hey liverpool fans this may seem like a stupid question but what club does westerveld play for now???
Talking of ex-Liverpool Keepers ... how's this for another genius piece of business by Sir Moanalot. That chap really does have an eye for stoppers. United eye up James
I think the whole David James story is sad. In him England has probably the best physically equipped goalkeeper in the world today. His body is virtually designed for goalkeeping and then he fails to reach top standard because his head isn't screwed on right or because he hasn't been under good enough guidance during the important years of development. I mean, a man like Nigel Martyn is built like a sack of potatoes, but is still a better keeper. Something went wrong along the way for Calamity James and it's not only his fault.
Well, to be honest, he's never played for a truly top notch team. But trust me, he's made plenty of mistakes that can only be blamed on him and him alone.
That's not a good enough excuse. There are plenty of keepers out there who perform excellent for non-top notch teams. A man with his athleticism and size simply shouldn't be so clumsy off the line. He should be commanding the entire penalty area. This is only a theory of mine of course, but I believe David James under the right guidance and upbringing should have had at least 50 caps by now - and still be SGE's first choice.
I can't tell if you're arguing with me or against me, but whatever. The fact remains, he's not that good, and probably never will be. I don't really care if it's his natural (lack of) ability, or if it's an old coaches fault ( ) .
He looked pretty damn good when he came back from his injury last season. Of course, the back-up who was replacing him was none other than the Chaka Hislop. Talk about a human spasm. But you guys are right: you'd think he'd be better, given his physical gifts.
It's all mental. In terms of physique, athleticism and talent he probably is the best England have, but he just doesn't have that spark that all truly great goalkeepers have. He's a better athlete than other contenders for the role of England keeper, but he's not got that final 5% up in his head.
And our current keeper .. Dudek gets two year extension The Pole in our Goal will now be on near-parity with Micheal Owen and, as such, the second highest paid keeper in Europe, behind Buffon of Juventus. Not bad for an ex-coalminer ...