A goalkeeper, warmly referred to as “goalie” or “keeper”, is an essential part of a football team. Filling one of the major positions in associated football and perhaps one of the most specialised too; these players are often overshadowed in name and glory by others: the high-profiling defensive, midfield and attacking big-boys.
Sports ticket broker, Ticketgum.com decided to shine a light on goalkeepers in praise of their unique qualities and unmatched loyalty to the game. This was achieved by analysing a release from the Football Observatory: ‘Goalkeepers: What Kind of Specifics?’. The sample used comprised players included in annual surveys carried out over the past decade, at the level of 31 top division leagues of UEFA member associations, assessing 31,961 players in total.
Goalkeeper Quality: The Facts
Using the goalie fact file compiled by Ticketgum, we can see clubs are becoming more and more reticent about promoting goalkeepers under the height of 190cm.
This observation holds particularly in England (191.2cm), the Czech Republic (190.8cm) and Germany (190.7cm) where the average height is over the desired 190cm. On the other side of the coin, we find the smallest players can be seen in the teams of Israel (186.5cm), France (186.7cm) and Spain (186.8.)
Age is another highly regarded quality in a keeper, due to the value of experience. This is particularly striking in goalies found in the teams of England (29.1 years), Italy (29 years) and Cyprus (27.7 years) – the highest ‘average age’ analysed. To compare, the average age of goalkeepers in Croatia (24.3 years), Serbia (25.3 years) and Norway (25.4 years) is lower and indicates a stronger desire for new, innovative talent. These teams may also face less of a risk in placing their trust in the young, compared to other, wealthier clubs.
The last observation is: the goalkeeper market is far less international than that of outfield players. The difference is particularly noteworthy with respect to forwards. The percentage of expatriates for the latter position has been found to be almost twice as high as that recorded among goalkeepers.
Image credit: pixfly/Shutterstock
The teams with the highest number of expatriates include England (62.1%), Cyprus (56.1%) and Portugal (49.4%.) Alternately, the percentage of goalkeepers in squads of top division teams like Croatia (4.3%), the Ukraine (8.3%) and Serbia (11%) are considerably lower.
Unmatched Loyalty: The Facts
But perhaps the most important quality of a goalkeeper is their unrivalled loyalty for, and perhaps greater stability in, the team they champion – with an average stay of 2.63 years. Though akin to the value recorded for defenders, this length of stay outshines that of midfielders, and even more so, forwards – with both switching sides after far less time.
From the infographic, we can see the least mobile keepers belong to Germany (3.35 years), Austria (3.25 years) and Sweden (3.23 years.) England landing tenth in the table, at an average stay of 2.90 years. At the other extreme, the boys between the sticks stay the least amount of time in Serbia (1.90 years), Cyprus (1.94 years) and Belarus (2.06 years.) A stark contrast.
Some could argue that the reason for such esteemed loyalty is that the role of a goalie is much less physical than that of other squad members, and the nature of the position promotes a longer stay – with emphasis placed on experience and a feel for the beautiful game. Yet, standing strong and stoic, it is perhaps true to name goalies the heart of the team and for this they deserve the recognition.
Feature image credit: pixfly/Shutterstock
