On any given day, having a great goalkeeper can mean the difference between two football teams. Getting the better of a team in midfield and bypassing their defense is one thing; getting the ball past the goalkeeper is quite another.
Goalkeepers can be a real threat at the highest level of the game. They are capable of pulling off any number of heinous deeds. Goalkeepers will stretch to make themselves bigger or rush into a situation where boots are flying with no regard for the dangers involved.
Their reflexes will be world-class as well, which means that unless the goalscorer is clinical, his attempt will be thwarted. There are a lot of fantastic goalkeepers in the game right now. Just as scoring a goal is unique to strikers, keeping a clean sheet in a game is unique to goalkeepers.
Without further ado, here are the Six goalkeepers who have kept the cleanest sheets for club and country since 2020.
Top Six: Alisson( Brazil/Liverpool) -35 clean sheets
Although the Reds narrowly missed out on the Premier League, they still won a Champions League title that wouldn’t have been possible without Alisson‘s save against Napoli.
Individual saves aside, though, it was his incredible knack of keeping clean sheets that marked the biggest difference from his Anfield predecessors.
And when you include his games with Brazil, you discover that Alisson has astonishingly kept the same number of clean sheets (35) as he has conceded goals (35) since his Liverpool move.
Top Five: Thibaut Courtois (Belgium/Real Madrid) – 42 clean sheets
Thibaut Courtois has established himself as one of the world’s best goalkeepers over the last decade. Chelsea signed Courtois from Genk in 2011 and loaned him to Atletico Madrid for three seasons.
He honed his craft there and was already a formidable presence between the pipes when he returned to the Blues in 2014. Courtois has been Belgium’s first-choice goalkeeper for nearly a decade. In 2018, he completed his dream move to Real Madrid and had been the club’s first-choice goalkeeper ever since.
Courtois, who stands 6 ft 7 in, is a tall goalkeeper with few flaws. He is excellent at commanding his domain and maintaining his cool in stressful situations. Since 2020, the 29-year-old has kept 42 clean sheets in 100 appearances for club and country.
Top four: Yassine Bounou (Morocco/Sevilla) 42 clean sheets.
Yassine Bounou, or simply ‘Bono,’ is one of the world’s most underappreciated goalkeepers. The 30-year-old has been a standout for Sevilla in recent seasons.
The former Atletico Madrid B goalkeeper’s path has not always been easy, but his name deserves to be mentioned among the best goalkeepers of today. He is an excellent shot-blocker with quick reflexes.
Bounou is also good at penalties and, due to his athleticism, is a problematic keeper to beat from a distance. Since 2020, he has kept 42 clean sheets in 76 appearances for club and country across all competitions.
Top Three: Jan Oblak (Slovenia/Atletico Madrid) 43 clean sheets.
Over the last five years, Jan Oblak has arguably been the best goalkeeper in the world. The 28-year-old was outstanding for Atletico Madrid as they won La Liga in 2020-21.
Oblak is a physically intimidating goalkeeper with quick reflexes and excellent game reading. He owns the box, and his handling and shot-stopping abilities are second to none.
The Slovenian international also has a good command of his backline and is at ease with the ball at his feet. Oblak’s footwork has earned him a lot of praise, and he’s also an incredibly consistent presence between the sticks.
Since 2020, he has kept 43 clean sheets in 97 appearances for club and country across all competitions.
Top two: Edouard Mendy (Senegal/Chelsea) 43 clean sheets.
Chelsea signed Athletic Bilbao goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga in 2019 after triggering his €80 million release clause. The Spaniard failed to impress at Stamford Bridge and was so unimpressive in his appearances for the team that they were looking for a replacement soon after.
That is how Chelsea acquired Edouard Mendy in the summer of 2020. Since his arrival, the Senegalese international has been outstanding for the Blues, firmly establishing himself as their first-choice goalkeeper.
Mendy is one of the best shot-stoppers in the game right now, and he is known for his focus and poise. He is very good at marshaling his backline and is also very good at distribution. Mendy is also a brave goalkeeper who frequently comes out to claim crosses for his defenders.
In addition, Chelsea’s defense is quite formidable, and they rarely concede goals. Since 2020, Mendy has kept a whopping 43 clean sheets in just 79 appearances for club and country across all competitions.
Top One: Ederson Moraes (Brazil/Manchester City) 47 clean sheets.
Ederson Moraes joined Manchester City from Benfica in 2017 and has not looked back. The Brazilian international has proven to be well worth the €40 million they paid for him.
He has been instrumental in Manchester City’s three league titles in the last four seasons and continues to perform at the highest level. Ederson is an ideal fit for Pep Guardiola’s system due to his skill with the ball at his feet.
For a goalkeeper, he has an incredible passing range and frequently plays some extremely accurate long balls to his teammates.
Ederson is also a dominant physical presence in the area, with excellent reflexes. He also serves as a sweeper-keeper on occasion. The Brazilian is praised for his bravery and decision-making abilities. Since 2020, he has kept 47 clean sheets in 88 appearances for club and country.
