With all of the recent talk about Paul Robinson, Robert Green, Scott Carson and David James, who better to comment than English goalkeeping legend Peter Shilton? England's long-time #1 sat down with Iain Macintosh from NewPaper and started off with the present #1, Robinson:
"I've got a lot of sympathy for him. In a way, he's suffered from being the England first-choice goalkeeper for so long. It means that his performances, both for club and country are scrutinised much more. When you do make a series of errors, the coverage is exaggerated. He's a very good goalkeeper, but his recent form has affected him."No doubt Robinson's recent scrutiny has been greater than it would if he weren't #1 for England, but that's the life, and that's the reason why the English goalkeeping standard is so high. Like the level of play in the Premier League, the fans demand it.
I thought that Shilton's criticisms of Robinson were very accurate, though, and I'm sure you'll appreciate his honesty as well:
"The problem with Paul is that over the last five years, he hasn't really improved at all on a technical level. He hasn't sharpened the finer points of his technique. There's a lot more to come from him, I'm convinced. He's good now, but he could be a lot better as he gets older."I don't think anyone can argue with that statement. Robinson's potential is obvious, but his technical ability and experience pales in comparison to those we consider goalkeeping greats. It always seems to me that Robinson is a bit frantic when playing, especially at the international level. He seems more concerned than confident, and that is the type of attitude that defenders pick up on. I'm not saying its something that can't be fixed, but it is an obvious sign that Robinson must do some maturing to truly contribute on a consistent basis at a high level of play.
Shilton also commented on the pressure inherent in being England's #1, and critically touched on David James a bit, too:
"Sometimes, not being the No. 1 can help. As soon as David James lost his starting place, he suddenly became more accomplished and consistent for Portsmouth. He's been fantastic for some time now. When there was all that speculation last month that he might be getting back into the team, he started to make mistakes. I'm an admirer of James, but he's always had problems with his decision-making and he's got a horrible habit of coming off his line too often at the wrong moment."Well, we now know that David James isn't Shilton's choice to represent England. As for the pressure that accompanies being #1 for England, that just seems to be a problem for the country at the moment. There are many goalkeepers in the world, and goalkeepers in England's history that have handled the pressure of being the country's #1 and been able to perform at the club level like they are top international players. Maybe this is just a weak spot we are seeing in English goalkeeping right now. Can they handle the pressure?
Who would Shilton pick for England's #1? Here's the quick rundown:
"There's a few other goalkeepers in contention for an England place, but I wouldn't call any of them 'world class'. Rob Green, Scott Carson, Chris Kirkland, they're all very good, but they need to improve. They will do eventually though as they're all playing regular football now. Look out for Ben Foster though. When he gets back to full fitness, he could easily become Manchester United's No. 1 and then we'll have a chance to see how good he is."Many have been calling for Robert Green to get his chance, but Shilton has picked Ben Foster to be the real challenger. Interesting, don't you think? We're all interested in seeing Foster's return, but at the present we all want to see Green represent England at least once. Who's your pick once everyone is healthy and playing?
4 comments:
I have to agree with yours and Shilts' analysis here. Robinson has made some bad errors recently (the one against Germany was worse than the one in Russia, which was more understandable) - and that point abou there being no evidence of a technical improvement in his game is very apt. For me, he gets beat from outside his box with far too much regularity. I know the balls are much lighter these days and they swerve more - but his footwork is not up to it, not with the best of them. Carson is the right selection for tonight's game because he is in form and won't make a crucial mistake. Croatia aren't going to be popping crosses in tonight, so it's going to be mainly long range shots - therefore Carson is the best option. Foster - if he returns to fitness and impresses in training - will get the chance to play in some big games very soon. Van der Sar has not extended his contract yet and I think he may be eyeing a Schmeichel-style retirement if we win the European Cup or Holland win the Euros.
The balls are much lighter, but that's no excuse for any goalkeeper because they all have to contend with the same kind of speed and movement on shots.
I apologize for replying to your comment so late, but thank you for commenting in the first place.
Unfortunately Carson did make the crucial error England was trying to avoid, and got beat on the third goal from 20+. I think Carson is a good goalkeepr, and will get much better with age, but he still doesn't seem totally ready for the big show. Does that mean Paul Robinson is the answer? No. I'm still waiting to see if Robert Green will get his chance and what Ben Foster can do when he is healthy. I'd love to see some competition between those two.
Honestly this whole discussion about goalkeeping in England is a bit crazy, because, traditionally goalkeeping in England has been extremely steady and predictable. I really think that what we're seeing at the moment is a bit of an English goalkeeping crisis.
Oh dear - talk about tempting fate with my Carson comments. I have to say I have never seen him make a mistake like that with a long range shot before. He made a blunder for Liverpool against Juventus in 2005 from close range - but that was really out of character. English goalkeeping crisis ? Not yet, but we are running out of keepers who aren't damaged goods. James should never go near an England shirt again for the errors he's made and still does for Portsmouth. I kind of lost respect for him when he played up front for Man City late in his career there and looked a total plonker. Foster can be world class he just needs to get some big game experience. Not sure about Rob Green, he is prone to the odd blunder - but also makes great saves as well.
The crisis I'm referring to is only at the moment because of, as you said, the lack of "keepers who aren't damaged goods". I'm certain that by time the next big tournament arrives ('10) England will have the goalkeeping situation resolved. I agree with you about Foster, he really does appear to have a promising future. The reason I throw Robert Green into the mix is because he is the only one, outside of Foster, who is yet to be really tested at the international level. My guess right now is that going into WC '10, if Foster recovers fully, he can be #1 followed by Carson or Robinson with the loser for the #2 spot fighting with Green for #3. Once again, I feel that the "crisis" I referred to is only temporary because of a lack of a) experience and b) available goalkeepers with the appropriate amount of both skill and confidence in big game situations.
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