CD Fátima

First Team Goalkeeper Coach

2024 – 2026

Two seasons in the senior game: the 2nd best defensive record in the 2024/25 National Championships.

Role: First Team Goalkeeper Coach
Period: 2024 – 2026
Level: First Team
Competition: National Championships
Responsibilities: Methodology, daily training, IDPs, opposition analysis

Context.

I joined CD Fátima in 2024 to coach the First Team goalkeepers in the National Championships. Two seasons in the senior game. The work opened on two fronts. One is methodology: designing goalkeeper training that runs through the whole club, the same in the academy as in the First Team. The other is the model of play: putting the goalkeeper inside the way the team plays, instead of training him apart.

2nd best defensive record in the Portuguese National Championships — 2024/25

Goals.

01
One methodology, every age group

Design goalkeeper training that speaks the same language and applies the same criteria, from the academy to the First Team.
02
The goalkeeper inside the model of play

Stop training him apart and start training him as part of the first phase of build-up.
03
A plan for each player

Give every goalkeeper their own measurable objectives, reviewed through the season.

The work.

A club-wide methodology

I designed and implemented a club-wide goalkeeping methodology. Club-wide means the same criteria and the same language at every level, from the academy to the First Team.

A coach handing the ball to his goalkeeper at the start of a session, with the rest of the staff alongside.

First Team sessions

I led the First Team goalkeepers' training sessions. That was the on-pitch side of the job, and where the methodology left the page.

A goalkeeper striking the ball with his right foot in a long passing drill on the grass.

Individual Development Plans

I created Individual Development Plans (IDPs) for the goalkeepers, with the purpose of maximising their performance. Each player had objectives of his own, written into his plan.

Two members of the staff going through video on a laptop in a club room, the club flag on the wall.

Opposition analysis

I supported the coaching staff with comprehensive opposition scouting. The scouting looked for two things: the opponent's collective patterns and their goalkeeper's vulnerabilities, so the team knew what to exploit.