The World Cup is the only sports stage where you can see the best goalkeepers in the world in one place.
During this grand tournament, you’ll notice goalies guarding their national teams’ goalposts like hawks, directing the squad, and showing some spectacular skills.
Wondering what are the best goalkeepers at the World Cup? Wonder no more.
In this article, we’ll give you the rundown of some of the top goalies in the World Cup – so far.
Top 7 Goalkeepers At The World Cup
A strong and focused goalie it’s the key to victory. That’s why all national teams are taking three of their best goalies to defend them.
So, are you excited to see your favourite goalkeepers playing in the 2022 World Cup?
But before the W. Cup officially starts, check out seven of the best goalkeepers in the World Cup.
7. José Sá
Current Club: Wolverhampton Wanderers
Country: Portugal
Born: 17 January 1993
José is part of the Portuguese national team and the goalkeeper of the Premier League, Wolverhampton.
Sá marked a fantastic 2021/22 PL season (11 clean sheets, 37 appearances, and 15 club victories) – hard to reach by many PL goalies.
By the looks of it, the season 2022/23 reflects a promising start too. The Wanderers’ goalkeeper took part in each of the 15 PL games the team played.
Ultimately, José made 52 PL appearances, kept 15 clean sheets, and achieved one assist.
6. Unai Simón
Current Club: Athletic Bilbao
Country: Spain
Born: 11 June 1997
Unai Simón plays for the Spain national team and is the first goalkeeper choice to defend Spain’s goal at the W.Cup in Qatar.
But, this was unavoidable since Unai’s shot-blocking skills and excellent ball game is the perfect fit for coach Enrique’s system play.
Simón is currently Athletic Bilbao’s netkeeper, and so far, he has kept 45 clean sheets and conceded 146 goals during 142 club appearances.
Also Read: How much does the World Cup weigh?
5. Hugo Lloris
Current Club: Tottenham Hotspur
Country: France
Born: 26 December 1986
Lloris is Tottenham’s veteran keeper and ‘Captain Savouir’ for the France national team. After claiming the most expensive football trophy back in 2018, he’s leading France in another world battle (2022).
As the national team’s captain, Hugo successfully led France to
- FIFA World Cup qualifying playoffs (2010);
- UEFA Euro quarter-finals (2012);
- the 2014 World Cup, etc.
The French also had an excellent run with Tottenham, one of the most successful English clubs. His 2016/17 season was fantastic. He kept a clean sheet in the UEFA Champions League against B. Leverkusen and performed a one-handed stop shot on the goal line to disarm Javie Hernandez.
Lloris’s overall EPL contribution contains 124 clean sheets, 351 apps, 952 saves, and 5 saved penalties.
Unfortunately, a Hull City goal demolished his chances of winning the Golden Glove (2017).
Now, he stands a chance of winning the 2022 Golden Glove and defending the title alongside the best world striker, Benzema and Mbappé, who’s listed as one of the fastest football players.
4. Édouard Mendy
Current Club: Chelsea
Country: Senegal
Born: 1 March 1992
Mendy is Chelsea’s goalkeeper – one of London’s most successful clubs. And the man between the goalposts for Senegal national team at the World Cup 2022.
Édouard spent most of his career playing for French clubs (Cherbourg, Reims, Rennes) until he decided to transfer to Chelsea (2020).
Before moving to the EPL, he marked a high-end success rate of 75.3% (2.5 saves on average per match) with Rennes – the highest record saves in Ligue 1.
In his debut season with The Blues, Mendy kept 16 clean sheets, 31 appearances, and one saved penalty.
These numbers led to Édouard becoming the 1st African goalkeeper to ever play in a senior PL club.
Also read: Who are the best forwards at the World Cup?
3. Manuel Neuer
Current Club: Bayern Munich
Country: Germany
Born: 27 March 1986
Neuer is Bayern’s goalkeeper (12 seasons now) and the German national team captain. He’s also considered the best goalie in the World Cup.
This high-rank goalkeeper gathered many awards throughout his career:
- 1x World Cup trophy/ golden medal and a Golden Glove award (2014)
- 10x German champion (with Bayern) — 2nd place for having won the most German championship titles, etc.
Neuer was a key player in Germany’s lines during the 2012 UEFA Euro — and he hasn’t missed a single minute in ten out of ten successful games.
The 2022/23 Bundesliga season is also going in Neuer’s favour — especially since he has starred in Bayern’s twelve games so far.
Manuel’s stats alongside Bayern show 478 appearances, 322 games won, and 226 clean sheets.
Since coach Flick’s final squad choice is revealed, we’re hoping to see Germany all the way this time with Manuel doing what he does best!
2. Alisson Becker
Current Club: Liverpool
Country: Brazil
Born: 2 October 1992
Alisson plays for the Brazil national team and defends the net of the PL champion Liverpool. And the word is that Alisson is one of the best goalies in the world, with exquisite skills when faced with one-on-one situations.
This keeper became a fundamental part of Liverpool’s squad in the four seasons spent. Though, his debut season, 2018/19, was extraordinary – marked with 21 clean sheets, 38 appearances, 22 goals conceded, and 30 victories vs 1 defeat.
Moreover, it brought him titles like Premier League Golden Gloves and Champions League winners medal.
Looking at his full PL chart, you’ll find solid stats such as 68 clean sheets, 150 appearances, 2 saved penalties, and 104 wins vs 17 losses.
It seems that Tite is going ALL IN in Qatar — a killer squad combination of experience and youth, with Alisson as his first goalkeeper alongside Ederson (Man City).
Also read: Who will win the World Cup?
1. Thibaut Courtois
Current Club: Real Madrid
Country: Belgium
Born: 11 May 1992
Courtois is the keeper of one of Europe’s most successful clubs – the Madridistas and the Belgium national team ‘golden hands.’
He managed 27 saves in the Belgian squad that played in the 2018 World Cup and took a bronze medal.
Despite finishing 3rd, they showed quality play. Courtois gave us unforgettable 2018 moments — like the save against one of the best forwards and most hated footballers on the field – Neymar. This handed Courtois the Golden Glove award (2018) for being the best keeper in the World Cup.
The Belgian is also 6x champion: London’s pride – Chelsea (2), Real Madrid (2), Athletic Bilbao (1), and Genk (1).
As the first choice in all 10 La Liga appearances in 2022/23, Thibaut already defended 900 minutes total. However, Real is still waiting for his first clean sheet.
Conclusion
There you have it. This was our hand-picked list of the best goalkeepers at the World Cup. And by the look of things, i.e., the listed names, Qatar is getting ready for one fierce battle.
This is undoubtedly a World Cup tournament – you don’t want to miss it!
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