Profiling the demands of football Goalkeepers over the competitive week – implications for session design

This thesis aimed to increase the understanding associated with the physical demands and the current in-season practices of professional football Goalkeepers throughout activities indicative of the week-long competitive microcycle (including match-day). Holistically characterising evidence from a range of sources, including desk-based (i.e., literature reviewing), empirical observations (i.e., primary data collection), and from Goalkeeping practitioners (i.e., via survey), has provided an original evaluation of current in-season Goalkeeper practices that has implications for movement solutions and session design.

Using match-play as the main focus, literature review findings (chapter two) summarised the limited availability of works pertaining to the performance responses of football Goalkeepers. Searches were conducted in the PubMed online database during March 2018, (with an updated table included as of January 1st 2025). Keywords relating to the sport (i.e. ‘soccer’, ‘football’) and position (i.e. ‘goalkeeper’, ‘goal keeper’, ‘goal-keeper’, ‘keeper’, ‘goalie’, ‘GK’) were entered in various combinations. Following the removal of duplicates and screening of abstracts, the remaining full-text articles were assessed using a narrative review strategy, with articles retained based on six-stage inclusion criteria.
Although extensive research exists in relation to outfield players, limited studies have investigated the physical demands of football Goalkeepers within match-play. Current research suggests that Goalkeepers cover ~4-6 km on match-day and appear not to experience between-half reductions in physical performance as the match progresses. Whist making saves (preventing a goal) represents the most important phases of play, they occur relatively infrequently during a match (~2-10 #∙match-1), however, should remain a major training focus for football Goalkeepers. Future work should investigate Goalkeepers’ physical responses to particular activities within training and match-play, whilst looking to gain a greater understanding of the current in season Goalkeeping practices and their implications on movement solutions and actions relating to match-play.

Whilst limited research exists to thoroughly compare the match-play performance responses of Goalkeepers and outfield players, literature review findings confirmed the differing physiological profiles between Goalkeepers and outfield players during isolated performance tests, with Goalkeepers generating greater knee flexion and extension peak torque than the majority of outfield players. Most studies involving senior Goalkeepers reported superior jump performance compared with their outfield counterparts. Assessments of linear and multidirectional speed, multi-stage fitness test performance reported some aspect of inferior performance for Goalkeepers when compared to at least one other positional sub-group.

Chapter three sought to assimilate empirical observations to better understand the physical
demands of professional football Goalkeepers throughout a week-long competitive microcycle. Recruiting eight English Premier League football Goalkeepers, wearing Goalkeeper-specific micromechanical electrical systems (MEMS) devices, all participants completed the demands of each activity and a within-subject design was implemented to allow comparison between the different activities performed throughout a competitive week-long microcycle. It was observed that Goalkeepers did not follow the same pattern as their outfield counterparts relating to match-play loading. Notably, when certain position-specific performance metrics (i.e., dives, jumps, changes of direction, and explosive efforts) were considered, the greatest physical demands occurred during non-match-play activities during the competitive week. Specifically, Goalkeepers performed more dives (~51 vs ~10), high-speed changes of direction (~34 vs ~8), high (~14 vs ~1) and medium (~19 vs ~7) jumps, and explosive efforts (~70 vs ~16) during a ~79-min Goalkeeping-training session when compared with 90-min of match-play. Such findings have likely significant implications for applied practice.

Further empirical evidence was gathered when looking at the transient physical demands that Goalkeepers experienced throughout 90-min of match-play (chapter four) using linear mixed modelling. Similarities between halves were observed in the number of dives performed and high-speed distance covered by Goalkeepers, whilst more explosive efforts and high-speed changes of direction occurred when compared with before half-time. Additionally, Goalkeepers appeared to experience greater physical demands during the final 30-min (i.e., 60-75 and 75-90-min epochs) of a match, when compared with the opening 15-min; possibly indicative of the progressive fatigue experienced by outfield players, or team tactics and state-of-play (or combination thereof) influencing the physical demands of the Goalkeeper that protects their team’s goal and/or quickly re-distributes the ball to team-mates.

With a greater understanding of the physical demands of football Goalkeepers during both training and match-play, a key consideration relating to the degree of synergy between training and competitive demands is the perception of Goalkeeping coaches concerning practice design (including the availability of decision-making and physical movement solutions for the Goalkeeper). Goalkeeping coaches took part in an online survey centred around the ‘practice spectrum’; a scaled session design framework from isolated-technical (announced) to complex (unannounced and live). A mixture of open and closed-ended questions was used, allowing for descriptive statistics to be gained from frequency and thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2006). The study aimed to explore Goalkeeping coaches current planning and delivery strategies of Goalkeeping training sessions, and the effects that this may have on the availability of decision-making and physical movement solutions for the Goalkeeper.
Goalkeeping coaches looked to design sessions in a linear fashion, progressing from isolated-technical (announced) to complex (unannounced and live); announced (part 1 – 84.6%), unannounced (part 2 – 74.7% & 3 – 69.1%) and live (part 4 – 89.5%). Announced session structures (isolated-technical focus and limited in decision making), alongside an increased physical focus were predominantly used at the start of the training week leading into a match. Findings allude to the possibility of coaches purposefully aiming to reduce the cognitive/decision making load during the period soon after a match. Whilst there may be an element of attending to the cognitive needs of the Goalkeeper, the designing of sessions in this manner may lend to repetitive practices of movements and isolated-techniques, designed for Goalkeepers to work on their ‘basics’ in a physical manner far greater and less representative to what would be needed and imparted in a match (as highlighted in chapters three and four). Whilst Goalkeeping sessions were designed in a linear manner from isolated-technical to complex, a desire to implement an environment rich in decision-making for the Goalkeeper and allowing for exploration of movement solutions was observed ‘most of the time’ at an unannounced level. Based on the practice spectrum descriptors of unannounced, the session design structure would positively limit the Goalkeepers’ prior knowledge of the session structure or service type, aiding in the development of their position specific skills.

Whilst Goalkeeping coaches sought to develop Goalkeepers through their session design structures, collaboration was evidenced to take place between Goalkeeping coaches and other staff members, with lesser consultation amongst sports science staff (36.4%), medical team (37.0%) and analysts (29.0%) and greater discussions taking place with the manager (63.6%), other coaches (73.5%), and Goalkeepers (59.9%). Such sentiments may link with the highlighted personal areas of development of Goalkeeping coaches; physical (31.5%) and psychological/social (35.8%) and the primary focus areas of technical (46.3%) and tactical (43.2%) that Goalkeeping coaches attend to within their session design.

The thesis purposefully aimed to assess the current literature of the unique and specialised position of the football Goalkeeper, whilst providing original insights into the physical demands and the present in-season Goalkeeping practices throughout a week-long competitive microcycle (including match-day). Evidence was found to support the importance of understanding activity-type demands that professional Goalkeepers are placed under and the effects that such activities may have on future training designs and recovery methods. Further insight attended to the knowledge of the fluctuating demands within 90-minutes of match-play and the implications for the Goalkeeper, and team (physically and tactically). A greater awareness was gained into the current planning and delivery strategies of Goalkeeping coaches in relation to the practice spectrum, thus allowing for an appreciation of the training methodologies employed and the availability of decision-making and physical movement solutions for the Goalkeeper.