What’s Up With Goalkeepers & The 4-4-2?

I can’t remember a time when any of my coaches formulated a formation strategy with the goalkeeper being a pivotal aspect. “Johnny, just save the ball…”, or “Alright here’s the formation…Johnny, your in goals…” Nice, but not good enough. In fact, to not align a goalkeeper with a desired tactic or formation going into a game, hinders overall team performance. Following is an overview of the 4-4-2, and my take on how a goalkeeper should be utilized for it.

• 4-4-2 Soccer Formation: The good ol’ England World Cup special…but possibly the most popular tactic used by soccer teams around the globe. The underlying thought is to block off opposing attack in the midfield so they can’t attack effectively. With this formation the goalkeeper becomes the sweeper. In effect, the ball can be spread wide to his/her left or right back, or wings. I don’t like it, England only won one World Cup with it, but it is dynamic and widely used.

So, maybe I’m just from the old school, back when you knew your sweepers name, but the 4-4-2 did shift the role of the goalkeeper significantly, in effect allowing a more attacking style of play. Every goalkeeper should align themselves with this formation, as it is the most widely used on the soccer field today. Mostly, a goalkeeper should learn the subtle grooves and movements of play and how to move within their goal area as play is shifted.

What I mean here is that goalkeepers should learn to move with the shape of the game as it progresses over 90 minutes. If the ball is up the other end of the park, move up and toward (yes, even well outside) your 18 yard box…go ahead, don’t be shy…just do it! On the other hand, if the ball is within your playing half, retract back toward goal, but never hug your goal line.

Goalkeepers need to learn how to adapt to the shape of the game, and therefore, they should be included in the tactics of the game, other than just tending to goal. Another important aspect of the 4-4-2 is that the goalkeeper must learn effective distribution by foot. Attacking players play deep into the oppositions half, and being able to kick long distance aids attack, and adds pressure to the oppositions defensive line.

So, next time you coaches out there throw the dusty whiteboard up and start barking out orders, don’t leave poor ol’ Johnny in the dark recesses of the change rooms, utilize him, and make him understand his role in the tactical set-up of the team. He’ll thank you for it with great performance.