Mackenzie Arnold, the goalie for Australia, won a lot of friends with her bravery in the Women’s World Cup quarterfinal penalty shootout win on Saturday.
Once the focus of criticism in women’s soccer, goalkeepers have become the stars of the show Down Under with many spectacular saves that have saved games.
Arnold, who is known as “Macca,” saved three penalty kicks against France on Saturday, even though she missed her own penalty kick.
The 29-year-old West Ham goalkeeper had to stop Kenza Dali’s penalty kick twice because Arnold had moved off her line. She said it was the “craziest game” she had ever played in.
“It’s unheard of for Macca to miss that penalty, stay in the game, and then be the player who helps us win the game,” said Matildas boss Tony Gustavsson. “What I mean is that she has a strong mind.”
In nine of the 60 games played through the first three rounds, the player of the game was the goalie. Arnold was one of those nine.
Netherlands coach Andries Jonker was very happy with Daphne van Domselaar after the Aston Villa goalie made a series of saves against South Africa that helped the Dutch move on to the quarterfinals.
Jonker said, “Four years ago, goalkeepers couldn’t handle the ball just under the bar, but now we have a whole generation of very athletic goalkeepers who don’t let that kind of ball in.”
“Daphne is one of that new generation,” the teacher said. “They’re athletic, in good shape, and in a good place, so the changes in that area are amazing, and the Netherlands are right there with them.”
Nadine Angerer was the goalkeeper for Germany when they won the World Cup in 2003 and 2007. She said there were clear signs that goalkeepers were getting better.
At FIFA’s Technical Study Group (TSG) news meeting on August 4, Angerer said, “Overall, goalkeepers are doing a lot better.” “I want to emphasize, in particular, making the choice to come out and then choosing whether to punch it or catch the ball.
“We saw a clear improvement in their ability to make decisions, and both their punching technique and their punching have gotten better.”
Four years ago, only 33% of teams kept a clean sheet in a game. Now, 46% of teams have done so. Even though there are more shots from inside the penalty area, the number of saves made with the hands has gone up from 74% to 78%.
“The goalkeepers are much closer to the defense line, they’re higher up, and the timing is better,” said Angerer. “They are becoming more cruel. And yes, the skill is better, so that’s one area where we saw a big change.”
Mary Earps of England was named the female goalie of the year by FIFA for 2022, and she has shown why at the World Cup. She plays for Manchester United. She let in only one goal during the group stage, when the Lionesses beat their opponents 8-1 and made a lot of spectacular saves.
Earps said, “I love to see when goalkeepers are doing well.” “Of course, we talk about the “goalkeeper union,” which might sound like a cliché, but it’s really, really true.
“I really hope that goalkeepers are getting a lot of praise, because I think they’ve done a great job and deserve it.”
Earps was upset that Nike didn’t include her shirt in the jerseys that fans could buy before the World Cup started.
Emmy Somuaroo, who is 16 years old, started a plea on change.org to ask Nike to change its mind. So far, more than 38,000 people have signed it.