Goalkeeping issue-

[Damunk]

Ezenwa looked fine dealing with crosses in previous games, which leads me to believe that this being the off-season of the NPFL, he is simply not as sharp as he needs to be. That being said, this was a chance for him to seize control of the goalkeeping competition, and he failed to do so.

From what I saw yesterday, this isn't a matter of fitness or match sharpness.
It's a matter of judgement.
A keeper either decides to go for a floating ball or he doesn't.
Once he does, he has to impact positively on the ball, either by catching it or punching it to safety.
Not once do I recall Ezenwa doing either.

In fact, the last of his blunders was the worst. Not only did he fail to get near the ball, he didn't even jump and found himself off his line, rooted to the spot while Algerian and Nigerian players had all leapt into the air around him.

Ezenwa was never 'fine' with crosses IMHO. His strengths are elsewhere and that is what led us to believe he was competent.

Handling crosses is Goalkeeping 101 and if he can't handle it, be sure we will pay a very heavy price at the WC if he mans our posts.

[mystic]

Ezenwa looked fine dealing with crosses in previous games, which leads me to believe that this being the off-season of the NPFL, he is simply not as sharp as he needs to be. That being said, this was a chance for him to seize control of the goalkeeping competition, and he failed to do so.

From what I saw yesterday, this isn't a matter of fitness or match sharpness.
It's a matter of judgement.
A keeper either decides to go for a floating ball or he doesn't.
Once he does, he has to impact positively on the ball, either by catching it or punching it to safety.
Not once do I recall Ezenwa doing either.

In fact, the last of his blunders was the worst. Not only did he fail to get near the ball, he didn't even jump and found himself off his line, rooted to the spot while Algerian and Nigerian players had all leapt into the air around him.

Ezenwa was never 'fine' with crosses IMHO. His strengths are elsewhere and that is what led us to believe he was competent.

Handling crosses is Goalkeeping 101 and if he can't handle it, be sure we will pay a very heavy price at the WC if he mans our posts.

I think he was fine with crosses in previous games, but after that drop that he had that nearly gifted Algeria a goal, he appeared to lose confidence and looked completely lost on high balls from then on. That said, I agree with you that his judgement (and this goes beyond this game) is not where it should be for a number one starting goalkeeper of Nigeria (communication as well) . Judgement and communication; those are the main issues that I have with him. He obviously has good reflexes and is a capable shot stopper, but that's often not enough at the highest level.

[Damunk]

Ezenwa looked fine dealing with crosses in previous games, which leads me to believe that this being the off-season of the NPFL, he is simply not as sharp as he needs to be. That being said, this was a chance for him to seize control of the goalkeeping competition, and he failed to do so.

From what I saw yesterday, this isn't a matter of fitness or match sharpness.
It's a matter of judgement.
A keeper either decides to go for a floating ball or he doesn't.
Once he does, he has to impact positively on the ball, either by catching it or punching it to safety.
Not once do I recall Ezenwa doing either.

In fact, the last of his blunders was the worst. Not only did he fail to get near the ball, he didn't even jump and found himself off his line, rooted to the spot while Algerian and Nigerian players had all leapt into the air around him.

Ezenwa was never 'fine' with crosses IMHO. His strengths are elsewhere and that is what led us to believe he was competent.

Handling crosses is Goalkeeping 101 and if he can't handle it, be sure we will pay a very heavy price at the WC if he mans our posts.

I think he was fine with crosses in previous games, but after that drop that he had that nearly gifted Algeria a goal, he appeared to lose confidence and looked completely lost on high balls from then on. That said, I agree with you that his judgement (and this goes beyond this game) is not where it should be for a number one starting goalkeeper of Nigeria (communication as well) . Judgement and communication; those are the main issues that I have with him. He obviously has good reflexes and is a capable shot stopper, but that's often not enough at the highest level.

Exactly my thoughts.
He is brave and his reflexes seem pretty decent. But as I said, I think cross handling is very fundamental to goalkeeping and though I'm no GK coach, I suspect that it is one of the key things coaches consider when choosing a GK.
Dealing competently with crosses is a combination of judgement and ball-handling skills. I think he is weak in both areas, becos that first blunder of his in which he caught the ball but then dropped it onto the head of an Algerian striker was totally unforgivable. He wasn't under any undue pressure. He was simply in motion with his feet off the ground - which is a pretty normal situation for any GK.

I'll go back and watch his game v Zambia and see whether he was any better with his crosses, but I doubt it.

[wiseone]

With better finishing Algeria could have won that game 3-1 due to Ezenwa errors. He was dire on crosses. Flapped like a bat at anything in the air. Then I started with his play acting when he was allegedly "injured" after an Algerian player brushed his side.

[anointed]

Ezenwa looked fine dealing with crosses in previous games, which leads me to believe that this being the off-season of the NPFL, he is simply not as sharp as he needs to be. That being said, this was a chance for him to seize control of the goalkeeping competition, and he failed to do so.

From what I saw yesterday, this isn't a matter of fitness or match sharpness.
It's a matter of judgement.
A keeper either decides to go for a floating ball or he doesn't.
Once he does, he has to impact positively on the ball, either by catching it or punching it to safety.
Not once do I recall Ezenwa doing either.

In fact, the last of his blunders was the worst. Not only did he fail to get near the ball, he didn't even jump and found himself off his line, rooted to the spot while Algerian and Nigerian players had all leapt into the air around him.

Ezenwa was never 'fine' with crosses IMHO. His strengths are elsewhere and that is what led us to believe he was competent.

Handling crosses is Goalkeeping 101 and if he can't handle it, be sure we will pay a very heavy price at the WC if he mans our posts.

I think he was fine with crosses in previous games, but after that drop that he had that nearly gifted Algeria a goal, he appeared to lose confidence and looked completely lost on high balls from then on. That said, I agree with you that his judgement (and this goes beyond this game) is not where it should be for a number one starting goalkeeper of Nigeria (communication as well) . Judgement and communication; those are the main issues that I have with him. He obviously has good reflexes and is a capable shot stopper, but that's often not enough at the highest level.

While he can do unbelievable things stopping shots, he's never been okay with shots. I've seen him severally in Naija league action.

[tunde72]

What is happening to Daniel the Olympic goalkeeper. He is a better prospect than Akpeyi and Ezenwa

[green4life]

In my opinion, Ezenwa lacks professionalism in executing his work. I saw him unnecessarily dribble an opponent in his box. Had that been a vardy type striker it's a fair chance that he gets dispossessed and concedes a stupid goal. Then he simply lacks basic understanding on when to leave his line. This is basic 101 stuff: if you leave your line to attack an aerial ball, you must get something on it. In his case, he hesitated and got caught in no mans land. This also applies to the missed sitter by Slimani where he went for the obvious low square pass/ cross and got nothing on it. The last glaring error was the aerial ball that slipped from his hands when a safety first approach - to punch the ball - would've been more prudent given the conditions.

[icee]

In my opinion, Ezenwa lacks professionalism in executing his work. I saw him unnecessarily dribble an opponent in his box. Had that been a vardy type striker it's a fair chance that he gets dispossessed and concedes a stupid goal[/color]. Then he simply lacks basic understanding on when to leave his line. This is basic 101 stuff: if you leave your line to attack an aerial ball, you must get something on it. In his case, he hesitated and got caught in no mans land. This also applies to the missed sitter by Slimani where he went for the obvious low square pass/ cross and got nothing on it[/color]. The last glaring error was the aerial ball that slipped from his hands when a safety first approach - to punch the ball - would've been more prudent given the conditions[/color].

The highlighted are symptoms of something coming...in doing basic root cause analysis on the Ezenwa issue (5 ways) it comes down to ...decision quality. You can add the penalty vs Cameron, the WAFU gaffee where he almost conceded a penalty. Paid coaches will watch tape and know exactly how to get us, we'll pay for it if we don't fix the issue, fixes the issues....i mean replacement