9". Champions League winners Real Madrid have a 6'0" Goalkeeper in Keylor Navas. I say this because all of these GKs are unbelievable yet not considered to be massive.

To play Big you must be confident. take this position personally. Realize that there are 11 players on the other team that want to embarrass you. That alone should make you upset and motivate you. Getting scored on should make you angry, it should bother you. The best part is however is that you have some control over that. Play like your 6'7", play pissed off, play with the mentality of no one is scoring on you today. Be the boss in goal. Goalkeepers have the reputation of being psychotic, prove them right! The other team should fear you, your team should respect you and feel lucky to have the crazy one in net. The worst GK's in the world are the ones who play small. They are the ones that make friends with the net because they're picking the ball out of it so often. Don't settle for anything but playing Big. 

Sorry for ranting :)