Any tiny movement, even a fleeting glance, can help a goalkeeper as he stands face-to-face with a penalty taker.
With the round of 16 at the World Cup starting Saturday, draws are no longer an option, meaning penalty shootouts could be coming. Oliver Kahn, a former Germany captain who has faced his share of penalties in more than 10 years as a goalkeeper with his national team and Bayern Munich, spoke Friday about shootouts along with Petr Cech and Sergio Goycochea.
``You can read a lot from the body language of the shooter and where he will be shooting,'' Kahn said in Sandton, an upscale Johannesburg suburb. ``It is a psychological game between the goalkeeper and the taker. It has a lot to do with eye contact and body language.
``You can irritate the shooter with your body language, you can see whether a player is fearful and you can see from the eyes of a taker if he makes a small mistake into which corner that ball will go.''
Cech, who plays for the Czech Republic and English club Chelsea, said goalkeepers also have psychological battles with themselves ahead of a penalty.
``You do your homework, you know where the player can shoot, what is his habit, if he waits for the goalkeeper or if he chooses the corner,'' Cech said. ``But you need to be strong, stay calm, try to keep your homework working, then you have a chance of saving the ball.''
Although Kahn did his homework when Bayern beat Valencia on penalties in the 2001 Champions League final, he said he didn't use what he had learned.
``I still remember very clearly ... I was working with my coach to figure out what all the players' tactics were. But (on the field) I forgot all of that,'' Kahn said. ``I (went) straight into a phase of absolute concentration.''
Concentration and mind games alone will not help a goalkeeper make a crucial penalty save, though.
``You always need a certain amount of luck,'' Kahn said.
The three goalkeepers also speculated on who would be voted the best goalkeeper at the World Cup.
Goycochea, who played for Argentina and River Plate, already has his choice.
``I hope that the (Brazil) goalkeeper Julio Cesar will reinforce what he has shown already,'' Goycochea said. ``But the team that will bring the best goalkeeper will of course be the best team in the tournament. But in my heart I know that (Argentina's) Sergio Romero should be the best goalkeeper.''
Kahn agreed that Julio Cesar is near the top of the list, and he added a few more.
``I think Cesar in the Champion's League has shown that he can become a No. 1 world class goalkeeper,'' Kahn said. ``(Spain's Iker) Casillas, we have seen him play, (Manuel) Neuer, the German goalkeeper, is still very young ... and the Japanese goalkeeper (Eiji Kawashima), very ambitious, young, extroverted goalkeeper, but I think right now it is still early days.''
The goalkeepers also took some time to talk about the new Jabulani ball, which some say is causing headaches with its erratic movement.
``I have played with the ball and I find it fine. I didn't have a problem,'' Cech said. ``It is not the right attitude to blame it on the ball. The ball is the same for everyone. It has been tested the same way every time.''
Kahn also said it was up to the players to adapt to the ball.
``The balls have changed over the last couple of years, they have become a lot faster and in addition to that in Johannesburg we are playing at an altitude of 1,700 meters, which makes the ball even faster,'' the German said. ``Thus the goalkeepers work even harder, but I don't think that we can take the ball or the altitude as excuses.
``Sepp Meier, my goalkeeping trainer, once told me. 'Well, if the balls become more difficult, you will have to train harder until you can work with those balls.'''
Whether the new ball is faster or more unpredictable may be proven once this year's World Cup gets its first shootout. But either way, it comes down to the individuals.
``Takers are the ones that can lose in a penalty shoot out,'' Kahn said. ``Goalkeepers are the ones that can win in the shootout and ultimately become the heroes.''
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