Matt Pyzdrowski is a coach and former goalkeeper who played in the United States and Sweden. He serves as a goalkeeping analyst for The Athletic.
Here, he analyses Jordan Pickford’s stunning saves in Everton’s crucial 1-0 win over Chelsea.
Jordan Pickford has been excellent and consistent for a long time, but due to Everton’s season he has largely gone under the radar — until now.
On Sunday he showed exactly why he is so valuable for club and country after his spectacular performance earned his relegation-threatened club a much-needed win over Chelsea.
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Richarlison’s goal did the damage at one end, but it was Pickford who ensured victory. His save from Cesar Azpilicueta in the 59th minute and a point-blank stop from Antonio Rudiger from the ensuing corner kick all but kept Everton’s season alive.
His first save from Azpilicueta was the most unbelievable save of the Premier League season, and may end up being the most important.
Save of the season?@JPickford1 👏 https://t.co/8EWCaN6zbR pic.twitter.com/qQNY1xQidi
— Everton (@Everton) May 2, 2022
When Pickford dived to his right to try and keep out a Mason Mount shot and the ball struck both posts before ricocheting to Azpilicueta, it appeared as if the visitors were guaranteed an equaliser. Pickford had other ideas.
As the ball passed his outstretched right hand, Pickford had the awareness to turn his head after his dive, continuing to follow the trajectory of the ball even as he temporarily lost sight of it.
Realising the ball was still in play, he quickly turned his head as he lay on the ground, caught sight of the ball bouncing off the far post and immediately jumped to his feet.
In a split second, Pickford turned his entire body towards the ball and took off for the back post. Had he hesitated for even a moment, it would have been a goal. Look at all those Everton players standing still and watching the ball — seven players hoping for a miracle to bail them out. The only players who don’t give up are Pickford, Mason Holgate and Yerry Mina.
There’s a level of instinctual awareness here from Pickford that can only have been built from hours of work in training.
When outfield players are working on passing or tactical exercises, it’s not uncommon to see the goalkeepers off on the side repeatedly jumping over cones and hurdles while manoeuvring around obstacles and throwing themselves across the goal at full stretch to make saves.
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The more examples and situations you work on and put yourself through in training, the more seamlessly they translate to the field of play.
Pickford only had milliseconds to react. If he were to try to break down and analyse the play, and the correct technique(s) to use, it’s likely he would never have made the save.
His footwork in this moment played an important role.
What is interesting and special about this sequence is that rather than use the more traditional footwork techniques — bounding (the ability to bounce up and down and side-to-side quickly, to prepare yourself for a shot), the side step (think of it as a shuffle when the goalkeeper moves one leg at a time to one side) or the crossover step (when the keeper crosses one leg in front of the other) — Pickford decides to take off on a dead sprint to the other side of the goal.
It’s not a technique you train for often because, from a technical perspective, it limits and hampers your ability to adjust your positioning, quickly change direction and control your body in a secure and efficient manner.
Yet there are always exceptions to the rule. This was one of those times where reason and logic simply go out the window and, as a goalkeeper, you have to throw out everything you’ve been taught and improvise to make the save. Pickford needed to get from point A to point B as fast as he could, any way he could.
I want to highlight the path of Pickford’s run across his goal, because without it I’m not sure that he would make the save. As he sprints across his goalmouth, rather than taking a direct path to the other side of the goal, he slightly looped his run before throwing himself at the ball.
His decision to go behind his goalline crucially gave him the opportunity to slide and throw himself at a forward angle to push the ball to safety. Had he attacked the ball at any other angle than the one he did, I’m not sure he would have had the correct approach or timing to meet the ball with his hands the way he did — especially with the necessary strength and power.
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In a perfect world when facing a shot on target the goalkeeper will want to get themselves set before the strike in order to react to a shot in either direction, but on this occasion, when his time was severely limited, Pickford was aware that it wouldn’t have helped. He knew that if he tried to get himself set during his sprint across, he would have lost milliseconds in reaction time. Sliding and throwing himself at the ball the way he did was his only and best option.
His ability to turn, slide and orientate himself at the final second, throwing his hands backwards — yet at a forward angle to make the save — were key. These are the types of saves that require pure imagination and improvisation and only come from sheer determination to keep the ball out of the net.
Those that want to argue that the ball was straight at him fail to acknowledge that was because Pickford had done the necessary work to get himself into the right place at the right time. The best goalkeepers have this unique ability to consistently put themselves in the right places time and time again — a skill set on its own and not something every goalkeeper is able to do.
While Pickford’s first save was about pure athleticism, the second was about sheer bravery. From a technical perspective, it was executed as perfectly as possible.
Mount’s corner was outside Pickford’s range, therefore his decision to turn his body and retreat to his line in the middle of the goal is the correct one. His positioning is in-line with the ball and only slightly off the centre of the goal, allowing him to track the trajectory of the cross and prepare himself to push off in either direction to make the save or intercept the ball.
The ball dipped and Ruben Loftus-Cheek met it, sending it perfectly into the stride of Rudiger at the back post. With the ball in behind his back line and no defender between him and the ball, this was Pickford’s signal to close the space between him and Rudiger quickly.
The best and most efficient way to do this effectively is with the spread technique.
When spreading themselves at the feet of the attacker, the goalkeeper wants to throw their body (arms, legs, torso and head) at the ball while staying square to it. It sounds easy in theory, but it is much more difficult to execute in practice when a ball is flying towards your head from point-blank range — it’s the body’s natural protective reaction to turn the head away in such moments. As a goalkeeper, it’s vital for you to fight the body’s urge for as long as possible and stay square while keeping your eyes on the ball.
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Pickford kept his body and positioning correct up to the last second and then, just as Rudiger put his head down to shoot, Pickford made his final move to close down the remaining space between them. His athleticism helped him close down Rudiger and the shooting angle so quickly that by the time his opponent looked up the opportunity to score had passed.
Considering the pace of the shot from Rudiger, the minimal distance between them and that the ball was destined straight for Pickford’s head, it would have been understandable had he flinched.
How many times have we seen a goalkeeper close the angle well, then at the final second turn their head away, also causing their chest to turn away, opening a slight angle for the striker to score? This could have been one of those moments.
The fact that he fought his natural urge, keeping his entire body, including his head, in position until impact — all while knowing the pain of the collision that is coming — is the definition of bravery. Goodison Park rose in unison to cheer Pickford’s efforts.
The collision with Rudiger left Pickford sprawled out on the ground — but he was not down for long.
Saves like Pickford’s don’t just win points. They inspire a belief and confidence through your team that becomes infectious.
The goalkeeper is often the emotional foundation for a team and is typically the one that looks to set the standard on game day. Having the goalkeeper get up, puff out his chest and strut around the box the way that Pickford did inspires confidence in the rest of his team that he will never be beaten.
After making his save to deny Azpilicueta, Pickford even threw in a little wink and head nod for good measure, giving off the signal that, “I got this”.
For a team that has struggled to build momentum and has been staring at relegation, Pickford’s commanding performance could not have come at a more crucial time. If Everton do manage to stay up, remember these saves.