Iker Casillas is one of football's greatest ever goalkeepers - and he insists those between the sticks should not look past the number one part of their job.
Casillas won five LaLiga and three Champions League titles with Real Madrid as well as the 2010 World Cup with Spain, establishing a glittering reputation. But he recognises that the role of a goalkeeper has changed from a shot-stopper to even more.
However, that doesn't always go to plan. When his former club, Real Madrid, took on Liverpool at Anfield on Tuesday, both Thibaut Courtois and Alisson were guilty of errors which led directly to goals.
Both came from them attempting to play out from the back and getting caught in possession in a snapshot of the risks keepers are now looking to take. And Casillas is not a fan, revealing in a wide-ranging Talking Football episode with LaLiga TV via Viaplay that he is "old-school" and believes shot-stopping should remain the top priority - comments which ring true after events at Anfield in midweek.
Casillas said: "I’m old-school and I think the goalkeeper is there for saves. I’ve always thought it was best to have a guy in the net, who, every time they shoot at goal, clears the ones that go in and keeps the others out.
"I understand they’re an evolution and you need the goalkeeper to also be involved in the game, but I think they take too many risks clearing the ball from behind," he added. After Madrid's equaliser made it 2-2 at half-time, Eder Militao put them in front and Karim Benzema scored a quickfire double as they ran out 5-2 winners.
The game has also changed from the days when Casillas was able to benefit from a sweeper in front of him dictating the play and meaning he had little need to think about his distribution.
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He explained: "On my team we played 1-4-1-4 or 1-4-1-3, but the famous sweeper was always there with you. The one thing I didn’t have was a goal kick. I never did it because the sweeper cleared it, I couldn’t reach midfield. At most I could reach the centre circle.
"It was hard to leave the goal area. It was another way of playing. When we had a sweeper, we played back in the box. You hardly took responsibility for being able to come out. It was hard to make that decision, but like everything, it evolved."
Whilst he acknowledges he didn't have a great kick, that didn't stop Casillas being at the top of world football in his position for a number of years for both club and country.
And he believes Spain's success, winning two European championships and a World Cup in a period of dominance featuring numerous LaLiga players, will be hard to replicate.
He added: "You move up levels, you win titles, league titles, Euro Cups, Ballon d’Ors, Golden Gloves, but a World Cup is the maximum. I think it will be tough for teams to win the Euro Cup, World Cup and Euro Cup.
We played with many Spaniards who were here in LaLiga, important players who were always among the top ranked football players. I think it was a wonderful era for Spanish football. Let’s hope we see it again or at least get close to it, but people experienced the greatness."
Watch the full Talking Football episode with Iker Casillas exclusively on LaLigaTV via Viaplay on the 23rd February at 7.30PM. To watch LaLigaTV sign up with Viaplay or through Amazon Prime Video Channels
