Barthez: Goalkeeping hasn't evolved enough
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Describing himself as a man who loves life’s many pleasures, Fabien Barthez likes to live in the fast lane.
Following a trophy-laden career in which he won the UEFA Champions League with Olympique Marseille, two Ligue 1 titles with Monaco, the English Premier League on two occasions with Manchester United and the FIFA World Cup™ and UEFA EURO trophy with France, the flamboyant keeper now devotes his considerable energies to motor racing.
The career change has been a successful one too, with Barthez winning the 2013 FFSA French GT Championship title and taking part in a number of other motorsport events since then, including the prestigious Le Mans 24-Hour race last year.
Yet, as he told FIFA.com in an exclusive interview, while racing is a major passion of his, football remains the be all and end all in his life.
That devotion was clear for all to see when Le Divin Chauve (The Divine Bald One) returned to the pitch at the recent Match Against Poverty, turning in a typically energetic performance alongside the likes of Zinedine Zidane and Ronaldo.
It was there that FIFA.com caught up with the French entertainer, whose face lit up as he recalled a truly glittering career.
FIFA.com: Do you feel that the art of goalkeeping has evolved over the last few years?
Fabien Barthez: It hasn’t evolved enough. There are a lot of keepers in Europe’s major leagues who aren’t very good with their feet, for example. The likes of Manuel Neuer, Thibault Courtois and Hugo Lloris all play pretty high up but most keepers still lack depth in their game. We’re almost going backwards. In the 1980s keepers had to be big. They had to take up as much space in the goal as possible, and we’ve gone back to that a little bit. Obviously, for me personally, that’s not how I see the job of goalkeeping. I think it’s a little bit more important than that.
Manuel Neuer played a big part in Germany’s FIFA World Cup™ win. Were you disappointed he didn’t win the FIFA Ballon d’Or?
It didn’t really surprise me. The fact is that goalkeepers are always in the background. They’re not in the limelight that much. I’ve often heard coaches saying that to build a team you need a good keeper and a good striker and that you create everything else around them. Coaches aside, though, it’s not a position that gets that much recognition. Keepers have been undervalued for as long as people have been playing football. Think about it – when kids have a kickabout, it’s always the worst players who go in goal.
"The likes of Manuel Neuer, Thibault Courtois and Hugo Lloris all play pretty high up but most keepers still lack depth in their game. We’re almost going backwards."
Fabien Barthez
Don’t tell us that’s how you started out.
No, I was a decent outfield player, and I’m not being big-headed about it. I’m just talking in general. In the 1980s and 90s, you didn’t have goalkeeping coaches, which also says a lot about the lack of recognition the position has always suffered from. But that’s the way it is! People prefer the guys who score goals to the ones who stop them. It’s more entertaining.
Which of today’s keepers do you admire?
I like Hugo [Lloris] a lot, and not just as a goalkeeper. I like him as a person too. Then there’s Thibaut Courtois. To my mind, he’s the goalkeeping great of the future. And I think he’ll maintain that status for a few years too.
Who did you dream of emulating when you were young?
Joel Bats (France keeper from 1983 to 1989). He was a left-footer like me, and he was very neat and tidy in everything he did. He came out a lot too at set-pieces. He was always my role model.
Is there one match that you’re especially proud of from your career?
(Pauses) The UEFA EURO 2000 semi-final against Portugal is among my happiest memories. It was a very intense match and the pressure was really on. The game went into extra time and Zinedine Zidane scored a golden goal. Then there was the 1998 World Cup Final and the 1993 Champions League final with Olympique Marseille. There were quite a few nice games.
Did you feel invincible with Laurent Blanc, Marcel Desailly, Lilian Thuram and Bixente Lizarazu in front of you?
It wasn’t so much invincibility as feeling at ease. We really worked well together. That was our strength. We read each other’s games and we knew exactly how each of us played.
Which forwards gave you the biggest problems?
Pauleta and Ronaldo. On the international scene it was more or less equal, but it was a different story at club level. I remember two very painful games for Manchester United against Real Madrid in the Champions League quarter-final in 2003 where Ronaldo really hurt me.
You’re a racing driver now. What are the things you’ve learned from football that have helped you at the wheel?
As an elite sportsman, I’m able to listen and I’m grounded. They’re the kind of attributes you need to perform when you play a sport. And there are reflexes and anticipation too, of course.
Would you describe yourself as an adrenaline junkie?
No, I’m a junkie with all the good things life has to offer. I’m a pleasure-seeker. I live the moment to the max.
What do Barthez the driver and Barthez the goalkeeper have in common?
They both take calculated risks. I thought about every dribble I went on in the penalty area and the same was true every time I ventured outside the box. I never did things just to entertain. It’s the same with racing. And then there’s the passion of it all.
Is there one that holds sway over the other?
Yes. Driving is a huge passion of mine but football comes first. Football is my life.