Lutz Pfannenstiel: I've heard about Subrata Pal's potential

On the second day of the AIFF organized Goalkeeping Course, 'Art of German Goalkeeping' the course instructor Lutz Pfannenstiel spoke about an Indian Goalkeeper, Subrata Pal.

The buzz in the classroom amongst the participants was unmistakable. Lutz Pfannenstiel clarified, "I know, I know… I am talking about his stint with RB Leipzig in Germany."

To the surprise of the participants, Lutz Pfannenstiel knew quite a bit about Subrata Pal but that is not uncommon for a scout like Lutz who has been a personal friend of mine for many, many years and he has been briefed about Indian football by me before he left.

Lutz pointed out that Subrata's stint with the German outfit in division four (Regionalliga Nordost) was a very fruitful one and assured that the standard of the fourth tier in Germany is as good as the Premier League in other parts of the world.

"I got good reviews about him (Subrata). The standard in the German fourth division League is very high I can assure you that. So his stint with Rasen Ballsport Leipzig must have been very good. I've heard about his potential. The standard in Germany is very high and level of competition stays intense."

He continued as the coaches listened. "Germany is the place for goalkeepers! So Pal's training could only have gone in one direction… that is good."

The two-hour long theory session also saw Pfannenstiel stress on the importance and transformation of equipments of a goalkeeper, training methods and so on. Videos were shown to the participants to explain the drills they need to perform in their next practical session.

Speaking on the transformation of equipments Pfannenstiel said, "The equipments of a goalkeeper has changed over the years. From the ball which swings a lot now than probably ten years back, to their gloves, everything has changed. A goalkeeper of the 80's would find life difficult nowadays."

"The need for good quality equipments is paramount. In Africa you don't find good goalkeepers. The reason is that kids who choose goalkeeping have harrowing experience standing under the bar. The grounds are full of stones and they are the ones who have to do the diving. So naturally they don't want to do it again. This is where good quality kits come into play."

Pfannenstiel also pointed out some features of how coaches should train their goalkeepers. "A goalkeeper trains alone with his coach. He is in that way separated from the main team's training. But the Head Coach stays the most important. A goalkeeper’s training is always special," Lutz said.

"If you are a National Team Goalkeeping Coach you have limited time with your goalkeepers. So you have to out your training plan in a nutshell. But if you are with a club you have time and this is where club keeper training comes into the fray."