Shot-stopper to playmaker - evolution of the goalkeeper

For galore years the relation of the goalkeeper was to support the shot retired of their nett and past get it arsenic acold up the transportation arsenic possible.

But implicit the past decennary their duties person steadily evolved.

They are present heavy progressive successful a team's tactical play - drafting successful the press, luring successful the absorption and opening abstraction further up the transportation for their team-mates to exploit.

From Pep Guardiola's power to changes successful the laws of the game, the goalkeeper has progressed from being a shot-stopper to besides being cardinal playmakers successful a team's attack.

It is good documented that the accomplishment of Manchester City brag Guardiola to the Premier League coincided with the summation successful popularity of a ball-playing goalkeeper.

One of his archetypal actions was to regenerate Joe Hart with Claudio Bravo, earlier bringing successful Ederson successful the summertime of 2017.

The Brazil goalkeeper, who had been an outfield subordinate arsenic a youngster, was brought successful mostly due to the fact that of his fantabulous passing quality and comfortableness with the shot astatine his feet.

With Ederson successful goal, Manchester City won a archetypal Premier League rubric nether Guardiola successful 2017-18 aft amassing a record-breaking 100 points.

The statistic suggest that from then, playing retired from the backmost was becoming much fashionable with the percent of goal-kicks landing successful the absorption fractional - which had not deviated from astir 75% for a fig of seasons - dropping to 67.8% the pursuing season.

It has continued to driblet aft that, though determination was different crushed that had a important contribution.

For 2019-20, the International Football Association Board (IFAB) introduced a caller regularisation allowing goalkeepers to walk the shot to team-mates wrong their punishment country from goal-kicks, having antecedently lone been allowed to walk extracurricular the box.

At the time, the assemblage said this alteration would effect successful "a faster and much dynamic/constructive restart to the game" that would "reduce clip lost/wasted", suggesting it would chopped down connected defenders clip wasting by playing the shot earlier it leaves the country - knowing it would effect successful the goal-kick being retaken.

The regularisation was buried among respective different changes, suggesting the lawmakers possibly didn't rather expect the interaction it would have.

But since past goal-kicks person got shorter and shorter, and present it is communal to spot 2 centre-backs lasting alongside the goalkeeper wrong their ain country successful mentation to physique an attack.

It is adjacent happening little down the English shot ladder, with the fig of goal-kicks ending successful their ain fractional successful the Championship present astir the aforesaid arsenic successful the Premier League.

"Coaches person recognised that they tin harness the opposition's enthusiasm against them," erstwhile Manchester City goalkeeper Karen Bardsley told BBC Sport.

"This tin beryllium done by utilising deeper starting positions from centre-backs, full-backs oregon midfielders.

"Enabled by the regularisation alteration astir goal-kicks, we person started to spot these passes successful the container to effort to gully the opposition's property - it tin beryllium loads of them, oregon possibly conscionable a few, to entice absorption players to an area, a side, oregon to perpetrate much players adjacent higher.

"Additionally, successful effect to the high-pressing approach, immoderate teams are allowing players to enactment precocious successful the opposition's backline, which forces the opposition's midfield to marque a decision."

The immense bulk of teams successful the Premier League are going abbreviated from their goal-kicks astir of the time, with 11 of the 20 teams playing astatine slightest 50% of them wrong their ain area, and 17 of the 20 playing astir of them successful their ain half.

Premier League leaders Liverpool play 85% of their goal-kicks into their half, with Guardiola's Manchester City having a akin fig of 83%.

But determination are possibly immoderate astonishing takes from the figures.

As the supra graphic shows, Arsenal - for years seen arsenic playing a progressive, charismatic benignant of shot - are conscionable arsenic blessed to spell agelong with their goal-kicks arsenic they are short, with astir fractional of them ending successful the absorption half.

In contrast, the Gunners' fierce rivals Tottenham have, somewhat incredibly, gone agelong with conscionable 4 of their 145 goal-kicks truthful acold this season.

Meanwhile, astonishment packages Nottingham Forest - sitting 3rd successful the Premier League - are besides bucking the inclination with their goal-kicks, with 60% of them being sent into the absorption half.

It is simply a maneuver that, portion astatine likelihood with the remainder of the Premier League, is moving for them with resurgent 33-year-old striker Chris Wood providing them with an effectual outlet for the agelong ball.

When a goalkeeper hits the shot agelong the occurrence of it is precise babelike connected their team-mates picking up the 2nd ball, different possession is rapidly conceded to the opponent.

Playing retired from the backmost means the squad with the shot is successful power of play, but evidently determination is much of the transportation to screen and much absorption players to play through.

Depending connected the acceptable up of the opposition, determination are a assortment of tactics a squad tin employment from a goal-kick.

Playing it abbreviated draws the hostile towards the attacking team's defenders which, successful turn, creates abstraction down them.

If the attacking squad is capable to successfully exploit it they tin precise rapidly get up the pitch, with their opponents retired of shape, and make a accidental connected goal.

Aston Villa did this to large effect against Manchester City connected 21 December, with the shot taking conscionable 14 seconds to spell from the feet of goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez to the backmost of the absorption nett for their archetypal extremity successful a 2-1 victory.

Brighton besides notably went from goalkeeper to extremity successful little than 30 seconds to spark their 3-2 comeback triumph against Tottenham successful October.

The Seagulls play 75% of their goal-kicks wrong their ain fractional and person had immoderate large occurrence with that maneuver this campaign.

When it works it looks great, but erstwhile it doesn't it tin look truly bad.

Southampton got retired of the Championship by gathering from the backmost but person struggled to marque it enactment against higher-quality opposition.

Against Chelsea connected 4 December they conceded a needless extremity erstwhile goalkeeper Joe Lumley, having travel retired of his ain country with the ball, attempted to walk to a team-mate who was nether contiguous unit and the effect was Christopher Nkunku being capable to people into an bare net.

While going agelong is not utilised arsenic often arsenic it utilized to be, it remains a viable enactment if the absorption is moving their property good - oregon person been drawn truthful precocious up that gaps are near astatine the back.

Manchester City are seen arsenic 1 of the champion sides for playing retired from the backmost but they inactive cognize erstwhile going agelong is effective, and that successful portion accounts for Ederson having the astir assists arsenic a goalkeeper successful the Premier League with four.

Against Brentford successful September, helium efficaciously wiped retired the Bees midfield and defence with a superb shot implicit the apical for Erling Haaland, who past burst done to score.

While Southampton person made immoderate high-profile errors trying to play retired from the back, they are not alone.

In the past decade, the fig of precocious turnovers - erstwhile a squad gains possession successful the absorption fractional of the transportation - resulting successful goals has astir doubled.

Turnovers are not ever the effect of a mistake by the different team, but they volition surely beryllium playing their portion - arsenic the Saints and others are uncovering out.

As highlighted earlier successful this article, Arsenal - successful opposition to galore different teams astatine the apical extremity of the array - person not been acrophobic to nonstop a ample magnitude of their goal-kicks long.

That, successful part, is due to the fact that of David Raya. The Gunners signed him from Brentford - initially connected a season-long indebtedness successful August past twelvemonth - earlier making it imperishable this summer, due to the fact that of his quality with the shot astatine his feet.

But astatine Brentford, Raya was besides an effectual limb with the accuracy of his long-range passes. He created 9 secondary chances - the walk earlier the walk that creates a changeable - successful his last season, much than immoderate different goalkeeper.

With 6ft 4in (1.93m) Kai Havertz to purpose for, coupled with the Germany forward's beardown hold-up play, it provides an effectual alternate erstwhile the Gunners are trying to bushed the absorption press.

But their precocious long-ball statistic whitethorn successful portion beryllium due to the fact that skipper Martin Odegaard spent 2 months injured earlier successful the season.

The midfielder is simply a hugely important portion of the mode Arsenal play, with his quality to person the shot astatine his feet, crook and advancement it up the transportation quickly. It meant the Gunners could play the shot abbreviated from the goal-kick, enactment it to Odegaard successful the mediate and physique attacks.

In Arsenal's opening crippled of the play - a 2-0 triumph against Wolves successful which Odegaard started - the apical 3 players Raya passed to were defenders Gabriel, William Saliba and midfielder Thomas Partey (five passes to each).

While Arsenal are not, it would appear, bringing long-ball shot back, their tactical power successful the lack of Odegaard highlights however teams marque the astir of their disposable resources and are prepared to beryllium flexible successful their bid to summation an vantage implicit their opponent.

Be it playing the shot abbreviated oregon hitting it long, the usage of the goalkeeper is present much important than ever to gaining an edge.

"Goal-kicks person go a crippled of feline and mouse," added Bardsley.

"Teams are saying, 'OK, if you are going to bash that, and property america high, past we are going to bash this. Do you inactive consciousness similar that's the close decision?'"

Additional reporting by Chris Bevan.

Data investigation by Andrew Bassett.

Graphics by Andrew Dicks.