Jump to content
Newcastle-Online

Rafa Benítez (now unemployed)

Greg

by Greg
in Football

 Share

Would you have Rafa back?   

463 members have voted

  1. 1. Would you have Rafa back?

    • Yes, as manager, immediately
      101
    • Yes, as manager, but at some point in the future (eg if relegated)
      97
    • Yes, in an advisory or DoF role
      74
    • No, not in any meaningful capacity
      132

This poll is closed to new votes


Recommended Posts

Darth Crooks

Darth Crooks

Posted
Posted

I’m a supply teacher and kids are happier when my approach is to play games and stick videos on. Woodman seems like an honest pro tbf but the same credence is taken from lazies like Shelvey and colback. Different responses by different characters but one seems to yield success more for sure.

Link to post
Share on other sites
Kanj

Kanj

Posted
Posted

Rafa asked him to come out more, play lower, etc. he seems better and more comfortable playing deeper and being higher in his stance. Rafa used the example of Pepe Reina. Freddie’s dad didn’t agree and had a different thought on how to play the position. Freddie said that there are so many different ways to play it etc.

Link to post
Share on other sites
ATF

ATF

Posted
Posted

Here's the section about styles and his development:

 

'His relationship with Cooper is “possibly the best I’ve had with a manager” but it is the tutelage of Martyn Margetson, the Swansea and England goalkeeper coach, which Woodman has found revolutionary.

 

“Goalkeeping can be so complex — I’m not sure people realise how different and difficult it actually is — but Marge has helped me make more sense of it,” Woodman says. “He has really opened my eyes to a different way of keeping goal, which I’ve seen huge benefits from.

 

“Every coach has different styles. I talked with Rafa on numerous occasions; he loved his goalkeeping and he’d tell me to get low and try and block, like Pepe Reina. I remember going home to my dad and saying, ‘Rafa wants me to do this’ and he was like, ‘No, that’s not proper goalkeeping. You need to dive at their feet’. It made me think, ‘God, there are just so many different styles’. None of them are right or wrong. They’re just different. It’s important to find the one that works for you.”

 

With Margetson, Woodman has discovered a new way, one that he believes suits him more. He watches videos with his dad, before-and-after tapes of how he operated pre-Swansea and how he plays now. “The difference is huge,” he says.

 

Already, Woodman has kept 16 clean sheets in just 27 appearances this season, having managed just 12 in 43 across 2019-20. In what way has he changed, though?

 

“My all-round goalkeeping has improved,” Woodman, who has bulked up physically, says. “Fundamentally, there are three key differences.

 

“First, in my set position for shots, I’m higher in my stance. Under Rafa, I’d be encouraged to get down and do more blocking, but, being higher, I think it helps me protect the goal better.

 

“Also, I played a lot higher under Rafa; I came out of my goal a lot more, sometimes I feel possibly unnecessarily. But now I am a little deeper.

 

“And, because we try to play it out from the back, you’ll see me taking more risks in possession than I would have done before.”

 

Swansea supporters rate Woodman highly but many would argue that distribution remains his weakest attribute.

 

“In terms of retaining possession, that is something I continue to work on,” says Woodman. “Being away with the England sides, playing ‘The England Way’, helped prepare me for that, but so did Chris Terpcou, my goalkeeping coach at Newcastle’s academy. When I was 14, he had me watching videos of Ajax and doing extra distribution sessions. I used to think, ‘Jesus, he’s working the socks off me here’. Now, whenever he rings me, I tell him, ‘Terps, I owe you’.

 

“With playing out from the back, you’ve got to accept that it’s not always going to go right. You’ll give passes away, even if you’d prefer not to. I watch a lot of Ederson (at Manchester City) and he is a wonderful footballer, but sometimes he kicks it long. He watches the other team press, thinks about it, and chooses to kick long. In my eyes, it’s all about good decision-making, which is another component of my goalkeeping I want to keep improving.”'

Link to post
Share on other sites
gdm

gdm

Posted
Posted

Even if it was true, can see what Rafa would say.

 

Yeah I don't think it'll happen but thought it was worth sharing.

 

He also mentions the Saudi's no longer want to buy us which is not in sync with what Caulkin, Douglas, Kennedy etc have been reporting.

 

Imagine that was true :lol:

Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share
Go to topic listing
×
×
  • Create New...