Goalkeeper Performance: Analysis of Goalkeepers’ Contribution to Their Team’s Build-up under the Opponent’s Pressure in the 2018 World Cup

The purpose of this study was to analyze in FIFA World Cup Tournament 2018 focusing on the technical and tactical offensive actions of the male goalkeepers when being under pressure and to evaluate if their actions correlated with the outcome of the match. The sample consisted of the goalkeepers (n = 41). A descriptive analysis and a hierarchical clusters analysis were performed to identify the goalkeepers’ classes. Furthermore, a factor analysis was conducted to locate the goalkeepers’ style of play and the statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. The results showed that the total percentage of correct passes under pressure was 46.5% and that the goalkeepers preferred using the air and long distance passes with one or two touches. In addition, out of the 4 groups that were formed with cluster analysis, the goalkeepers of group 2 and 3 stood out concerning the quality of their actions. The incorrect actions were correlated with defeat and the correct actions were correlated with a win (p < 0.001, r = 0.663). In conclusion, a male goalkeeper, nowadays, needs to have all the technical actions of his feet at a good level so he can contribute to his team’s build-up, especially those of distributing the ball with his feet.