The Best 10 Goalkeepers
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What attributes do the best goalkeepers in the world have? The role of a keeper ain't what is used to be, with No.1s required to start moves as well as provide the last line of defence in the modern game.
It's often said that having a reliable man between the sticks will win you several points every season, and the following players are good examples of just that. We've ranked our goalkeepers by their all-round game as much as anything else, paying attention to the stats while balancing how good they can be in the biggest moments.
We've left out long-term absentees who simply can't be judged while they're injured, taking in the all-important stats alongside the eye test. This is who we've gone with…
The best goalkeepers in the world right now, ranked
10. Diogo Costa (Porto)
Diogo Costa became the first goalkeeper to save a penalty and record an assist in a Champions League fixture last season. In fact, he saved three penalties in the group stage.
The Portuguese has emerged as the best keeper in the Primeira Liga in recent years and though he's prone to the odd error – who isn't? – Costa is a man for the occasion and never shrinks under pressure. He's still only 23 and it's widely expected that when he leaves Porto, he'll be another £50m+ keeper heading to a big club.
9. Yassine Bounou (Al-Hilal)
He's since moved to Saudi Arabia but Yassine Bounou – or Bono, to his mates – has been imperious over the past 12 months. The Moroccan reached a World Cup semi-final at international level before winning a Europa League with Sevilla.
The Canadian-born custodian was best in Europe last season for Post-Shot Expected Goals per Shot on Target – try saying that after a few – using his considerable experience and commanding presence on the very biggest stages. A nomination for the Ballon d'Or has followed, to prove just how great he's been over the past year.
8. Emi Martinez (Aston Villa)
Over a 38-game season, there may be lapses in judgment that separate him from the elite. But as a big-game player, there may be no better goalkeeper on Earth than Emi Martinez.
Statistically, the Argentine doesn't stand out – though he does catch the second-most crosses in Europe's top five leagues, to highlight his dominance of a risky situation. But the big-game personality is what we love him for: we first saw it during Arsenal's 2020 FA Cup win, before Martinez became a national hero back home in Argentina. 2021 established him on the world stage with the Copa America before he won the Best Goalkeeper award in Qatar at the World Cup. He grows under any spotlight.
7. Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris Saint-Germain)
Paris Saint-Germain already had a top keeper in Keylor Navas and a decent backup in Alphonse Areola. Gianluigi Donnarumma was always going to establish himself as the next big superstar of the club, though, to oust them both.
Considering the ever-changing cast in front of him and the lack of press from the Galactico frontline, the giant Italian has had a lot of work to do since moving to France – and he now has the reputation of being one of Europe's finest. Gigi's good with his feet, commands his box well and he's a solid shot-stopper when called upon: he's already a European champion at international level, too. All before the age of 25 – he's only going up.
6. Mike Maignan (AC Milan)
When Donnarumma left AC Milan, fans would have been forgiven for worrying what the future held. Somehow, they managed to upgrade on the outgoing academy product.
Maignan has since deposed Hugo Lloris from Les Bleus, won a first Scudetto in a decade for the Rossoneri and has been a titan in the San Siro net. His reflexes are excellent, his command of his box is great – but his work on the ground is top-notch, too. The Frenchman has the most passes attempted per 90 in the first four games of the new season.
At 28, he might yet get even better. How did PSG let him through the net, to pardon the pun?
5. Bernd Leno (Fulham)
Bernd Leno's final Arsenal match was a significant one: a faultless performance away to Aston Villa, demonstrating why the Gunners had chosen him over his opposite that day, Emi Martinez. Yet Arsenal were about to cast the German aside, too.
Few eyebrows were raised at the time but Leno has ascended to levels few thought possible at Fulham – and the stats back it up. Last season, he was second in Europe for Post-Shot Expected Goals minus Goals Allowed, meaning he saved a whopping nine goals more than he should have. He was in the top 15 for passes completed, too, meaning he had just as much responsibility in starting attacks, with his distribution coming on in recent seasons.
Leno is a good reason why Fulham didn't just stay up, they soared. He's everything that you look for in a modern keeper and at under £5 million, he's been a steal for the west Londoners.
4. Andre Onana (Manchester United)
Andre Onana has been nothing short of a revelation since leaving Ajax. He was bought by Inter Milan for his ability on the ball yet by the halfway stage of last season, he was second in all of Europe's top five leagues for Post-Shot Expected Goals per shot on target, proving just how reliable he is as a shot-stopper.
He ended up being a huge reason why Iner went all the way to the Champions League final – and the fact that Simone Inzaghi's team invite a lot more pressure than the average trophy challengers makes his shot-stopping all the more impressive. Now at Manchester United, he's in an elite mini-league of glovesmen who are integral to the buildup. Even Onana himself trusts himself in possession, getting dropped from Rigobert Song's World Cup side for taking too many risks with the ball.
3. Ederson
It's arguable that Ederson could be the most influential goalkeeper in the Premier League since Petr Cech. Ball-playing keepers with viewed with bemusement, much less suspicion, when Pep Guardiola brought in Claudio Bravo – but though it took his second attempt to really nail the role, it's safe to say Ederson has been worth it.
There will always be those will never really rate the Brazilian too highly – and it's fair enough, in some respects. A good shot-stopper, Manchester City's No.1 is there primarily for his work on the ball – but to give credit where it's due, he's always been consistent. Ederson has never felt like a weak link, excelling whenever called upon for City, while winning the last three Premier League Golden Gloves.
And that ability with his feet only elevates him higher up this list. He's utterly superb as a footballer, let alone a goalkeeper.
2. Marc-Andre Ter Stegen
Marc-Andre Ter Stegen has taken his game to new heights in the last 12 months – which is something, considering he doesn't harbour much of an interest in the sport that's made him a superstar.
The German conceded just 20 goals in the whole of last season, which is frankly staggering – and Barcelona were on course to beat Petr Cech's 2005 record of 15 at one stage, with MATS only letting in 13 in his first 33 games, before Barça won the title and relaxed a little. The Post-Shot Expected Goals minus Goals Allowed numbers are amazing: he saved nearly nine whole goals more than he should have.
Far more than just precise with his stops, Ter Stegen completed 50 per cent of his passes over 40 yards, too – the second-best in Europe. With Manuel Neuer still injured, there's no doubting who Die Mannschaft's best option is these days.
1. Alisson
Alisson was seen as many as a goalkeeper who would help Liverpool play out from the back, with excellent passing range – and the Reds' forwards can testify to that, judging by how many goals their goalkeeper has started the attacking move of.
If goalkeeping can be roughly split into the possession-based and the shot-stopping, however, Alisson is the best goalkeeper in the world in terms of both. World-class when one-on-one and with his side struggling in midtable at times last season, Alisson was every bit the traditional shot-stopping life-saver: he saved 10 whole goals more than he should have. That's simply superhuman. You only have to look at his otherworldly stop from Miguel Almiron before the international break, which Eddie Howe described as "the best I've ever seen".
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