The perfect penalty save

THE REFEREE'S DECISION

''When the referee points to the spot, I don't start arguing with him. Instead I start thinking about the upcoming penalty and quickly put all my focus onto the save I want to make. Debating with the referee just makes you lose concentration. It won't lead to the decision being reversed. That's why I prefer to dedicate all that time to getting myself ready. I get a sense of tunnel vision, and everything else just passes me by.''

THE PREPARATION

''When the penalty-taker puts the ball on the spot, I like to stand on the edge of the six-yard box to try and throw them off and make the goal look as small as possible. Then I move back to my line and jump up to touch the bar. I do this to make myself look big, but I don't make much of a song and dance about it. The most important thing is to build up your sense of anticipation and get ready for the shot.''

MAKE YOUR MIND UP

''I leave it late when picking which corner to go for. Youth football obviously doesn't have the same level of data analysis as they have at senior level. This means that, as far as I'm concerned, the taker could shoot absolutely anywhere. The decisive factor when choosing which corner to dive for is the position of the player's standing leg. After a certain point, it's more or less impossible for him to put the ball in the other direction once the standing leg is fixed. Only the absolute experts can do that. That's why I always make a last-minute decision for which corner to go for based on the position of the standing leg.''

THE MENTAL BATTLE

"A few little games are always to be expected, of course. I like to make the taker wait a bit so that he has a bit more time to ponder things, though without taking it too far and being unsportsmanlike. As I stand on the edge of the six-yard box when the player gets the ball, the goal looks a bit smaller at first. That sometimes causes them to try and place it too much. I always try to establish and maintain eye contact. Then I can already tell if a player is getting nervous. Sometimes a player will deliberately look towards a corner to try and mislead me, but I don't fall for that trick.''

THE DIVE

''The most important thing is your feet fixed on the ground. Unlike with a long-range shot, when trying to save a penalty you don't have time for an extra step. Instead, all you can do is push yourself off the ground with as much jumping force as possible in order to reach out to the corner. That's why we goalkeepers like to have our feet on the ground at the point the ball is struck. Sometimes you bounce on the spot a bit beforehand to build up power.''

THE SAVE

''There are differences between a penalty kick during a game and one in a penalty shoot-out. With penalties during a game, you always have to watch out for the rebound. That's why I always try to palm the ball away to the side so that no-one can score on the follow-up. But that's not always something you can control, and if I'm being honest, I'm usually just happy to make any kind of save.''

THE CELEBRATION

"As a goalkeeper, you are always the underdog and are in a win-win situation. Even though I've been able to save a few penalties in my time, no one really expects it from you. You carry the team's hopes on your shoulders, but you don't feel the same kind of pressure as the person taking the penalty does. That's actually a nice situation to be in. Nevertheless, I obviously never want a penalty to be awarded against us in any game, because it's still a negative thing at first. However, if I manage to save it, there's a huge sense of elation. It gives a goalkeeper the chance to celebrate in the same way a striker does after scoring a goal.''