It never is easy to be a goalkeeper in the world of football, one bad mistake and you get marked for life. That does not seem to hold true for Simon Mignolet who somehow got a contract extension at Liverpool, wish we all had that kind of job security in our lives.
England though have had a good number of quality goalkeepers come through the ranks but no one has been able to check Joe Hart’s rise to the top, well, Jack Butland might have something to say about all this.
Newcastle also have a goalkeeper who is doing extremely well and a couple of top clubs, Arsenal and Liverpool have been tracking the progress of Freddie Woodman. The 18-year-old keeper from Croydon hasn’t played for Newcastle yet but he could well be on his way to stardom if things align properly.
The next big goalkeeper for England?
Woodman actually started his career for Crystal Palace but later joined the Newcastle United academy. His progress in the academy let him to move to Hartlepool United first on loan in 2014 and then to Crawley Town in 2015.
The youngster has also represented England till the U19 stage and also won the 2014 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship with England, an experience which will help the youngster in the later stages of his career.
Mark Yates, the Crawley Town manager had this to say related to Woodman, “We are delighted to have been able to bring one of the best young goalkeepers in the country to the club. The only thing Freddie lacks at the moment is experience in League football and that is what this loan spell with give him. He has all the attributes to become a top-class keeper and I have to thank Steve McClaren, Andy Woodman and everyone at Newcastle for letting us have Freddie for the first half of the season”
He was recalled from his time at Crawley when Tim Krul got injured this season but he hasn’t played in the Premier League yet. Woodman’s father was also a goalkeeper and is currently the coach at Newcastle and has had a lot to tell his son about playing for a top level club.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, “I felt I had to work 10 times harder than everyone else. I stayed back after training just to prove that I’m not just here because of my old man.
‘But he’s great with it. My dad played, it wasn’t at the best level and he made mistakes. We talk about them to make sure I don’t make those same mistakes. I have to take the right path professionally.”
Woodman has a lot riding on him and there are many eyes that are keeping a track on him. He still needs to gain Premier League experience before he can achieve all that he has set out to do.