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It is the conditions of the playing surface which will determine the
footwear, so think carefully about the time of the year when you are playing. Your team will depend
on you to make the right call, and the right footwear will help you to pull off those Iker Casillas
style saves.
There are many different types of soccer shoes on the market, indeed, a
pair for pretty much any occasion and conditions under foot. So which are the one which will best
serve a goalkeeper?
Well, let’s first take a look at indoor playing surfaces which are not
affected by inclement weather. You know the indoor surface is going to be hard and a little bit
slick, so you need just a little bit of traction so that your feet don’t slip out from under you
when you are going to make a diving save.
Indoor soccer shoes like the classic Adidas Samba shoe, uses gum rubber on
the sole, allowing you to get ideal grip on indoor surfaces. Just as importantly, these are
leather, which fits so well to a players foot for comfort, and as goalkeepers are not the most
active players on the pitch, comfort over the duration of a match is essential.
You are not going to be as keen to cover ground in the goal with tired,
achy feet! Indoor shoes are also great for training indoors as well, and on smooth concrete
surfaces outdoors, but they are unlikely to offer you much versatility in any other
conditions.
Always keep a pair of these handy for those indoor days though. Once you
get outdoors to play, things will change and will change even more over the course of a
season.
As a goalkeeper, you will know the time of year, whether the ground is
hard or soft for diving around on, but what about your footwear? What really is the difference
between Firm Ground Cleats and Hard Ground Cleats?
Well the difference is subtle, but for a goalkeeper it can make all the
difference in the world. Firm Ground cleats are generally just a bit longer than Hard Ground
Cleats. This is so that they can still offer good grip underfoot, even when the surface is a bit
slick, but they are also versatile enough to step out on to firm ground when needed.
It is no big secret that the goal mouth is usually one of the most churned
up, muddy places on the pitch and often there is the need for transition between muddy and firm
surfaces in a match.
Firm Ground cleats like the Nike Jr CTR360 Libretto FC offer both comfort
and the versatility needed. As a goalkeeper though, if you are switching over to play on hard
ground, then you may need to ditch the Firm Ground soccer shoes for Hard Ground Cleats. This is
because wearing Firm Ground boots on a Hard surface won’t afford much traction or comfort, and you
may find yourself sending wayward goal kicks into Row Z on the halfway line.
Soft Ground Cleats are a necessary part of football, and a pair should
always be kept handy for those rainy days, when the skies are gray and conditions muddy. What is
one of the most important factors for goalkeeping?
Being in position quickly on your toes. The last thing you want to do is a
see a quick counter attack coming your way and you react by slipping because you haven’t got the
proper studs in. You don’t want to let your team down because you put on the wrong
footwear.
Studded shoes for soft ground are essential, because they will be able to
get further into the pitch so that your foot movements won’t be prone to skidding across a damp
surface.
There are fewer studs on Soft Ground Cleats because there is less chance
of mud building up between them. Specialist outdoor soccer shoes like the Adidas adiPure IV TRX SG
are perfect for outdoor conditions which are a little wet, because they have good long studs, which
are changeable to shorter ones, depending on the degree of softness underfoot.
It is also important to look for a lightweight shoe like this one, so that
you don’t have a heavy feeling and remember that leather boots generally afford a better feel of
the ball, while synthetic uppers can weigh less.
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