Star Czech goalkeeper sharpens his reflexes by laying trash in front of the goal to make the ball take unexpected bounces

Jason Caimduff/Reuters

Ask any self-respecting soccer fan who some of the best goalkeepers of the last 10 years are, and the name Petr Cech is bound to come up. He’s the star keeper for the Czech Republic and Arsenal in the English Premier League.

Over the course of his career, Cech has been known for consistently making timely saves and being a stalwart goalie. Now that Cech has gotten older – he’s 34 – he has come up with an interesting way to strengthen his reflexes.

Cech lays what appears to be water bottles and other trash in front of the goal. It’s one thing to know where the ball is going, but it is something else entirely to have to deal with the ball changing direction at the last split-second.

Thankfully, we still get to see a great goalkeeper of Cech’s caliber play into his 30s, and it’s encouraging to see that his improvisational skills are still going strong.