Joe Hart: England's Game Against Switzerland and the Problems It May Cause

After England’s 2-2 draw against Switzerland on Saturday (4th June), Joe Hart came in for some criticism by the media due to his part in the two goals scored by Switzerland. Both goals came from free kicks and were preventable, either by the defence or by Hart.

England did well to turn the match around and claim a point—although Darren Bent should have scored the winner, missing an easy chance late on. 

In the days that followed, much of the English media reporting on the match highlighted Hart’s performance.

Before the free kicks, however, he had acquitted himself quite well, performing several good saves. Ironically, if any of those early shots had gone in, he would arguably have been criticised less.

The first Swiss goal was a high, looping free kick that was missed by Rio Ferdinand in defence; it curled sharply very late as it bounced in front of the goal. The shot deceived everyone and Hart’s last gasp dive was not enough to stop it from ending up in the net.

You can speculate all you like on whether Tranquillo Barnetta meant to place the ball in the net or whether it was a cross, but I don’t think Hart was to blame for the first goal—it was missed by the England defence and, until the bounce, it looked like it would carry straight past the far post. 

For all my defence of Hart, he was personally more to blame for the second goal: also another free kick by Barnetta, though this time it was lower and aimed between the two-man wall and inside Hart’s near post.

As much as the wall should be criticised for breaking and allowing the shot, any professional-level goalkeeper should not be beaten at his near post—especially considering England and Hart should have been alert to the danger following the first goal.

However, like I said, the media following the game were swift in their criticisms of Hart’s performance.

English goalkeepers do seem to be somewhat in the spotlight, and their performances are rarely ignored—especially when errors are made.

Rob Green’s World Cup was effectively over following his mistake against the USA in the first group match of the World Cup Finals in South Africa.

David James was lumbered with the unfortunate nickname of "Calamity James" in the papers following a string of mistakes; Scott Carson has rarely been seen in an England shirt for much the same reason.

Even one high-level mistake can be enough to severely damage the credibility of a goalkeeper.

The media is rarely kind enough to let these mistakes go unpunished; it is a serious point as to how powerful this can be. A manager can be the staunchest defender of a player in the world, but constant negative headlines have got to hit home somewhere, be it in confidence or in team selection, and the two are very much linked.

Goalkeepers are human, thus prone to error every now and again.

It is important for Hart to forget this and for England to let him get on with his job. At 24, Hart has the potential to be the England goalkeeper for many, many years. Being hounded for being unfortunate will not help his confidence.

Being a goalkeeper means you have ten players in front of you, but nobody to back you up when you make a mistake.

In open play, if a pass goes astray or if the ball is given away, it’s mentioned briefly and forgotten. Goalkeeper mistakes tend to result in goals, or at least moments of high drama, which are not so easily forgotten.

It’s ironic that the only time goalkeepers can gain glory is by saving penalties, though normal expectation is for the penalty to be converted.

Goalkeepers cannot hide from fans, the cameras or anyone who watches. They are alone on the pitch and, like I said before, are singled out of it in the wake of a bad game—even if the team as a whole played poorly, the goalkeeper will nearly always take the flak for not stopping a goal. 

If Hart can shrug off the events of this last international, keep his head clear and his performances consistent, then well done to him.

If the questions about his ability turn to little more than snide remarks and "humorous" nicknames and headlines, they may well cost the England squad their best goalkeeper for some time.

Thanks for reading.