The goalkeeper's job is to guard the goal. He should handle the ball effectively in order to ensure good custody of his goal. There are lots of ball handling techniques. Some of them are really effective. Let us discuss those in this article.
If you happen to collect the ball that rolls towards you on ground, just bend at your waist, close your legs, bend at your knees, shovel the ball up with your hands and hold the ball to your chest. Alternatively, you can kneel on one knee perpendicular to the ball and collect it using both your hands. But here you carry the risk of letting the ball slip below your thighs. In order to avoid such an instance keep the knee of the leg that you have kneeled upon close to the heel of the other leg. This way you will close any gap through which the ball can slip through. Always hug your ball after collecting it. This will ensure that the ball does not bump out from your hands and fall to the feet of the opponent. It also will be an indication to the referee that you have the control of the ball.
If the ball is in the air above your waist then there is a possibility that you may drop the ball or miss it. In order to avoid it, you can place your hands such that you can see the back of your hands. Spread your fingers and catch the ball. Once again you have to hug the ball once you have caught it and remain so till you feel it is safe.
If the ball is coming at you in the air below waist level there is the possibility that it slips from your hand. In order to avoid such an instance catch the ball by keeping your palms facing the ball. Spread your fingers and create more surface area. Catch the ball and hold it close to chest until it is safe to release.
This is a little bit tricky because you will not know what to do exactly. In order to collect the ball efficiently, place your hands in a position to scoop up the ball. Position your back such that the ball does not bounce off you. If your position is stiff you risk giving the ball to your opponents as it will bounce of you.
As a goalkeeper it is vital that you communicate with your teammates. Being a goalkeeper you have the rare distinction of seeing the whole football field. You know "who is where" on the pitch. So it becomes your responsibility to guide your teammates to defend yourself. You have to make them aware of the position of opposition players. Ensure that you give feedback to your teammates regarding their defending. Also communicate loudly if you are going for the ball. This will avoid confusion in the defence.
You should keep close watch on the movements of the opposition players even when they are not in the vicinity of the ball. This way you can know about the movements of the opponent. You will be able to guide your defenders in a better way. You should at anytime know where the players are. For this your peripheral vision is vital. You should ask your defenders to cover the holes in the defense which could be exploited by the opponents attack.