For Phali the joy is seeing young goalkeepers he coached making it

Former Orlando Pirates goalkeeper Avril Phali (right) views football as a neverending lesson about how the world around us keeps changing.

Phali has not missed a beat since deciding to make football a big part of his life as a young man, making the transition from goalkeeper to coaching soon after he hung up his gloves.

“I was injured towards the end of the 2012 season, I had to undergo surgery, but I decided not to risk it and retired,” recalled Phali. “I was fortunate that I was offered a job as a goalkeeping coach at Cosmos after I decided to step down.”

Phali says he studies football from all around the world to add to the knowledge he gained while playing for some of South Africa’s big sides. The 39-yearold believes goalkeepers need a pat on the back after each game, regardless of the results.

“I have a different approach to coaching goalkeepers, it is not right to blame the keeper for mistakes committed during the game. For example, what David de Gea did with the second goal from Portugal (against Spain at the World Cup), that is something any goalkeeper can do, we have all spilled the ball at some point. It’s important to give him support because you can bounce back in the next game if the goalkeeper coach remains supportive after that.”

The former Cosmos keeper draws motivation from seeing players he coached turning out as key players for their teams in the National First Division. Cosmos have developed a number of players who have recently found themselves in the Absa Premiership and clubs in the National First Division. Phali is delighted with his contribution in building the next generation of players.

“As someone who is teaching others how to do something, you also need to keep learning. I look at football as a classroom and a lot of lessons take place on the field. You look at the positioning of a goalkeeper, how they approach the game, and the way they cover the defenders or direct them on how to line up differently to other teams, so you can see the effect the set-up has on each team. I don’t have big plans – for me, seeing players I worked with doing well makes me happy.”

A week after his former employers unveiled nine players to bolster their squad, Phali applauds Pirates for their “bravery” in the transfer market leading up to the 2018/2019 season.

“They had a good season and the squad looks good and ready to compete now. I was impressed with all the signings and the squad they already had, now all they need is to win. Even last season, they failed at critical stages but did well overall. Brilliant Khuzwayo was brave to move to Pirates from Chiefs. I see more and more clubs going for young goalkeepers, which is good, it will also help the national team in the building process.”