“We have a list of goalkeepers who can replace him, because we have to be organised always.”
So said Louis van Gaal on his contingency plan for the imminent departure of David de Gea. The statement has led to wild speculation as to who may be on this list.
The names of Samir Handanovic, Hugo Lloris, Asmir Begovic and Tim Krul are just a few that have been touted to replace the brilliantly elastic Spaniard.
Most recently Petr Cech’s name has been linked to the soon-to-be vacated posts at Old Trafford. It is a somewhat inevitable rumour.
But he may not be the ideal fit for what Manchester United need or want in a goalkeeper. And unsurprisingly, it’s all down to footballing philosophy…
Frans Hoek, United’s chief goalkeeping coach, is world-renowned as an expert in the field. Many regard him as football’s greatest authority on the position.
He has visited clubs around the world – including Manchester City prior to taking the United job – to expound his wisdom on the speciality role.
Hoek claims there are two extremes of goalkeeper: a Reaction (R-Type) keeper, and an Anticipation (A-Type) keeper – and every stopper is somewhere on the spectrum.
The Dutchman summarised each of these ‘types’ to Soccer Coaching International:
R-Type:
“Also known as a line goalie, this type of goalkeeper is an absolute winner. He will go to any extreme in order to win, is physically strong and has a high muscle tone.
“This type might not be overly athletic, but is very strong and has quick reactions…he is more like a block of concrete with a lot of muscle strength and great charisma.”
A-Type:
“Usually winners, but in a lesser form than R-Type. Generally speaking they are more athletic…with less muscle tone. They are also less charismatic.
“From an organisational perspective they are very good at reading the game. They have vision, which makes them more capable of coaching before the situation.”
Hoek goes on to explain that R-Types tend to be relatively weak in possession, whereas A-Types read the game far better and are more accomplished with ball at their feet.
As he explains: “A-Type keepers could be easily used as field players, as they are able to function as the eleventh player. This means they love a back pass.”
If we look at goalkeepers in the context of Hoek’s spectrum, De Gea is clearly an A-Type stopper, whereas Cech strongly veers towards R-Type.
It perhaps explains United’s purchase of Victor Valdes, who again fits with the ‘Anticipation’ template that suits the current philosophy at Old Trafford.
Hoek is keen to stress that neither type is necessarily better than the other, but picking the wrong one for a particular style of play can lead to disaster.
He uses the example of when he followed Van Gaal to Barcelona and they inherited the very talented Vitor Baía from Sir Bobby Robson’s side.
“Vitor was, in my opinion, one of the best goalkeepers in the world, and he functioned well within Robson 4-4-2 system,” explains Hoek.
“We started playing a totally different system of play. Consequently Baía changed from a big, strong, confident goalkeeper to the exact opposite.
“He now had a lot of space in front of him in which he played a role and was forced to become part of the build up. These were not his strongest assets.”
Hoek also uses the example of Edwin van der Sar, an archetypal ‘Anticipation’ keeper, used incorrectly by Juventus.
“[Van der Sar] did not get tested on his stronger assets, but rather on his weaker assets. He does not belong in a team defending close to the penalty area,” stresses Hoek.
“Is that Van der Sar’s fault? Of course not. It is a mistake of the people who hired him.”
So there you have it. All sorts of names will be banded about in relation to who should replace De Gea, but the best one is not always the right one.
