As the last defender, a goalkeeper's mistake is an irreparable loss. In the history of football, goalkeepers who make big mistakes are usually nailed to the column of shame. But in 2022, goalkeeper mistakes seem to be commonplace.
From Donnarumma to Mendy being "demoted" by Benzema, to Manchester City goalkeeper Stephen giving Mane a gift, in the latest round of the Premier League, Leeds United goalkeeper Mérier's mistake may relegate the team and send Arsenal into the Champions League.
01. Nanxiongtai and Karius: Beings that cannot be transcended
a. Nanyuta's creation of history is not remembered: mistakes become eternal legends
If someone tells you that in 2022, a goalkeeper named Nanyuta broke the record of Japanese legendary goalkeeper Masatsune Kaizaki and set a record high of 661 J.League goalkeeper appearances, you may not find the feeling at all.
If you put it another way, Nan Yuta, who once "threw the ball into his own goal", actually became the first person in the history of a Japanese J-League goalkeeper to appear, and perhaps many people will lament that fate is so magical.
In fact, Nanxiong was also a star of hope when he was too young, with a bright future. However, when he first wanted to avoid the opponent's forward's running line and control the power of the ball, there was a huge self-contradiction, unbelievably throwing the ball into his own goal, and also reminding 99% of the fans of himself.
B. Karius: Ruined the team's championship and herself because of mistakes
If Nanxiong is more than enough to make everyone laugh, after all, that mistake did not cause too many consequences, but the visual impact came larger.
In contrast, Liverpool goalkeeper Karius's successive mistakes in the Champions League final not only buried the team's Champions League title, but also completely ruined his career.
Although Karius said after the match that he had played abnormally due to a concussion, the fans did not forgive him and the team was reluctant to give him another chance. Even after losing confidence, he was accompanied by mistakes every day and could no longer walk out of the quagmire.
After all, his performance in the Champions League final was terrible, and he threw the ball directly into Benzema's foot, causing the opponent to complete the goal with ease.
After Mane scored to equalise, Liverpool suffered a fatal barb from Bale. Just when the team was going all out to equalize again, Karius used another serious mistake to seal the victory of Real Madrid.
Maybe At that moment, Karius really became so funny because of the concussion, but after encountering the Internet storm, he never got out of the shadow of failure.
Continuing to make mistakes in training and in the Turkish Super League, Karius became synonymous with the "joke goalkeeper".
02. From the European Championship to the Africa Cup of Nations: the big tournament becomes the stage for goalkeepers to make mistakes
a. The European Championship goalkeeper made a lot of mistakes: the Spaniard cried and laughed
At Euro 2021, goalkeeper mistakes seem to have focused on Spain, Poland, Slovakia and Sweden.
Szczesny's mistakes made him the first goalkeeper in the history of the European Championship to swing himself. But the responsibility for the ball is not on him, and The two Polish defenders of Mark 1 and 2 are the root cause.
Slovakia, however, profited this time, but collapsed in the final round of the most crucial group stage due to the goalkeeper's mistakes. Spain's less threatening shot this time bounced high after being saved by Dubravka.
Then the unthinkable happened, the ball rubbed the crossbar and fell, passed the Slovak goalkeeper's hand and entered the goal. This goal allowed the weak Spain to regain its confidence and eventually win a big victory, and also let Slovakia, which had fewer losses, regret to get out.
Because more and more matches are played at noon for the needs of broadcasting (so that the viewing time of fans on other continents will be more friendly), so for the goalkeeper, the "Yin yang stadium" will be very serious for the line of sight interference.
Unfortunately, this time Dubravka did not wear a hat, so he claimed to be "blinded by the sun".
The problem was that Spain didn't have the last laugh, their goalkeeper Simon in the round of 16, this time receiving Pedri's return pass made an incredible mistake, allowing the ball to cross directly from his feet and enter his own door.
Contemporary game balls are indeed faster and have more bizarre arcs than in previous centuries. In order to better see the effect, the goalkeepers also have to bear more pressure.
Some people even mischievously illustrated the German translation of Karius into Simon's Spanish spelling.
Fortunately, Simon has a strong psychological quality, after many mistakes, and then helped Spain win the penalty shoot-out with Switzerland in the next round to justify himself.
b. Africa Cup of Nations goalkeeper mistakes: We express our deep understanding and sympathy for this
At the Africa Cup of Nations, we were once again stunned by the goalkeeper's "performance". With a 2-0 lead, the winner, was forced to draw by sierra Leone, ranked 108th in the world, and the opponent's second goal occurred in the last 30 seconds of the re-shot.
At that time, the Ivorian player's header was returned to his goalkeeper, this "actor" named Badra Ali, in order to prevent the ball from going out of the bottom line, the result was a very funny move, which directly led to the opponent to pick up the leak and score the goal.
Perhaps no one but Badera himself would understand why a professional goalkeeper would make such a catch.
Considering the peculiarities of the African Cup of Nations and the tight life of everyone after the 2020 football earthquake, it seems that the trend of the African Cup of Nations to be more "comedic" can also be understood.
03. It's not the goalkeeper who downsmarts: the key is that the striker is running too fast
a. Benzema Online Teaching: How to "Lower Intelligence" Goalkeepers
Because in the Champions League round of 16 and quarter-finals this season, the opponent goalkeeper has scored goals in succession, Benzema's "downsizing" skills have become a topic of discussion among fans.
In fact, Benzema has no magic, he relies on diligence. When Mendy saw Real Madrid unblocked at the back, Benzema even went 30 meters behind his own side, and he ran through an incredible long sprint to chase a seemingly hopeless ball and finally seized the opportunity.
The key to the development of contemporary football lies in the increasing level of training. Real Madrid have Pintus, and other giants also have excellent gymnasts.
Chelsea, Manchester City and Liverpool all have super running ability, which is why they can achieve something in the Champions League.
Of course, Benzema's advantage is that he can not only sprint, but also has a strong physique. When a centre-forward player can sprint like him, the effect is naturally stronger than that of Manchester City midfielder Bernardo Silva.
Donnarumma was cut off because Benzer immediately fought physically. And such a confrontation, VAR and the referee have no objection.
However, as the physical quality of the forwards gets better and better, the psychological quality of the goalkeeper also needs to be quickly strengthened. Not everyone is Simon, and you can still save a penalty after losing the ball.
Donarumma, the best player in the European Championship, experienced consecutive Champions League exits and World Cup play-off losses in March, and the blow was really too great. The whole of April has been very poor, and I don't know if I can adjust back later.
b. When the goalkeeper meets the sprint forward: Whose fault is this?
The problem is the development of contemporary football, not only the number of forward sprints is getting more and more, but also more and more goalkeepers.
So it becomes a game, the goalkeeper who is not broken will be the hero, and the mistake will become the bear.
When in the semi-final of the FA Cup, Manchester City's substitute goalkeeper Stephen was directly broken by Mane, who entered the box after pressing the center-back all the way, because of sticking the ball, was it an accident?
Looking at the coaching bench on the sidelines, maybe we can understand something.
In the last round of the Premier League, Leeds United goalkeeper Mérier copied this scene. He had some sticky decisions, and Nketiah, who suddenly rushed up, shoveled the ball into the bottom of the net.
Although Bielsa has left the class, the impact he has had on Leeds United may be profound, and it is not so surprising that such a scene occurred on this team.
Conclusion
In today's football world, with the faster pace of the game, the sprint of the forwards more and more fierce, and the goalkeeper's responsibility for the ball is getting bigger and bigger, mistakes are indeed inevitable.
Of course, as long as it is not an incredible shot like Nanyuta and Karius, I believe that everyone will still forgive. But the key point is that the goalkeeper will have to defeat the demons himself. Can Donaluma do this? The Italian national team and Paris Saint-Germain need him to be stronger.