Goalkeepers take a more strategic approach to offering, receiving and distributing the ball - FIFA Training Centre

On the evidence of FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia and New Zealand 2023™, the standard of elite goalkeeping in the women’s game has improved significantly of late, and our Technical Study Group (TSG) have picked out three key developments as particularly relevant in this regard. The first of these relates to the goalkeeper’s connection with her team and how goalkeepers offer to receive the ball.

Offers to receive the ball

The volume of offers to receive the ball by goalkeepers in the 2023 tournament decreased significantly (- 40%) compared to the previous World Cup, from 10.6 offers per 30 minutes in possession in 2019 to just 6.3 in 2023. However, although goalkeepers offered to receive the ball less frequently at the 2023 World Cup, the proportion of successful passes to the goalkeeper that followed an offer to receive increased by 3%. As former Switzerland international goalkeeper Pascal Zuberbühler explains, this shift suggests that goalkeepers are being more competent with the ball at their feet:

“Teams are more structured and considered in their build-up play but goalkeepers are more game-aware, so the decrease in offers to receive the ball is because they are offering in better and more realistic situations. Goalkeepers’ positioning in relation to their defensive lines when offering to receive is far better [than in the past], and they are more aware of moving to create angles to receive. In addition, goalkeepers are very competent with the ball at their feet, have variety in their passing range, greater accuracy and more confidence,” he said.

Figure 1: Goalkeepers offered to receive less often in 2023, but they received the ball more often following an offer than they did in 2019.

Figure 2: South Africa goalkeeper Kaylin Swart (1) had the highest percentage of ball receptions following an offer to receive.

In the clips below, Zuberbühler picks out some examples of how goalkeepers made
intelligent moves to receive the ball following an offer to receive, and then showed a high level of passing ability to distribute it to their team-mates.

“In the first clip, we see how Australia goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold (18) immediately offers to receive the ball, takes a touch to control an awkward pass, and very quickly identifies where she wants to play the next pass. Her accuracy, the pace and weight of the pass ensures the ball can be received by her full-back on the front foot and can be played forward early to exploit the space in behind Canada’s defence. Arnold’s appetite to receive and competency with the ball are crucial in the creation of a goalscoring opportunity for her team,” he explained.

“In clip 2, we see how comfortable Jamaica goalkeeper Rebecca Spencer (13) is on the ball and the trust that her team-mates have in her ability to vary her distribution. When she receives the ball, she assesses the picture in front of her and is considered in the decisions she makes. Her vision and awareness are excellent, as are her choices and execution of passes,” he added.

Clip 1: Against Canada, Australia goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold (18) offers for the ball, receives it, and launches an attack that results in a goal.

Clip 2: Jamaica goalkeeper Rebecca Spencer (13) is comfortable in her passing range and happy to make herself available to her team-mates in in the build-up phase.

Receiving and distributing the ball under pressure

It is also notable that goalkeepers received the ball from a higher percentage of the offers they made while their team was being pressed by the opposition. The percentage of offers that led the goalkeeper to receive the ball in this situation increased from 38% in 2019 to 46% in 2023. This is further evidence that outfielders are becoming increasingly confident in their goalkeepers’ ability to retain possession, as Pascal Zuberbühler explains:

“Players had confidence and trust when involving their goalkeepers when their team was in possession,” he said. “This is why we saw fewer offers, yet more receptions of the ball after an offer to receive the ball, especially when they were under pressure. The goalkeepers in this tournament also played shorter, composed passes rather than long, aimless clearances when under pressure. The goalkeepers are also technically better when receiving the ball and in the execution of their passes. We are seeing far higher quality from the goalkeepers, and this comes from improved coaching at both club and national team levels.”

Passing statistics serve to underline this improvement. The number of passes made by goalkeepers over distances shorter than 15 metres increased by 4.8% compared to 2019, while the average pass length by goalkeepers decreased from 32.6m in 2019 to 31m in 2023. In addition, goalkeepers were more effective at breaking lines when they passed the ball under pressure, with a 54% success rate in 2023 compared to 44% in 2019. The involvement of goalkeepers in build-up play was a strong theme during this tournament, and their passes often helped their team-mates to break through opposition lines. As figure 7 shows, Switzerland’s Gaëlle Thalmann (1) was the stopper who made most passes leading to a line-breaking pass by a team-mate.

Figure 3: In 2023, goalkeepers received the ball more often when their team was being pressed by the opposition.

Figure 4: The Canadian, Italian and Swiss goalkeepers registered the highest number of distributions after making on offer to receive the ball while their team was under pressure.

Figure 5: In 2023, the average length of passes by goalkeepers in open play decreased by 4.9% from 2019.

Figure 6: Goalkeepers were 10% better at breaking lines with their passes in 2023 than in 2019.

Figure 7: Switzerland goalkeeper Gaëlle Thalmann was particularly good at enabling her team-mates to break oppositions lines.

In the two clips below, we see great examples of goalkeepers distributing the ball under pressure following an offer to receive. Their footwork and vision are excellent, and their movement to create angles and open up the space to play into also highlights the level of skill and technical ability they are bringing to the world stage.

Former Germany ‘keeper Nadine Angerer was suitably impressed: “In previous World Cups, goalkeepers often just restarted the game and were not involved in the build-ups [beyond that],” she said. "But this in tournament we saw a big change whereby goalkeepers not only started the play [passes], but they were consistently involved in their teams’ build-ups. They were constantly active, moving to create angles to receive [the ball] and scanning to be aware of where their pass could go. They were not just kicking the ball long to clear it but were assessing what the best options were, and they have better technique to execute the type of pass needed to get the ball to where they want it to go.

“Also, they were more involved as the extra player when defenders were in critical
situations and helped their defenders and/or team-mates to get away from pressure. They play the ball, have good footwork and are aware enough to move, change their position, and offer again. They are much more involved as support players,” she added.

Clip 3: Spain goalkeeper Cata Coll (23) assesses the options available to her before creating space to make a line-breaking pass forward.

Clip 4: In this passage of play, Switzerland goalkeeper Gaëlle Thalmann is continuously engaged with her team-mates, moving around, offering for the ball, and creating angles to ensure she can receive and distribute the ball.

Summary

While goalkeepers offered to receive less often in 2023 than in 2019, they received the ball from a higher proportion of their offers to receive, and were comfortable on the ball when their teams were under pressure. This trend is symptomatic of their improved game awareness and the fact goalkeepers are becoming more proficient with the ball at their feet. Improvements in the way goalkeepers are coached can be seen in the way they are moving to create angles to receive and make passes, and in how confident their team-mates are when involving the goalkeeper in build-up play. The range, accuracy and variety in distributions demonstrates that goalkeepers are not only happy to receive the ball, but are comfortable in possession when they get it.