Goalkeepers are considered the last line of Defence and the first line of attack as per modern football, and time and time again, goalkeepers have risen to the occasion and saved their teams. Being a Goalkeeper isn’t easy because one day, you are a hero if you keep a clean sheet or make a match-winning save, but you can also turn into a villain very quickly if you make a costly error and cost your team the match.
So without further ado, here is the list of Top Most Successful Goalkeepers of All Time:
1. Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich and Germany)
There are Goalkeepers who are good at keeping the ball at their feet, but no one is better than “The Sweeper Keeper”. He is so good that Pep Guardiola even joked about playing him as a midfielder but being good at keeping the ball at his feet isn’t the only weapon. Neuer is fast, composed, flexible, and is known for his shot-stopping ability.
He has won 2 UEFA Champions League, 8 Bundesliga, 2 FIFA Club World Cup, and Germany, with whom he won the most prestigious trophy, the FIFA World Cup. Manuel Neuer is one of the Successful Goalkeepers.
2. David de Gea (Manchester United and Spain)
His Shot-stopping either from his hand or through his feet is second to none. David de Gea had single-handedly carried Manchester United on his back and has been the most consistent player since Sir Alex Ferguson retired.
His best individual season came in 2017-2018, where he kept 18 clean sheets and helped united finish 2nd. Apart from individual laurels, David has won Premier league, league cup, FA Cup, UEFA super cup, 2 Europa League,3 Community shields at club level and has won UEFA U-17 & U-21 Championship for Spain.
3. Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus and Italy)
His peak came at the 2006 World Cup, where he conceding just two goals on route to Italy’s fourth triumph, and at his absolute best, he is still one of the three best in the world.
What makes him Successful Goalkeepers all time is that he is still playing at 42 and not looking like stopping? Buffon is an excellent athlete, a serial winner. The only title that has eluded him is the UEFA champion’s league.
4. Thibaut Courtois (Real Madrid and Belgium)
Thibaut Courtois is no stranger to Best Goalkeeper lists; the towering Belgian stands at 6ft 7 and makes the scoring goals challenging for strikers. Currently plying his trade in Real Madrid, having had a tough first season for Real where he wasn’t welcomed at first due to his association with Athletico Madrid, with whom he won a La Liga title in 2014. But the Belgian has put his troubles behind him and is looking like he is not going anywhere.
5. Petr Cech (Arsenal and the Czech Republic)
Petr Cech is probably one of the best Goalkeepers in 2021. His excellent conditions, great positioning, and quick reflexes led him to be one of the best goalkeepers in the world of the last decade, standing out both in his local league and in France with Rennes and in England with Chelsea. He currently holds two records: undefeated goal in the Czech League for 855 minutes with Sparta Prague and 1025 minutes in the Premier League. Cech has had an illustrious career winning Premier League 4 times, FA Cup 5 times, and 1 UEFA Champions League Title.
6. Hugo Lloris (Tottenham and France)
Although he has never been considered in the TOP 3 of the world’s best goalkeepers, this does not prevent him from being recognized among the best. He was France’s captain at the 2018 World Cup and reached the Champions League final in 2019 with Tottenham. A leader on the pitch, not many teams will say no to him walking in their team.
7. Claudio Bravo (Manchester City and Chile)
There is no doubt that Claudio Bravo is one of the significant figures of the golden generation and is among the top Most Successful Goalkeepers. He was fundamental in the most important matches of the Red; he became key with great covers, control of the game, handling with his feet, order of Defence, security and other factors that made him a legend. Another characteristic is his ability to save penalties, demonstrated in the two penalty shootouts in the Copa América finals, where he was a figure and a hero.
8. Iker Casillas (Porto and Spain)
Five times IFFIIS rated Casillas as the best goalkeeper in the world; played a record number of matches for the Spanish team (167) won the world club championship and the FIFA world soccer championship, two European championships, has five Spanish champions, and all these awards he received before reaching 35 years old.
9. Joe Hart (Burnley and England)
Joe Hart at one time took the premier league by storm by winning four golden gloves awards in 5 years from 2010 to 2015; in that process, he won two League titles, one each FA Cup and League Cup. Now plying his trade in Burnley, Joe Hart is one of the Best Goalkeepers that England has produced.
10. Vincent Enyeama ( Hapoel Tel Aviv FC and Nigeria)
Vincent Enyeama, the head of the Nigerian national team, could well be the goalkeeper of any upper-middle team in the strongest leagues in Europe. He was about to do it at Bolton, but an untimely cold made him fail the first test. In his later years, he had played in one of the peripheral leagues in Europe, the Israeli, defending Bnei Yehuda’s goal from Tel Aviv, with which he has made magnificent performances that have made him sign for Hapoel in the same city that summer. Still, Vincent Enyeama is the most successful goalkeeper his country has ever produced. He also went onto make 101 appearances for Nigeria.
