Looking back on my years in and near the pro game, you would think that this would be a topic of discussion between keepers. From experience though, it really wasn’t something that I thought about a lot over the years. Until very recently when I had a scare playing a pick up 7v7 game on turf. As you get older injury risk is something that you think about way more often. Whether you are an established keeper, starting out or you have kids that are doing this is an article that will hopefully cover things that you are going to want to know. I never had an injury that I could blame on the cleats. It seems to be happening though every week in the pro game these days. What are the best cleats for goalkeepers?
A quick heads up here, if you are expecting an Adidas vs Nike comparison for the best cleats for goalkeepers on this article that’s not what you are going to get. The focus here is going to be more on the sole of the issue itself. Also on the length of the actual cleats that are on the boots. Most of the time as a keeper you are going to want to make sure that you are wearing shoes that will allow you to keep a firm grip on the ground. When you slip and fall even the weakest shot can find the back of the net.
The problem though is that too much grip can make trying to pivot and shift your weight to dive to an incoming shot difficult. In this simple process, we’ve seen a lot of injuries happen in the past because the player’s foot gets stuck the ground as he is or she is trying to pivot. Knees and ankles have been blown out this way. Hence the importance of the article.
Best Cleats For Goalkeepers: What Type of Ground Are You Going To Be Playing In The Most?
Growing a soccer geek like a did, going out to buy gear was like going to a candy store. I was always way more excited to buy gloves than cleats, to be honest. Yet, going out and buying cleats was certainly more exciting for me than shopping for a pair of jeans. The first that you look at as a kid is the color schemes and designs of the cleats. This is not the way that you are going to want to approach things if you are looking to get gear that is actually going to improve your game. I say this to myself even, because still in my twenties I am someone who loves to get all sorts of gear in vibrant colors. Ideally, you should be looking to get something that fits your needs.
Most online stores that sell soccer equipment will divide their cleats into hard ground cleats, soft ground cleats, and turf shoes. I can’t stress this enough, as a goalkeeper, if you are going to be training in turf every single day buy turf shoes, not cleats. Turf boots are the ones with the little spikes that look a lot like the modern golf shoe. Are you going to be getting the type of grip that you want from these shoes? There is a good chance that you are going to slip a couple of times. When training though, there is no need to run the risk of getting your foot stuck in the ground and risking a knee or ankle injury. If you slip you can always get back up and do the drill again.
I would rather redo the drill over and over than be using cleats that will almost embed themselves in the turf and cause me an injury. In these cases, you can even sacrifice a little grip for training. If you are going to play then you may want to have a little more grip. For harder ground, you can try shoes that are going to have more cleats, but these studs are going to be shorter in length. Those would be the best cleats for goalkeepers that play on this type of field.
Best Cleats For Goalkeepers: Soft Ground Cleats
The debate over which type of cleats you should be using on softer ground is one that has been raging for years, and to this day there is no clear answer. Most brands that make soccer cleats will offer shoes with more studs that are going to allow you to have a better grip on softer surfaces. By the way, most wet, and muddy fields are also going to apply as softer surfaces.
There are some surfaces that are going to be soft no matter what. It’s almost going to feel like you are playing in a golf fairway. It’s easy to slip on these surfaces. Most people are going to want cleats with more studs. A lot of the brands these days offer longer cleats that are going to be able to embed themselves in the grass. This can be a two-edged sword though. Sure, you’ll have a better grip, but there could be a higher injury risk involved.
Softer grass is always going to be preferable as a keeper as a training ground. Even with the best technique sometimes having to overextend yourself to dive for the ball can result in a hard landing. If you are landing on soft grass you are going to soften the blow. As is the case with turf, it could be a good idea to use cleats that maybe don’t give you the best grip in the training ground. That could seem a bit counter-intuitive, but again we are seeing too much grip cause plenty of injuries across the world. There is an argument to be made though, that without grip you’re more likely to pull a hamstring or something like that. Especially when you are doing specific drills.
At the end of the day, the best cleats for goalkeepers come down to what do you feel safe with when playing. As I mentioned before, I tend to like the middle ground where I don’t feel afraid that my foot is going to get stuck in the turf. There are some people that love the ultra grip. That’s fine, that’s why the debate still rages on!
Do I Have To Buy Cleats For Each Different Field Type?
When they show the lockerrooms prior to games of the top leagues on TV you can clearly see that each player has a bunch of options at their disposal. This is mainly because they chose their boots depending on the type of field that they are playing or the conditions that the field is in that day. As we mentioned on a wet and muddy surface you may feel as if you were on ice skates with certain. As a parent you may be thinking this means that you are going to have to dish out a ton of money so that your kid will have a bunch of options to chose from. Personally, I only keep two options. Turf shoes and natural grass shoes. Yes, that’s mainly because I buy the shoes myself.
Some turf fields, at least were I’m from, require that you wear turf shoes while playing on them. Not allowing you to use regular cleats. You can make the argument then, that I keep to pairs of soccer shoes out of necessity. As I mentioned before, when I shop for actual cleats not turf shoes I am looking for something that can provide a middle ground. To where you won’t keep slipping on softer surfaces, but you won’t feel like you are wearing high heels on harder ground.
How To Find That Middle Ground
This is something that is actually pretty simple. Don’t go for the cleats with 100 million studs on them, but also don’t go for the track style sole that many companies made popular in the 2000s. If you are looking at options and you’re thinking all of the cleats seem to have 10 plus studs on them, I can’t find the middle ground. Unforutanltly for some of us old-timers, this is where the market has gone. The middle ground seems to be finding cleats that have medium size studs. Longer studs on harder ground can be like walking on ice skates.
The other option that you can try to not buy a bunch of shoes is a pair of cleats with interchangeable studs. Studs are going to cost you around 10 to 15 dollars. For two dollars you can essentially have completely different experiences wearing the same exact shoe. This is certainly an interesting option that is worth taking a look at. The only thing is, you need to be very careful to make sure that you adjust the shoe accordingly. When you switch the studs make sure that these are properly tightened up. Also, you have to make sure that you keep track of the studs that you are not using. I lose everything, so interchangeable mini studs have never looked like a great option for me.
Another interesting option with interchangeable studs is the fact that you could potentially change the layout of the studs. This is something that works better with some shoes than others. Also, it’s important to note that most cleats with interchangeable studs don’t come cheap! Therefore, there is an argument to be made that, it could even work out better if you just buy two pairs of shoes. If you are on a budget though get something that you feel comfortable with, in any terrain, and go with that.
Best Cleats For Goalkeepers: Should You Have Game Cleats & Training Cleats
In my experience, I never really switched them up, unless it was because I was playing in turf, so I got the turf shoes out instead of the regular cleats. I did have teammates that did this, and from what I gathered a lot of times they did this for show, or because they didn’t want to ruin the perfect fit that they had developed with their game cleats while training. There are instances though where the type of surface that you are playing will dictate what you wear.
If you are playing locally though, or even on a travel team there is a pretty good chance that you already know exactly where you are going to be playing most of the time. Ideally then look for shoes that allow you to play comfortably on that surface. For example, make sure you are at least comfortable where you play your home games.
Once you got that down, then wear those shoes out and buy another pair when those shoes either don’t fit if you’re a kid or are just too beaten down. Finding comfort can be really difficult for some people. Therefore, replicating that comfort level with 3 different pairs of shoes can be almost impossible. Especially if you are swapping brands and trying all of the cool colors under the sun. I don’t mean this in a negative way. I did this for a lot of years, and it leads to blisters on my feet and feeling uncomfortable. Man that I look good though! Don’t do that to yourself there is really no need!
Best Cleats For Goalkeepers: As A Keeper What Are You Looking For In Cleats?
I just wanted to give this closing statement, because the article sort of drifted to other topics at certain points! As a keeper, you want a decent grip. A lot of folks make the mistake to go out and buy the cleats with the longer studs that they can find. If you are regularly playing on soft grass that could be fine. If you take really long studs to hard ground it’s horrible. That’s why I always recommend stick with the middle ground. They provide enough grip on virtually any surface. If you play in turf a lot, owning a pair of turf shoes does make total sense. This is going to work for beginners and medium tier keepers across the board.
If you are playing at a higher level then it would make sense for you to own three pairs of cleats or make the investment for interchangeable cleats. In my eyes though, it’s not necessary for most of the guys in the Sunday league or boys and girls in youth soccer. What you do have to do is make sure that you are wearing cleats that make you feel comfortable and safe in the field that you play on the most!
