Manuel Neuer: Defending the zone in and out of possession

Below, Technical Study Group Lead Pascal Zuberbühler reveals why the German goalkeeper is in a class of his own when it comes to managing the space in front of him, especially in the context of defending against long balls. The FC Bayern München number 1’s expertise in this goalkeeping topic raises a larger point on the importance of goalkeepers calibrating positioning to whether their team is in or out of possession. This article is based on a player review with Zuberbühler and Tom Gardner, FIFA’s Football Performance Insight Lead.

When Bayern are in possession of the ball inside the opposition’s half, Neuer is renowned for his high positioning and generally staying closer to his team. He is never static, and continuously calibrates according to where his team-mates are playing the ball. From his high position, it is more straightforward for him to contribute to the build-up as the extra player. However, this positioning changes quickly as soon as his team loses possession of the ball or comes under pressure. Zuberbühler walks us through the nuanced positioning using the clips below.

Clip 1: In possession, Neuer positions himself closer to his team’s block, constantly adjusting according to the ball’s location.

Clip 2: Being closer to his team when they are on the ball allows him to be the extra man during build-up situations.

“In clip 1, we see FC Bayern München on a corner. In possession, Neuer is always one of the highest-positioned goalkeepers. We saw this here at the Club World Cup and the World Cup. He is the highest playing goalkeeper in possession. Under low pressure, Neuer continues to stay high up the field. However, when a Bayern München player gets pressured on the ball, he drops five metres. You can see how, in possession, Neuer is the extra player out of defence. Especially here in this situation, you see he offers to receive the ball, and straight away, in a triangle, he helps his team build up.

“In clip 2, we see another situation in possession. Neuer is very high up with his positioning. When Bayern München lose the ball, Neuer drops. The opponent now has the ball, and Neuer retreats backwards. Even if the ball is still very far from his goal, he still continues to drop. This is where he shows his intelligence in this situation.”

In possession, Neuer has the highest average line height of all goalkeepers in the tournament. This is excluding his opening performance against Auckland City FC.

It is crucial for goalkeepers to critically evaluate their starting positions when out of possession and encountering a long ball. Neuer’s game intelligence is where he comes into his own during these moments of the game. For Zuberbühler, Neuer’s mastery in these situations comes down to his ability to intuitively assess the following three parameters before the ball is played:

The ball: What’s the trajectory of the ball? Is it coming high or low, and with what speed?
The opposition: Is the attacking player ahead of the defenders, and are they in a good position to receive the ball?
His defenders: Where are the defenders situated in relation to the ball and the attacker?

When factoring all three parameters, it is often the case that a high starting position would potentially hinder a goalkeeper’s ability to intercept a long ball effectively.

When excluding his opening match against Auckland City FC, Neuer’s average line height out of possession is not as high relative to other goalkeepers. This reflects the fact that he has a nuanced approach to his positioning, which often requires a deeper starting point.

In the clips below, Zuberbühler explains how Neuer’s positional acumen is key to successful interventions, and that there is a clear distinction between how the Bayern goalkeeper positions himself when his team are in possession in the final third and when they are not.

Clip 3: Out of possession, Neuer typically adopts a deeper position when the ball is in the opponent’s half.

“You see, in clip 3, the Boca Juniors striker goes up. The two Bayern defenders are on the same line. Neuer, who started here [halfway line], has to see and observe the situation quickly because he’s so high up. He’s not able to run back in time, and as a result, must create distance between himself, the two defenders and the striker.

“The parameters here are very important. How fast is the ball coming? The kick is coming over the one defender, so he’s out of the play, and the striker is in front, while the second defender is already far away. You have to feel this situation as a goalkeeper – you have to understand that, if the ball is coming through, it will be a 1v1 situation. If you’re too high up, you can’t deal with this kick. Neuer creates the right distance and reads very well that the defenders are out [of the picture]. Then, he makes the intervention with a brilliant first touch.”

Clip 4: If Neuer’s defenders are behind the oncoming attacker, the Bayern number 1 would need to read the space and execute the intervention.

“In this out-of-possession situation in clip 4, the opposition goalkeeper has the ball, and it’s clear that he will kick it long…When his team is out of possession, he is there, around his own penalty area. He has to read how the ball comes: is it high, with pace or with power? Then, the second point is to read and observe where the opponent is. The [opposition] striker comes across diagonally, and Neuer’s defender has no chance of making an intervention. Neuer reads the space, anticipates where the ball will bounce and then makes his intervention. A goalkeeper sometimes also has to make a header.”

Clip 5: By assessing the three parameters (the ball, defenders and attackers), Neuer makes intervening look routine.

“As CF Flamengo goalkeeper Agustín Rossi has the ball in clip 5, Neuer takes up another deep starting position, inside his own penalty area. When Rossi kicks the long ball, Bayern’s defenders are high up, but Neuer is in his penalty area. Coaches might ask their goalkeepers to come out in these situations. However, although the goalkeeper is the 11th player in possession, this is not the case when their team is out of possession.

“This is important for coaches in youth football, as there are many who are instructing their players to stay high in these situations, but Neuer shows why staying deeper is good practice. As the long ball comes, Neuer goes a little bit back. When he finds himself in a 1v1 with the Flamengo striker, he simply comes and collects the ball. It looks very easy, but it’s the game intelligence which makes it seem that way.

Clip 6: Neuer again adopts a deep starting position, allowing him to gauge the trajectory of the ball.

“In clip 6, the Flamengo goalkeeper has the ball and side volleys it down the field, and Neuer is there to control it and take it away from danger. Look at Neuer’s starting position. He’s deep in his penalty area. If he starts from any higher, he would risk being directly where the ball lands, which would make it very awkward to control. Neuer’s starting position is brilliant. From here, he is deep, so he can see the bounce, and he is able to track the trajectory precisely.

“One important point you should never forget as a goalkeeper in these situations is that, if you are deeper positioned, the ball is always coming towards you; if you’re the striker, it’s travelling away from you. Sometimes it’s easy to forget this.”