Everything you've ever wanted to know about
goalkeepers and a little bit more

Goalkeepers are not known for being shy, retiring types. They're never short of a quote or two - both on and off the pitch. Unfortunately they're also prone to putting their boots in it, as are their managers, chairman and teammates not to mention those that commentate on the game of football. However, some of their words occasionally contain a fair amount of football wisdom. Only occasionaly, mind...

What kind of a goalkeeper is the one who is not tormented by the goal he has allowed? He must be tormented! And if he is calm, that means the end. No matter what he had in the past, he has no future. - Lev Yashin

For a goalkeeper, there is no hiding place - Brad Friedel

Tommy Lawrence, after after being nut-megged in the Liverpool goal: "Sorry, boss, I should have kept my legs together."
Bill Shankly: "No, Tommy, your mother should have kept her legs together!"

The goalkeeper is the jewel in the crown and getting at him should be almost impossible. It's the biggest sin in football to make him do any work. - George Graham

It's disappointing to be dropped from any team - even my mates' fantasy league team - Robert Green

Poor Miklosko. Hasn't had to make a save yet he's let three goals in. - Trevor Francis

We didn't think we'd come here tonight and get any sort of result. - Les Sealey

My colleagues spend most of their time with their backs turned towards me. I don't believe it's because I am unpopular - honestly - Brad Friedel

I dreamt of playing for a club like Manchester United, and now here I am at Liverpool. - Sander Westerveld

In football, you don't really know what is going on but we will worry about that when it happens. - Neil Sullivan

Maybe the mistakes have looked worse because they led to goals. - Ian Walker

If you don't believe you can win, there is no point in getting out of bed at the end of the day. - Neville Southall

It was like deja vu all over again. - Shaka Hislop

And Seaman, just like a falling oak, manages to change direction. - John Motson

And there's Ray Clemence looking as cool as ever out in the cold. - Jimmy Hill

Wolves Keeper John Burridge has consciously modelled himself on the great Peter Shilton, same sort of hair style - Byron Butler

There's no use in practising penalties... Di Biggio of Italy took 17 in practice and scored every time. But the next day he missed against France, which proves it doesn't work. - Ray Clemence

Adams is stretching himself, looking for Seaman - Brian Moore

Two Andy Gorams, There's Only Two Andy Gorams. - Celtic fans taunt Rangers Goalkeeper Andy Goram amid rumours about him suffering from schizophrenia

I believe in a Methuselah, Frankenstein, alien beings, flying saucers and the hand of God. But most of all, I believe in on-loan goalkeepers from Swindon who score goals in the dying seconds - Carlisle United chairman Michael Knighton after his keeper Jimmy Glass scored the winning goal in injury time to avoid relegation and keep them in the Football League.

I feel sorry for Scarborough, but I don't think I'll be going there on my holidays - The self-same Jimmy Glass after his goal for Carlisle sent Scarborough to the Conference instead.

In goalkeeping terms, Chris Turner is 5ft 11in - Ron Jones

Lukic saved with his foot, which is all part of the goalkeeper's arm - Barry Davies

But Jim Leighton isn't a soccer player, he's a goalkeeper - Swedish commentator

He had no chance of beating Schmeichel from there, but it was always worth a try - Alan Parry

I went to David (Beckham) afterwards, shook his hand and called him a bastard. But I got him in the England side, didn't I? - Wimbledon goalkeeper Neil Sullivan after Beckham's wonder goal from the halfway line.

I said to my dad: 'How can I tell people I played well when I let in six goals?' He said that if I'd played badly it would have been 12-0. - Mark Bosnich on Australia's 6-0 defeat at the hands of Brazil

He (Mark Bosnich) may be the best keeper in the World, even if he is a bit potty - Ron Atkinson

I still go to bed with my goalkeeping gloves on. Everyone says it's eccentric, but I find people who go to the bookies and blow 300 quid eccentric. - John Burridge

Finally, when is Andy Goram going to piss off and stop annoying us with his bloody wonder saves? - Letter to the Celtic fanzine Not The View

It's not nice going into the Supermarket and the woman at the till thinking 'dodgy keeper' - David James

If I went upfield for an attack, I'd probably need a taxi to get back - Jim Leighton

He (Peter Schmeichel) is United's key player. It's his presence that frightens opponents. In one recent match, Spurs hit the bar twice. I'm sure it was because they were trying to avoid him. - Ruud Gullit

After the Nayim goal in Paris, people thought it was funny to totter backwards like I did that night, pretending to watch the ball fly over their heads. - David Seaman

People come up to and remind you of your mistakes, but it helps being 6ft 4in and 15 ½ stone - David Seaman

As you get to 38, 39 and 40, you know you can't cover the ground to get to crosses anymore and you don't fancy getting knocked about. I call it Peter Shilton syndrome: blaming everyone else for what you can no longer do - Ex-Millwall goalkeeper, Bryan King.

A goalkeeper is a goalkeeper because he can't play football - Ruud Gullit

People say goalkeepers are mad but I've always thought it was the other way round. At least the ball comes to us whereas the outfield players have to chase it around like idiots - Steve Ogrizovic

I was a bit anxious when I got to the stadium, but in all fairness if hadn't been anxious I'd have been worried - Paul Robinson

If you're a goalkeeper, it doesn't matter what you save the ball with - if you keep it out, it's not a goal - Mark Lawrenson

Peter Shilton conceding five - you don't get many of that to the dozen - Des Lynam

I realise now that computer games have affected my performance badly. I was getting carried away playing Tekken II and Tombraider for hours on end - David James

Jim Rosenthal: 'So, what's an American doing playing in goal for Millwall?'
Kasey Keller: 'Trying to keep the ball out.'

Ironing Board Ruined My Life - The Sunday People make a stab for Headline of the Year, covering the unfortunate injury to Liverpool's Michael Stensgaard.

The first time they contacted me, I had to ask who they were, then I had to pull out an atlas to locate Huddersfield. - Terriers keeper Nico Vaesen remembers his excitement when the club moved in for him.

I hope Danny Wilson will do the decent thing and let me leave. I don't want to be back on the bench. - Kevin Pressman makes his case on match day.
I don't know why I wasn't on the bench. Kevin Pressman looks for explanations as to why he was dropped the following day.

I spent four years at Millwall so I'm sure thats prepared me for whatever happens on Sunday. - USA keeper Kasey Keller looks forward to the Iran-Great Satan clash ahead of the 1998 World Cup Finals.

If I spend the whole of this week thinking about Brazil and all their great players, I would probably be terrified by Friday. - Peter Schmeichel explains why the Danes are relaxing ahead of their World Cup quarter-final against the then-reigning champions, also in 1998.

Solskjaer never misses the target. That time he hit the post - Peter Schmeichel again

What can I say about Peter Shilton? Peter Shilton is Peter Shilton, and he has been Peter Shilton since the year dot. - Bobby Robson

Goalkeepers aren't born today until they're in their late twenties or thirties. - Kevin Keegan

I usually go out after a game wearing a normal suit - Versace, Armani, the same as what most of the lads wear. - David James

I'd rather have Bruce Grobbelaar trying to throw a game than have Dave Beasant trying to win one. - Southampton Fan considers his club's goalkeeping situation.

A goal keeper must radiate pace. But he must watch out that he thereby doesn't fall asleep. - Sepp Maier

You've got to believe that you're going to win, and I believe that we'll win the World Cup until the final whistle blows and we're knocked out - Peter Shilton

Francis Jeffers is a disgusting, dirty little twat. - Sander Westerveld shares his views on the former Everton striker

I now have a farm in Lanark. I've got two pygmy goats - Gin and Tonic. - Andy Goram

Northampton is a massive club. - Goalkeeper Adam Sollitt gets a little carried away

If you stand still there is only one way to go, and that's backwards. - Peter Shilton

Carra doesn't like me to fist him before the games, so I give him a high-five instead. - Pepe Reina shares Liverpool's pre-match rituals.

I score more than 1,000 goals in my life, but the goal I don't score is the one they remember - Pele on Gordon Banks' famous save in 1970

The boys have nicknamed me Ena Sharples becuase my head is forever in the net - Ian Thain, Keith goalkeeper, after conceding ten goals to Rangers in the Scottish Cup

I am often scared by my lack of fear - Toni Schumacher

Diego Maradona - a flawed genius who has now become a genius who is flawed - Bob Wilson

Don't worry - I wasn't looking at a goalkeeper! - Sheffield Wednesday manager Alan Irvine after telling local reporters that he'd been on a scouting trip to Scotland to watch the 6-6 draw between Motherwell and Hibernian in May 2010

Unconsciously, I fell in love with the small round sphere, with its amusing and capricious rebounds which sometimes play with me. - Fabien Barthez explains why he chose football over rugby

Aye, watch it Bob, it's very greasy and treacherous out there. Very difficult for goalkeepers. - Bill Shankly to Arsenal goalkeeper Bob Wilson before the 1971 Cup final

At the moment I'm just swallowing it all as part of the humiliation but I think - and this is aimed at my dear manager - one shouldn't humiliate players for too long - Jens Lehmann

The joy of seeing Yuri Gagarin flying in space is only superseded by the joy of a good penalty save. - Lev Yashin

Pressure? This is just a football match. When you do not know how to feed your children, that is pressure. - Jose Luis Chilavert

Somewhere in there the grace of a ballet dancer joins with the strength of an SAS squaddie, the dignity of an ancient kind, the nerve of a bomb disposal officer. - Eamonn Dunphy waxes lyrical about goalkeepers

I've been training for just over a month now but for the first two weeks of that I couldn't even catch flu - Anti Niemi

If I could be a superhero, I would be Batman. He's got the least silly tights - Paul Robinson

As a goalkeeper you need to be good at organising the people in front of you and motivating them. You need to see what's going on and react to the threats. Just like a good manager in business. - Peter Shilton

Football is a fertility festival. Eleven sperm trying to get into the egg. I feel sorry for the goalkeeper - Bjork

For 20 years, the only notable change in soccer was the removal of the pass to the goalkeeper - Michel Hidalgo

You have to create your own luck. At 2-0 the match is over. With a Beckham penalty it is 90 percent luck for a goalkeeper and 10 percent concentration. - Fabien Barthez explains the reasoning behind his penalty save during France's Euro 2004 game against England.

No one expects the goalkeeper to make the save - Jeff Attinella

They all have such good hand-eye coordination because they play basketball, American football and baseball. Playing goalkeeper comes more naturally to them because they can use these special skills. - Brazilian Dido argues that an American's best position is between the sticks.

Shilton wins you matches - Peter Taylor, assistant manager at Nottingham Forest, justifying the fee the club paid for goalkeeper Peter Shilton.

Fighting terrorism is like being a goalkeeper. You can make a hundred brilliant saves but the only shot that people remember is the one that gets past you. - Paul Wilkinson, London Daily Telegraph, Sep. 1, 1992.

The goalkeeper is the lone eagle, the man of mystery, the last defender - Vladimir Nabokov.

In football you sometimes have beauty and cruelty together - Peter Schmeichel.

Dealing with the high cross is the yardstick by which top goal keepers are measurerd. - Alex Welsh

I enjoyed the position I was in as a tennis player. I was to blame when I lost. I was to blame when I won. And I really like that, because I played soccer a lot too, and I couldn't stand it when I had to blame it on the goalkeeper - Roger Federer.

Some goalkeepers are really sexy with their feet. I have a little sexiness with my feet, but I dont like to bring it out - Tim Howard.

The conditions you need to be a good goal keeper are exactly the same conditions you need to be a good sculptor. You must have a very good connection, in both professions, with time and space - Eduardo Chillida (Spanish sculptor).

The average English footballer could not tell the difference between an attractive woman and a corner flag - Walter Zenga.

If David Seaman's dad had worn a condom, we'd still be in the World Cup - Comedian Nick Hancokck takes England's exit from the 2002 World Cup badly.

I didn't see the ball. I just saw it going to my right - Robert Green.

When I see Almunia's performances, I get angry and have to make a fist in my pocket - Jens Lehmann.

I like the money, but of course teachers should get more than us. I'm nost saying footballers should save the environment and change the NHS, but if we portrayed ourselves 15 per cent better then it would help - Brad Friedel.

Sometimes you surprise the goalkeeper and sometimes the goalkeeper surprises you. In my career, I tried to do more of the first than the second - Eric Cantona.

You score goals as a kid. Then grow up stupid and become a goalkeeper - Gianluigi Buffon.

Injuries can never be used as excuses - Victor Valdes

That Seaman is a handsome young man but he spends too much time looking in his mirror rather than at the ball. You can't keep goal with hair like that - Brian Clough.

That save from Pele's header was the best I ever made. I didn't have any idea how famous it would become - to start with, I didn't even realise I'd made it at all - Gordon Banks.

I played until the age of 41 just because I believe that it's always possible to make improvements - Dino Zoff.

Jim Leighton is a rare bird - a Scottish goalkeeper that can be relied on - Brian Clough.

The money is in a different league these days, of course, but I have special memories of the 60s and 70s which players today don't have. There wasn't the same celebrity attitude and media exposure. We had a bit more freedom. - Peter Shilton.

I may have let in four goals, but at least I saved their lives - Hungarian goalkeeper Antal Szabó responds to Mussolini's infamous "Win or die" threats to Italy's team following the 1938 World Cup Final.

I don't want to be remembered as a good goalkeeper, I want to be remembered as a great person - Iker Casillas.

Goalkeeping is like extreme sports - sometimes you have to let yourself go - Jens Lehmann.

There have only been two world-class goalkeepers. One was Lev Yashin, the other was the German boy who played in Manchester - Lev Yashin

Don't shoot, I'm the goalkeeper! - Scotland's Alan Rough pleads his innocence after being apprehended by armed guards while climbing over the wall to get into his hotel after being locked out during the 1978 World Cup finals in Argentina.

At first I didn't choose 88. I wanted 00 but the league told me that was impossible. I also considered 01 but that was not considered a proper number. I liked 01 because it was the number on the General Lee car in the TV series the Dukes of Hazzard - Gianluigi Buffon explains his choice of shirt number while at Parma. The number 88 had offended Italy's Jewish community as it was symbolic with neo-Nazis.

After God, John Burridge is the main person - Wigan Athletic and Oman goalkeeper Ali Al-Habsi gets slightly carried away with his enthusiasm for his mentor.

One thing matters wherever you are - you're never irreplaceable - Joe Hart gets philosophical.

I know there's actually a petition on the White House website to make Tim Howard the next Secretary of Defense. Chuck Hagel's got that spot right now, but if there is a vacancy, I promise to think about it - Unites States President Barack Obama enters into the spirit of things following Tim Howard's performance against Belgium in the 2014 World Cup.

You should be dead - Orthopaedic surgeon Professor David Lloyd Griffiths gives Man City's Bert Trautmann his professional verdict after discovering the goalkeeper had a broken neck sustained during the 1956 FA Cup Final.

I didn't go to bed with a teddy bear - I had a ball alongside me - Sepp Maier

Everybody makes mistakes, but when goalkeepers make them, it is costly. That's the nature of being a goalkeeper - Gary Speed

The maximum punishment in Brazil is 30 years imprisonment, but I have been paying, for something I am not even responsible for, by now, for 50 years - Brazilian keeper Moacir Barbosa reflects on the goal that cost his country the 1950 World Cup

In my early days, a goal against us was shrugged off. Nobody liked conceding a goal, but once the ball had gone into the net it was accepted as 'one of those things' and everybody in the team would concentrate on trying to get the goal back. But once the maximum wage had been lifted and win bonuses became all-important, it was suddenly considered a crime to concede a goal - Gordon Banks

If that's all that's wrong with him, I'll pay him the crowns - Harald Schumacher reaction when told that French midfielder Patrick Battiston was missing three teeth after their infamous collision during the 1982 World Cup Semi-Final

He could play in midfield - Germany coach Joachim Löw reflects on the footballing ability of Manuel Neuer

Hello, my name is John Burridge, I'm 45 and I am here because I am addicted to football and I can't play any more - John Burridge announces himself to a group therapy session after being admitted to The Priory following his retirement from the game.

He can come across as the thickest, dumbest bloke on the planet, but you only need to listen to him speak in more rational moments to realise that he is a very bright bloke - Stan Collymore shares his observations of former England keeper David James.

You should've come off earlier! - Leicester City striker Alan Young teases goalkeeper Mark Wallington after he and winger Steve Lynex replaced the injured keeper during an FA Cup game against Shrewsbury Town in 1982. Both stand-ins kept a clean sheet as the Foxes won 5-2.

The referee is wearing the same yellow-coloured top as the Slovakian goalkeeper. I'd have thought the UEFA official would have spotted that - but perhaps he's been deafened by the noise of this crowd - John Motson

Is there anything I'd like to change about my life? I took a penalty against Chelsea in 1971 and Peter Bonetti, the fucker, he saved it! I wish I'd sent it the other way - George Best

If I played for Scotland my grandma would be the proudest woman in the country, if she wasn't dead - Mark Crossley on a possible international call-up with Scotland

Simon Tracey has got the brains of a rocking horse - Dave Bassett airs his views on his goalkeeper at Sheffield United

Of course I have been to Wembley before - for the greyhounds on my stag night - Wimbledon's Dave Beasant before the 1988 FA Cup Final

Well Tim, I guess my advice to you would be this: make as many saves as you can - Kasey Keller gives fellow American Tim Howard a piece of useful advice after the latter joined Manchester United

We play with 11 men, other teams play with 10 men and a goalkeeper - Liverpool manager Brendan Rogers waxes lyrical about his approach to the game

Schmeichel extends and grows even bigger than he is - Ron Atkinson

We'll not give up even if we're 12 points behind with one game left - Joe Hart

He just got his body between himself and the goal - Ray Clemence

Our goalkeeper, Reg Davies, was never really tested except of course for the five goals which passed him - Millwall manager Jimmy Seed tries to put his side's 5-2 defeat at the hands of non-league Worcester City in the FA Cup into perspective.

At that level, every goal is like a knife in the ribs - Gordon Banks

I could not play football, I was a born goalkeeper. Reflexes, jumping, strength; people are born with it - Jan van Beveren

I honestly think goalkeepers are people who are a little crazy. Our role is special, atypical, and we have a different make-up - Gianluigi Buffon

Maradona is a fattie that plays football very well - Argentina's Hugo Gatti shares his opinion of a young Diego Maradona.

Can you fucking believe him? - Alex Ferguson shares his dismay with assistant Steve McClaren after seeing Peter Schmeichel running up for the first stoppage time corner at the end of the 1999 European Cup final against Bayern Munich that led to Teddy Sheringham's equaliser.

As long as you hit the target, they're going to go in... if the keeper don't make a save - Ian Holloway

The goalkeeper wants locking up! - BBC's Mark Lawrenson on the hapless performance of Tunisia goalkeeper Ali Boumnijel against Spain during the 2006 World Cup Finals.

All that I have, I have earned through hard work - Dino Zoff

I am not the best goalkeeper in the world, it is Vladimir Beara - Lev Yashin

I thought the goalkeeper was allowed to use his hands in the area - Oliver Kahn, after going up for a corner in the final minutes, punching the ball into the net and getting sent off.

Peter Schmeichel will be like a father figure to Kasper Schmeichel - Jamie Redknapp

I've had marriage proposals, invitations to military balls and even a few prom offers from 18-year-old boys - American international Hope Solo on the attention goalkeepers sometimes get.

I am not trying to make excuses for David Seaman, but I think the lights may have been a problem - Kevin Keegan comes to the defence of the Arsenal goalkeeper after he was beaten by Nayim's long range effort.

We are Bayern Munich and English teams always have trouble as soon as they leave the island - Oliver Kahn before the 1999 Champions League Final.

Fancy a strapping fellow like me fainting in front of all those people and the King - Manchester City and England goalkeeper Frank Swift reflects on the moment he fainted following the 1934 FA Cup Final.

Watching the Premier League is like Formula One - it's that quick - and then you go to an international game and it's like a game of chess - Rob Green

If you make the right decision, it's normally going to be the correct one - Dave Beasant

The stars above Italian clubs' badges shows you how many times they have won the Gazetta - David James

Some countries are known for producing quality things, Switzerland it's watches, Italy it's cars. British football was always renowned for the general quality of it's goalkeepers - Peter Shilton

I do, I played in it. I was the goalkeeper for Liverpool - Anfield favourite Tommy Lawrence surprises BBC reporter Stuart Flinders, who was asking elderly people if they remembered the 1967 FA Cup Fifth Round game between Liverpool and Everton on the streets of the city in 2015.

That's a question-mark everyone's asking - Bruce Grobbelaar

Shay Given is champing on the door to be involved this weekend - Alex McLeish

His name may be Felix, but he's no cat - Brian Clough passes judgment on Brazil's 1970 World Cup winning goalkeeper

I still don't buy the idea that I'm a 'sex symbol' - Hope Solo

David James is frustrated because he thinks us being bottom isn't helping his chances with England. I think it gives him more chance to show his ability - Watford manager Glenn Roeder puts his goalkeeper's moaning into perspective.

You be very careful. You are treading in my footsteps - Sheffield United's Alan Hodgkinson gently teases his successors in the Blades goal.

Jim Leighton is looking as sharp as a tank - Barry Davies

I don't need a captain's band to lead a team to victory - Hope Solo

I don't know what the fuss is all about. I wasn't an England captain like Johnny Haynes or a World Cup winner like George Cohen. I was just the guy that tried to keep the ball out - Fulham's Tony Macedo reflects on his popularity at Craven Cottage.

Among my many 'grandsons', Buffon is certainly the best, But if anybody says he is better than I was, they are wrong - The modest Dino Zoff

If we lose our next game, I am going to start a fight - Azerbaijan's Kamran Agayev following a 3-0 defeat to Austria. They won beat Turkey in their next game 1-0.

What I achieved at Bayern, with Belgium in Mexico, came through effort, I wanted to improve every time - to be the best - Belgium's Jean-Marie Pfaff

I didn't have any kit and I got hurt, but I didn't care - Vladimir Beara on his first day as a Hajduk Split trainee.

I do not expect us to be European champions - I simply do not think our preparations can be good enough for that - Denmark's Peter Schmeichel before the 1992 European Championships.

I like it - I live for it - but I don't want my sons to play in goal. It's too hard on the nerves - Latvia's Aleksandrs Kolinko

He was more famous in his day than Greta Garbo - and better looking - Real Madrid defender Jacinto Quincoces on Ricardo Zamora.

If Jennings had been available on that memorable occasionwhen the Romans met the Etruscans, Horatius surely would have been satisfied with a seat on the substitutes' bench - The Guardian's Eric Todd waxes lyrical about Pat Jennings.

It flashed across my mind I was another Gordon Banks when I beat out the penalty kick. I don't think I've ever felt so sick in my life when the ball came back over my head - West Ham's Bobby Moore experiences the ups-and-downs of life as a goalkeeper in one fell swoop after he saved a penalty but was unable to keep out the rebound during their League Cup semi-final against Stoke City in January, 1972.

Don't thank me, it was my wife. I was sitting at the table and I said I needed another goalie. She said: 'I like that Alan Rough'. So you were in - Manager Jock Stein explains to goalkeeper Alan Rough why he was recalled to the Scotland squad in 1985.

If Frankenstein had decided to make a goalkeeper instead of a monster, Howard would have been a perfect prototype - England Amateur international Ivan Sharpe on Corinthians goalkeeper Benjamin Howard Baker.

Goalkeepers need an element of insanity - Oliver Kahn

Maybe Napoleon was wrong when he said we were a nation of shopkeepers... Today England looked like a nation of goalkeepers - Tom Stoppard

I played soccer all my life and I used to think growing up that they put the fat kid in goal or they put the kid that wasn't good with the ball at their feet in goal and I never wanted to do goalkeeper, I was always the goal scorer - Hope Solo

He looked as if he would be as happy playing for the Royal Ballet as he was for Yugoslavia - Bob Wilson on Red Star Belgrade and Yugoslavia international Vladimir Beara.

It's like Alan Partridge living out of a suitcase - Former Crystal Palace goalkeeper Scott Flinders reflects on life as a loanee following his fifth spell away from Selhurst Park in little over two years.

Alan Ball and me didn't see eye-to-eye, and it had nothing to do with his being 5ft 3in and me being 6ft 4in - Dave Beasant

I don't know why I'm the only one that gets labelled with it because a lot of people had one. I seem to be the only one that people remember - Scotland goalkeeper Alan Rough questions why his choice of a perm hairstyle for the 1978 World Cup finals has lived longer in the memory than those of his contemporaries.

Mine got out of hand; I just couldn't control it. Other people had theirs quite short but mine seemed to be bushier than theirs - Alan Rough answers his own question about the legacy of his perm.

When you've saved a penalty in a Wembley Final, you reckon you deserve a bit more luck than that - Norwich City's Kevin Keelan bemoans his misfortune following the Canaries 1-0 defeat at the hands of Aston Villa in the 1975 League Cup Final, after he saved Ray Graydon's penalty only to see the ball rebound straight back to the defender who made no mistake second time around.

I would say that I am having less sex now that I'm playing in Serie B - there is more to think about in this division - Juventus' Gianluigi Buffon reflects on life in Serie B back in 2006.

Formerly all keepers were in black so you couldn't have mixed them up with anyone else. And now they are red, yellow, blue - like parrots! - Sepp Maier

He is a truly magnificent keeper. I am lucky to play in front of him every week. You look over your shoulder and feel safe - Tony Adams sings the praises of David Seaman.

When I'm shouting at the defence, subtitles come up in front of the goal - Shay Given

The trick is to smoke a cigarette to calm your nerves and then take a big swig of strong liquor to tone your muscles - Lev Yashin

We need to concede less than seven against Germany. Then we can say we are better than Brazil - Gibraltar's Jordan Pérez retains his sense of humour before his side's Euro 2016 qualifier against the World Champions.

Miriam, this is Alex Ferguson, and you can tell that fat bastard he's got ten seconds to say aye or naw - Sir Alex Ferguson issues an ultimate to Motherwell's Andy Goram via the goalkeeper's wife after the former Scotland international hung up on the Manchester United manager thinking it was Ally McCoist winding him up prior to his loan spell at Old Trafford.

In 2016 McGovern single-handedly denied Germany eight goals at the Euro 2016 finals, and is widely recognised as the greatest goalkeeper to ever play the game - Northern Ireland goalkeeper Michael McGovern's Wikipedia page received an unexpected update after his performance at Euro 2016 against Germany.

Should Roy Hodgson drop Joe Hart for the quarter-finals? - ITV anchor Mark Pougatch dismisses Iceland's chances at half-time during their Euro 2016 clash against England, despite the fact the Icelandics were winning 2-1 at the time. They would go on to hold their lead and knock England out of the competition.

The coach here wants humility and ambition. I like that. That's how I want to be - After two high profile errors in Euro 2016, Joe Hart reflects on his loan move to Italian club Torino after being told he was no longer Manchester City's first choice goalkeeper.

I think we played a bunch of cowards. The best team did not win today - USA goalkeeper Hope Solo reflects on her side's unexpected defeat at the hands of Sweden after a penalty shoot-out at the Rio Olympics.

The corner of the post seemed a bit loose so I jumped up to try and mend it. When I touched it the post came away in my hand - Athlone goalkeeper Mick O'Brien tries to explain why his crossbar came crashing down for a second time during a FAI Cup Semi Final against Finn Harps in 1974. He was sent off for his trouble.

I will never forget my first game for England at the World Cup. It was against Turkey... No I mean Tunisia - England goalkeeper David Seaman gets a little confused.

Transfer Deadline Day - An institution which often appears to have been preserved to allow John Burridge & Clive Allen to see more of the country, is upon us again - A newspaper article from the early 1990s, demonstrating how times have changed when it comes to transfer deadline day in the UK

You can look like a world beater for 89 minutes but one mistake and you're a tube - Airdrie goalkeeper John Martin

It is a basket-case of a club...I will resist the urge to write a book, although I think it will sell more copies than JK Rowling - Newcastle United's Steve Harper on troubled times at St. James's Park.

Hello, Mrs Poole, Norman Low here. John's in the hospital with a broken nose. The good news is he hasn't fractured his skull. Goodnight! - Port Vale manager Norman Low keeps it short and sweet informing goalkeeper John Poole's wife that he won't be home that evening after he was injured during a game against Mansfield Town in April, 1960.

When I was a kid, football was part of life. It wasn't that I wanted to be rich or famous; I just wanted to be out there in the park or in the street, kicking a ball around. I always seemed to be able to find a few lads to have a game, because I didn't mind being in goal. Back then, nobody wanted to be in goal - Peter Shilton on how he became a goalkeeper.

I spent the last half-hour with the crowd spinning and bits of tongue falling off in my mouth but such is life as a goalkeeper, you are going to get these whacks - West Ham keeper Robert Green describes the after effects following a collision with West Bromwich Albion's Jonas Olsson.

Casper Ankegren's a bit of a Dracula-type keeper... doesn't like crosses - Andy Ritchie wheels out an old favourite to describe the then Leeds United goalkeeper's style of play during a clash against Hartlepool back in 2009.

I see that David James feared that the World Cup Jabulani ball could "leave goalkeepers looking daft." I would politely suggest that his hairdresser has got there before the ball on that one - Letter to Viz magazine prior to the 2010 World Cup finals in South Africa.

Keep your mouth shut, do your job, go home, have your tea and play football - Former Manchester United and Everton midfielder Phil Neville offers a piece of advice to Loris Karius after the Liverpool goalkeeper suffered a very public dip in form.

Stay humble, stay grounded, remember what got you to that level- and that's hard work - United States goalkeeper Tim Howard shares the philosophy that helped him reach the top.

It took me a long time to realize that football isn't martyrdom, but a game that's enjoyable, and one in which getting better at it is supposed to be fun. Perhaps it would have been better if I had understood this as a young man - Germany's Oliver Kahn reflects on the mistakes he made at the start of his career.

I had so much success at Liverpool that I found it difficult to motivate myself. I needed a new challenge - Ray Clemence explains his decision to leave Anfield for White Hart Lane.

Today. Today you become a hero - Javier Mascherano gives Argentina teammate Sergio Romero some motivating words of encouragement ahead of their penalty shootout against the Netherlands in the 2014 World Cup. Romero saved two spot kicks to send his side through to the final.

I'd like to thank several people. First of all Bob Wilson for giving me encouragement when I needed it most - after all, someone with two caps ought to know what he's talking about - Scotland's Alan Rough takes a swipe at his fellow countryman after Wilson criticised him over his performances at international level.

Goalkeepers are like good wine. They mature with age and goalkeeping is all about experience - Former Crystal Palace, Leyton Orient and Millwall goalkeeper John Jackson.

He's worse than Dracula because at least Dracula comes out of his coffin now and then. He seems to stay on his line and that's it - Former Liverpool goalkeeper Bruce Grobbelaar makes fun of Simon Mignolet's alleged fear of crosses.

Wear the red one, will you? It'll keep Rita happy - Graham Tayor informs Watford goalkeeper Steve Sherwood what colour jersey he'll be wearing ahead of the 1984 FA Cup Final.

Until my last day as a coach, I will try to play from my goalkeeper - Pep Guardiola sets out his coaching philosophy.

I'm not a kid any more. I can't just pack my stuff like a 17-year-old and go on loan - Manchester City's Joe Hart falls victim of Pep's philosophies.

I had a philosophy professor who was Scottish and I can still see his expression of horror when I told him I was going to Millwall. He said: 'They kill people there!' - Kasey Keller recalls the time he got his first break in professional football with the Lions.

The thing I can say is that I played for the biggest club in the north - Manchester United - then the biggest club in the south - The Arsenal - and the biggest club in the Midlands in Aston Villa - Jimmy Rimmer reflects on the highs and lows of his goalkeeping career.

I hate the modern gloves. They are so big and thick goalkeepers can't feel the ball. It's like trying to drive a car in boxing gloves - Former Everton and Wales goalkeeper Neville Southall shares his views on the latest fashions in goalkeeper gloves.

You don't feel sorry for yourself, you get on with life - Germany international Jens Lehmann takes a philosophical view about not being selected for the first team.

I was so obsessed with football that you could say I was taking the goal home with me at night. And then one day the system fell apart - Lehmann's great rival Oliver Kahn admits that the game had a tendancy to take over his life.

Most kids dream of scoring the perfect goal. I've always dreamed of stopping it - Iker Casillas

I discovered it's not the gloves but what's in them that counts - Neville Southall

Have boots won't travel, that's me - Everton's Gordon West explains his decision not to be considered for selection for England's 1970 World Cup squad.

I'm the star of the show. I should have a decent haircut - Former England goalkeeper David James explains the reasoning behing the many, varied hairstyles during his career.

As a goalkeeper, you can't come off the bench for 10 minutes and prove your worth - it's either you're in or you're out - Joe Hart on life as a reserve goalkeeper.

Even before the game started, we were soaked in sweat and they were standing there fresh as daisies, not a bead on them. They had so much class it was unbelievable - Scotland goalkeeper Alan Rough recalls lining up against Brazil at the 1982 World Cup Final. The Brazilians won 4-1.

I jumped and closed my eyes. It was more the dive of a goalkeeper than a striker - Benevento goalkeeper Alberto Brignoli following his injury time equaliser against AC Milan that earned his side a 2-2 draw and their first point of the season.

You need to be a little masochistic to be a goalkeeper. A masochist and egocentric as well - Gianluigi Buffon

Frank looked so big in goal that as a forward trying to score against him you often felt you were trying to put the ball into a matchbox - Sunderland's Raich Carter remembers the difficulty he had trying to put the ball past Manchester City and England goalkeeper Frank Swift

We saw Jaws from James Bond at our hotel. He looks frightening in real life, like in the film. We all had a group photo and he was pretending to choke some of us. He would make a good keeper judging by the size of his hands - Bristol City goalkeeper Dean Gerken meets actor Richard Kiel in a Newcastle hotel prior to a game at St. James' Park

They were big flares, granted. But you could argue that someone throwing a a paper aeroplane on the pitch might take someone's eye out - England's David James predicts the potential dangers of origami at Wembley after a match against Ukraine in Kiev back in 2009!

We watched the 50 greatest Premier League Goals on the team bus - and Sully must have been in 49 of them! - Doncaster's Richie Wellens pokes fun at Rovers keeper Neil Sullivan

At that moment I hated Gordon Banks more than any man in soccer. But when I cooled down I had to applaud him with my heart for the greatest save I had ever seen - Pele recalls the moment Gordon Banks saved that header during the 1970 World Cup

As I hit the floor I saw that the ball had missed the goal. At first I thought "you lucky so and so" but then I realised it has been a bit special - Gordon Banks recalls the same save from the opposite perspective.

You couldn't say playing for Sheffield Boys gave me much experience - I was dropped after two games - Gordon Banks again, this time on his early career at youth level

We think your best days are behind you, and you should move on - Leicester City manager Matt Gillies' blunt explanation as to why the club were putting their World Cup winning goalkeeper on the transfer list just a year after England's triumph in 1966 (he was replaced by a youthful Peter Shilton who had threaten to leave Filbert Street unless he got first team football)

I enjoyed it so much, I'd go through everything again. The only think I wish I'd done better was drive more carefully - Gordon Banks looks back upon his career and the accident that ended it prematurely

I hugged the ball into my body as if I loved it and punched it as though I hated it - Port Vale's Ray King neatly sums up his approach to goalkeeping.

We rode in open-top cars all the way to the Grand Place in Brussels, where a black, yellow and red tide of people gave us a triumphant reception. I think I even signed the chest of a woman who, just like us, was carried away with it all! - Belgium goalkeeper Jean-Marie Pfaff remembers his sides return home after reaching the World Cup Semi-Finals in Mexico, 1986

It went into my hands - A modest Alex Stepney describes the moment he stop Eusebio scoring a late winner in the final minutes of normal time in the 1968 European Cup Final. His manager, Sir Matt Busby, described it as a "great save"

It was only when he didn't stop that I realised that he was going to take the kick. His shot fired against the crossbar and straight up into the air and came down on to the top of the net. It would have been funny if I had been able to catch the ball, because Sam would never have been able to get back - Birmingham City's Gil Merrick recalls the moment his opposited number Sam Bartram of Charlton Athletic took - and missed - a penalty against him

Lehmann belongs in The Muppet Show, on the couch or in a mental institution - Werder Bremen's Tim Weise responds to criticism from former Arsenal goalkeeper Jens Lehmann.

I once drew a picture of Jack Nicholson in The Shining. But I put it away after a Feng Shui expert told me about the bad vibes - David James

I'm not the type who spends his free time in training camp playing with his Playstation or playing cards on trips. The other players thought it was odd: There he is, reading again - Oliver Kahn

That's often the best place to beat a goalkeeper, isn't it, between the legs? - Clive Tylesdley

I once got a letter from a woman who told me she was 90. She said if she were 30 years younger, I would have had to watch out. I guess 60 seems really young when you're 90. She said she would eat me with a spoon - David James again, this time on the perils of being famous...

Pickford is ten centimetres shorter than me, I would have caught it - Belgium's Thibaut Courtois tries to get into the head of England's Jordan Pickford after the goalkeeper was beaten by Adnan Januzai's shot during the team's World Cup group game in Russia.

Nothing fazes me. The pitch is always going to be the same, same lines, same goal height, it's just a game of football - England's Jordan Pickford keeps his feet on the ground and responds to Courtois after earning praise for his performances during the same tournament.

To be a keeper you've got to be strong mentally because if you make a mistake it often ends up in the back of the net - Millwall and Scotland's Jordan Archer has a premonition about his debut against Peru following his call-up to the national squad.

It was animal instinct. I smelled danger after the first Wembley game. I knew Jim had to be dropped - Sir Alex Ferguson explains why he dropped Jim Leighton in favour of Les Sealey for the 1990 FA Cup replay against Crystal Palace.

It's best being a striker. If you miss five then score the winner, you're a hero. The goalkeeper can play a blinder, then let one in and he's a villain - Ian Rush

I don't think David de Gea has had a save to make but he's picked it out of the net three times - Former England captain Terry Butcher gets bit confused after England raced into a 3-0 lead against Spain during their Nations League tie in October, 2018.

I spent four indifferent years at Goodison Park, but they were great years - Martin Hodge recalls his time with Everton with a lack of clarity.

I come from a winning mentality and that's what we need here at Norwich to get ourselves back up. I suppose Aussie mentality is all about winning and that's what football is about. I look forward to setting new goals and achieving them with this club - Goalkeeper Michael Theoklitos temps fate after signing for Norwich City in the Summer of 2009. He conceded seven on his debut against Colchester United and was quickly relegated to third choice goalkeeper.

I can never escape it - Former Manchester City goalkeeper Andy Dibble admits people won't let him forget the moment Nottingham Forest's Gary Crosby headed the ball out of his hand to score the only goal of the game when the two sides met back in 1990.

A goalkeeper is integrated into the shape of the team, every moment of the game - Wolves manager Nuno Espírito Santo shares his views on the changing role of the modern day goalkeeper.

When there are just 500 fans inside a ground, you can hear everything they say, every little word. So that's what turns you from a kid into a man - England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford recalls his time at non-league Darlington when he was starting his career.

Ah, Herr Trautmann, I remember you. Have you still got that pain in the neck? - HRH Queen Elizabeth II shares a joke with Bert Trautmann when bestowing on him an honorary OBE in 2005.

Interviewer: 'In your new book, Pat, you've devoted a whole chapter to Jimmy Greaves'
Pat Jennings: 'Yes that's right... Well what can you say about Jimmy?'

I can't see us getting beat now - once we get our tails in front - Jim Platt

We didn't expect so many mistakes from an England international - Torino president Urbano Cairo appraises Joe Hart's stint at the club.

I want to do things in my community, get out of the public eye, just be normal. You get your 15 minutes of fame, I hear, and I've had 14. The clock's ticking - Tim Howard

Mr Hennessey displayed a very considerable degree of ignorance about anything to do with Hitler, Fascism and the Nazi regime - The Football Association finds Crystal Palace goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey not guilty of making a Hitler salute during a team night out.

I'm not a politician so I'm a little bit apprehensive about what's ahead of me - Former Middlesbrough and Northern Ireland goalkeeper Jim Platt proves he's not a politician by giving an honest answer.

As a goalkeeper, you like to be called upon - Manuel Neuer

The spectacular things come automatically if you're a good goalkeeper, but it's very important that you do all the basics right - Loris Karius

If a team concedes a goal, then the first question is always of the goalkeeper - Petr Cech

You die! At that moment you die, and the problem is you don't want to finish the game... When it happens to me, I die! And if I have made a mistake, I wish someone would take me out of the game and put me in the locker room - Jan van Beveren tries to explain how it feels to make a mistake and concede a goal.

It is part of being a goalkeeper: there is nobody behind to save you - Hugo Lloris

I don't know why anyone would want to be a goalkeeper. It is a hard position to do well - Paul Scholes

The weakest point is between the legs for a goalkeeper - Thibaut Courtois

I was really nervous and when I went into the dressing room I punched a table. Unfortunately I fractured my hand - Juventus goalkeeper Antonio Chimenti describes how he put himself out of action in a very matter of fact fashion.

Who knows in the future, some time down the line, but it's not something I would consider now - Former Newcastle United Stever Harper addresses the rumour that he was invited to become the Conservative mayoral candidate for the North of Tyne district.

I've always liked long hair. My dad's always had long hair, but he always tells me, 'I never had it in a ponytail.' And I say to him, 'You weren't an England goalie either, were ya' - David Seaman recalls an episode of one-upmanship with his dad.

I could tell he wasn't a goalkeeper by the way he walked - Hartlepool United manager Cyril Knowles explains why he decided to replace Rob Moverley in goal, despite never seeing him play.

I've had a lot of things thrown at me. A lot of coins that had been sharpened, billiard balls, and I had a dart thrown at my back at Burnley. And potatoes with razor blades - Liverpool's Bruce Grobbelaar gives an insight into the dangers of life as a professional goalkeeper.

If it wasn't for football I'd still be working for a timber gang on a mountain in Ireland - Northern Ireland's Pat Jennings reflects on his possible career prospects if things hadn't worked out for him between the sticks.

Let's be honest, one of the most fun things in football is a goalkeeper being sent off and an outfield player having to go in goal - BBC Radio 5 Live presenter Mark Chapman neatly hits the nail on the head after Manchester City defender Kyle Walker replaced Claudio Bravo during a Champions League tie.

I wouldn't trust you holding my baby tho - Man City's Raheem Stirling also sees the funny side of Walker's goalkeeping debut.

After 20 years of professional football, this is going to be a wonderful experience for me to play the game I loved to watch and play as a kit - Petr Cech after signing on to become a goaltender for ice hockey team Guilford Phoenix.

It was either Ricky Villa or myself. Ricky didn't appear too keen so I took the initiative - Glenn Hoddle reflects on his goalkeeping debut for Spurs against Leeds United at Elland Road after Barry Daines went off injured.

I am a sportsman, not a brand ambassador, besides being the first goalkeeper of Adidas - Manuel Neuer gets his priorities straight.

The goalkeeper position is not an easy one. You can only speak about it if you are a goalkeeper yourself - Simon Mignolet

What goalkeeper doesn't like a little action? - Karen Bardsley

Everyone raves about you when you are with England but then you get back to your club and everyone wants to slate you - Jordan Pickford on the highs and lows of professional football.

When I first joined City, Harry Godwin (chief scout) took me to the centre circle and said, 'Don't forget the greats who played here, Frank Swift and Bert Trautmann. If you can do half as well as them you will be a great goalkeeper yourself.' - Joe Corrigan on the gloves he had to fill at Manchester City

It's like an antique car. There's always something that needs to be done. That's the only real drawback: You're living in a 1,000-year old property - Kasey Keller on the perils of living in a castle in Germany.

Revie said there was nothing between me and Ray yet he never gave me a chance to show what I could do - Peter Shilton on his spell in the international wilderness when Don Revie was England manager in the 1970s.

I was about 6 years old and I loved the sport, but I was a fat little kid who couldn't do the running, so they kept sticking me in the goal - Team USA goalkeeper Tony Meola explains how he ended up between the sticks

He was a fat kid. Ah, not fat but, well, a little butterball - Tony Meola's mum confirms why her son was always stuck in goal.

I never had any interest in being a manager. You get a lot of bluffers in football and I would have had to have been a bluffer to be a boss - Former Liverpool Reserve and Millwall goalkeeper Tony Warner on why management was not for him.

Carlos Alberto, who captained Brazil in the World Cup, was having a go at me. I said to him 'I'll kill you, you bastard' and a voice behind me went 'Phil, thats not very nice', I turned round and it was Pele! - Former Wolverhampton Wanderers goalkeeper Phil Parkes recalls a potential flashpoint during a game between Vancouver White Caps and New York Cosmos.

I hope my mum's got the telly on - Nigel Spink's departing remark to reporter Gary Newborn as he left the bench to replace Jimmy Rimmer in the 1982 European Cup Final.

My worst vice is gluttony. I try to keep myself under control because I'm an athlete, but once a week I like to pig out and act like a normal person - Gianluigi Buffon

Take what's useful, leave out what's useless, and add a bit of yourself! - Manuel Neuer offers up a bit of advice.

I used to have a quote on my walls, wherever I was a coach. A printout, laminated: 'When you do it right, no one remembers. When you do it wrong, no one forgets' - Goalkeeper coach Eric Steele offers up his own sage advice.

When I started in football, the gaffer pulled me to one side and said 'Son, to succeed as a goalie, you have to be either crackers or daft. You're both!' - John Burridge.

Everyone is waiting for the goalkeeper who will never make a mistake. I can tell you he hasn't been born yet - Pat Jennings.

To a goalkeeper alone, is the true delight of goalkeeping known. He must be an instinctive lover of the game, otherwise goalkeeping will take it out of a man if he is not devoted to it - Leigh Richmond Roose.

You can't play with a one armed goalkeeper. Not at this level - Kevin Keegan.

I am hugely disappointed in the penalty takers that missed. At our level, that shouldn't happen - West Brom manager Sam Allardyce refuses to give credit to Blackpool goalkeeper Chris Maxwell after his heroics in the FA Cup penalty shoot-out that saw his side dump the Premier League team out of the competition in 2021.

What are you doing here? I thought Bell was the man? - Argentina's Diego Maradona expresses his surprise at seeing Thomas N'Kono in goal for Cameroon instead of Joseph-Antoine Bell during the opening game of the 1990 World Cup finals.

Centre forwards used to smash into goalkeepers, it was a part of the game. Now you only have to look at the goalkeeper and it is a foul - Former Wolverhampton Wanderers goalkeeper Phil Parkes is not a fan over over-protected keepers.

I wanted to play for my hometown club Leicester City but they had Gordon Banks and Peter Shilton on the books at the time, so I thought I better go somewhere else - David Icke explains his decision to join Coventry City at the start of his goalkeeping career.

We think we can do better - Leeds United manager Simon Grayson breaks to the news to Kasper Schmeichel that his services are no longer required at Elland Road. The keeper would go on to win the title with Leicester City.

Being a black keeper, you're underrated, you're seen differently - Ajax and Cameroon goalkeeper Andre Onana.

There is a requirement for Premier League keepers now. You must be 6 goot 3 inches and a coward - John Burridge shares his views on modern day goalkeepers.

You can't have nice goalkeepers. Nice goalkeepers don't win you anything! - Alan Hodgkinson

In football, players play bad balls, people miss open goals, people do all kind of things but for a goalkeeper it's there for evermore - Brian Clough comments on a mistake by Peter Shilton that saw the only goal of the game go through his legs during a game between Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest in 1979.

You can plan, but what happens on a football field cannot be predicted - Manuel Neuer.

Ray Clemence was the best in the world at having nothing to do for 89 minutes and then in the 90th minute making a great save - Bruce Grobbelaar sings the praises of his predecessor.

My confidence comes from the daily grind - training my butt off day in and day out - Hope Solo.

I'm the most boring person you'll ever meet, I come home and I'm quite content just to sit watching television. All I want to do in life is to make great saves - John Burridge

Goalkeepers make mistakes but good ones don't let it get them down - Alan Rough

Everybody thinks goalkeeping's really easy. Look at me! Would I rather be a plumber? Would I rather be an electrician? You're kidding! - A muddy Les Sealey has no regrets about his career choice while being interviewed after a tiring session at Manchester United's Cliff training ground.

If he had said anything to me after the game I would have punched him - Andy Goram on Paul Gascoigne's goal during the England vs Scotland clash at Euro 96.

I always fancied becoming a goalkeeper, but I didn't think I was good enough - Derby County's League title winning goalkeeper Colin Boulton reflects on his youth career where he typically ended playing up front.

I as stuck between the posts because I was big and, I suspect, not too good anywhere else - Former Kilmarnock, Celtic and Scotland goalkeeper Ally Hunter

I used to be a left-winger with Kidderminster Harriers but one day our goalie didn't turn up. I volunteered for the job and have been between the sticks ever since - Norwich City's Kevin Keelan explains how he ended up in goal.

He has his share of personal glamour. He's a tall fair-haired good looker, and so comely, that he was described as the film star of Highfield Road. Is single too - Coventry City goalkeeper, and later assistant to Brian Clough, Peter Taylor gets a glowing review from the Birmingham Sports Argus newspaper back in 1951.

I know if I have played well or badly. I always ask my dad, and he tells me straight - Everton and England's Jordon Pickford.

Any little thing that goes wrong, you are going to get criticised for it - Scotland international Craig Gordon on the barracking goalkeepers face.

I think I chose wisely. When it came down to it, I knew I was a better goalkeeper than I was a bowler - David Seaman on his decision to focus on football rather than cricket.

I think goalkeepers need a separate Ballon d'Or from the rest of the players. At this rate, stand no chance of winning the Ballon d'Or, because people only care about the number of goals and assists and they never care about our saves - Costa Rica international Keylor Navas hits the nail squarely on the head.

Every old goalkeeper loses a step at some point, but you can gain that back through experience - Tim Howard

I said, I'm not going to Scotland for anybody. That was when the secretary shouted down the phone telling me QPR were a London club in the second division! - Phil Parkes remembers confusing QPR with Queens Park during a telephone conversation with Walsall's club secretary after finding out about his impending transfer away from the club.

He looked like a mascot. I kind of acknowledged him as if to say: 'All the best, son, you will need it' - the size of him. But then he started beating players as if they weren't there - Scotland's Alan Rough remembers passing premature judgement on Diego Maradona before he inspired his Argentina side to a 3-1 victory at Hampden Park in 1979, creating the first two and scoring the last of his side's three goals.

Without question, he is the most incompetent goalkeeper to win a World Cup medal. He was born lucky to play in a side which, if he let in three goals, had the talent to go up the other end and score four - Arsenal and Scotland goalkeeper Bob Wilson pulls no punches in his critique of Brazil's 1970 World Cup winning goalkeeper Félix.

"If you play that so-and-so again you can count me out. Play that whatshisname instead, that young boy!" - Leeds United's David Harvey recalls the part teammate Jack Charlton played in his selection for the first team after the defender lost patience with Gary Sprake and gave manager Don Revie an ultimatum!

It's very easy for people to overlook how important a good goalkeeper is in a team - Graeme Souness

Often, there are fallacies when a journalist or a fan and sometimes even a coach who has never been a goalkeeper sees a cross in the six-yard box and says he should come out - Gianluigi Buffon

I tried to copy the positional sense of Banks, who was never caught moving as the ball was struck. I tried to copy the invincible presence of Yashin, and I tried to copy the agility and distribution of Bonetti, as well as his willingness to be responsible for crosses - Peter Shilton on his influences

I long ago realised the futility of scoring goals at one end while letting them in at the other - Brian Clough on the importance of having a good goalkeeper between the sticks.

He picked the postage stamp over the wall with aplomb - Tim Flowers knew what he meant, even if no one else did...

As a teenager I was told I was too big to be a goalkeeper. I went for trials at Mansfield, Notts County, Sheffield United but they didn't show any interest - Steve Ogrizovic on some of the setbacks early on in his career.

It annoys me when people say that he missed because I saved his effort - Manchester United's Gary Bailey reflects on his save that denied Gordon Smith and Brighton & Hove Albion FA Cup glory at the death in 1983.

There's been a lot of rewriting history. How can I be a terrible goalie if I played over 500 games for Leeds, nearly all in the top division? Don Revie was neither a fool nor a bad judge of players - Leeds United goalkeeper Gary Sprake on his fall from grace at Elland Road.

My wife knew it was bad when one day she was off work and I told her: "Oh look, there's a double bill of 'Allo 'Allo coming on UK Gold". That's when I knew I had hit rock bottom - Former Aberdeen and Scotland goalkeeper Jim Leighton recalls the time he knew he was suffering from depression having be released from his role as goalkeeping coach at Pittodrie by former teammate Mark McGhee.

The game may have changed drastically in many aspects but not really for a goalkeeper whose job is still to keep the ball out of the net - Aberdeen's Bobby Clark reminds the readers of Shoot! that the basics of the game have never really changed.

I honestly do not know when it all started, but I'm glad it did. It helps in keep me involved in the game virtually all the time and the obviously the fans like it - and the boss suffers it! - Dundee United's Hamish McAlpine on his exploits as a sweeper-keeper.

The situation with Peter Shilton and Ray Clemence being the alternative choices has been a cross to bear since 1976 - A frustrated Joe Corrigan has a moan about his lot on the international scene.

It might be only the smallest of things the keeper is doing wrong, but it will be enough to make all the difference - Gordon Banks

I can't really sugar-coat this in any way, so I am not going to try. It is hugely disappointing and very hurtful - England Lioness Mary Earps expresses her disappointment in Nike after the company revealed that they would not be selling a replica of her World Cup goalkeeping kit. They later backtracked on their decision.

Why did I choose to be a goalkeeper? I don't know - it is good question. I have asked myself many times when things have not being going well - England's Joe Hart reflects on his career choices.

I hear and see stuff that people say, but I try to ignore it - Norwich and Scotland's Angus Gunn on criticism from the terraces.

He changed the game. Suddenly every manager wanted a 6ft 5 goalkeeper - Manchester City's Nicky Weaver on his Manchester United rival Peter Schmeichel.

No one's expecting anything of you. It's like playing a game of five-a-side with your mates - Abroath goalkeeper Ali Adams after he scored a screamer against Raith Rovers in December 2023.

Football can be a funny game - you can be Player of the Year three times in a row and then the next year you can have dodgy spells and all of a sudden you might not be wanted and you need to look for something else - Millwall and Poland goalkeeper Bartosz Bialkowski on the highs and lows of the professional game.

I kept hanging on in there for 13 years, but then you didn't have agents. If someone phoned up and said 'I'd like to buy your goalkeeper', you never found out about it - Scotland goalkeeper Alan Rough on why he stayed with Partick Thistle for so long in his career.

I wish that man would go back to Brazil, or whatever it is he comes from - Southampton goalkeeper Ivan Katalinic after Alan Brazil scored all five goals for Ipswich in a 5-2 win over the Saints in February 1982.

I have never seen a better performance at Wembley by a visiting goalkeeper - Sir Alf Ramsy on Jan Tomaszewski after England's infamous draw with Poland in 1973.

I couldn't believe it. I wasn't even sure it counted in the laws of the game - Pat Jennings after his goal in the 1967 Charity Shield for Spurs against Manchester United.

So goalkeeper, what's your job? Stop the ball from going in the goal. That's what I pay you £200 a week for - Brian Clough gives Mark Crossley pre-match instructions during their time together at Nottingham Forest.

If you're playing badly, the best gloves in the world won't help you - Former Manchester United goalkeeper Gary Bailey makes a blunt point about goalkeeper gloves.

It looks like I've had my last game - Middlesbrough goalkeeper Rab Macfarlane realises his time with the club may be coming to an end after he watched Tim Williamson's debut against Everton in 1902. Williamson went on to be Boro's first-choice for the next twenty years.

I was released from Bolton for my height and not being able to kick the ball - England goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale on the Lancashire club's decision to let him go at an early age.

The fucking Pope would have saved that! - Republic of Ireland manager Jack Charlton reflects on goalkeeper Packie Bonner's mistake that knocked his side out of the World Cup in 1990.

I have been called a clown in football - but if I don't go onto the field with a laugh and smile, I shouldn't be doing it - Bruce Grobbelaar

I never once took to the pitch in a jersey I was unhappy with - Sampdoria and Italy goalkeeper Gianluca Pagliuca on his sartorial elegance between the sticks.