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Though they might not enjoy the privileges accorded their outfield counterparts, goalkeepers are extremely important members of any football team, as they play a very important role in deciding the fate of their respective teams.
The current roster of the Premier League boasts some of the best shotstoppers in the world and once next season kicks off from the 13th of August, these goalkeepers would hope to be in top form over the next nine months to help their clubs achieve their ambitions.
There are numerous awards handed out at the end of every Premier League season and one of the most prestigious is the Golden Glove.
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Introduced at the end of the 2004/2005 season, the award is given to the goalkeeper with the most number of clean sheets at the conclusion of the campaign and has been won by some truly legendary shotstoppers in the past including Petr Cech, Edwin Van der Sar and Pepe Reina.
Joe Hart and Petr Cech are the joint record winners of the award with four each and in this piece, we shall be highlighting five goalkeepers who are most likely to win the Golden Glove come the end of next season.
Also See : Durand Cup, Durand Cup Schedule, Durand Cup Points Table.
#5 Kepa Arrizabalaga (Chelsea)
Kepa is the current most expensive goalkeeper of all time having completed a transfer worth €80m in August 2018 to break the previous record of €72m Liverpool paid for Alisson just three weeks prior.
The 24-year-old starred for Chelsea, making 36 league appearances for the club, keeping 14 clean sheets while also cementing his place as Spain's first choice goalkeeper during the EURO qualifiers.
With Frank Lampard taking charge, it is unknown how much priority the Chelsea legend would place on his defense, but regardless Kepa is sure to be in the running for the Golden Glove award.
#4 David de Gea (Manchester United)
Between 2014 and 2017, David de Gea made a strong case to be considered as the best goalkeeper in the world.
In what were truly shambolic Manchester United teams, the Spanish international was the one true shining light, making save after unbelievable saves to keep a modicum of the Red Devil's reputation intact.
His performances during this time saw him achieve the rather unusual feat of being named Manchester United Player of the Season for three consecutive years (four in total) and this was very much an indication of his abilities as it was an indictment on the poor output of his outfield teammates.
In addition to the above, the Spanish international was also voted into the PFA Team of the Season for four consecutive seasons (five in total) and named in the FIFPRO XI in 2018.
However for all of his heroics, de Gea has just one Golden Glove to his name, as he has been the victim of very porous defenses which have hampered his shot at the accolade.
The 27-year-old hit a rough patch of form over the last one year, but would seek to remind everyone of his undoubted abilities next season.
#3 Hugo Lloris (Tottenham)
Hugo Lloris has been one of the omnipresent in a Tottenham side that has overachieved over the last five seasons.
The 32-year-old arrived White Hart Lane in 2012 after four stellar seasons in France with Lyon and since then, he has made over 300 appearances in all competitions for the North London outfit, becoming club captain in the process.
Lloris is an established international with the French national team and skippered Les Bleus to the World Cup in 2019 and even though he is yet to taste silverware at club level, he remains one of the higher profile goalkeepers in the Premier League.
Though prone to the occasional goalkeeping gaffe, Hugo Lloris is dependable between the sticks and he has formed a seamless partnership with Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld in the Tottenham defense.
At the end of the 2016/2017 season, the former Lyon man helped Tottenham achieve the best defensive record in their history, conceding just 26 goals from 38 league matches, keeping 15 clean sheets in the process.
Lloris is yet to win the Golden Glove after seven seasons in the Premier League and he would be hoping the upcoming campaign is one where he can finally get his hands on the prestigious award.
#2 Ederson Moraes (Manchester City)
With the lexicon 'ball playing goalkeeper' having become very much a part of football discourse these days, there is perhaps no shotstopper in the world who personifies this classification more than Ederson.
Proof of this came at the start of last season when the 25-year-old recorded an assist for Sergio Aguero straight from a goalkick in the 6-1 mauling of Huddersfield in August and to state that Ederson is an instrumental part of City's buildup play is merely stating the obvious.
The Brazilian international is adept with the ball on both feet and while many of his contemporaries would buckle under pressure when charged down by opposition forwards, the former Benfica man never loses his calm and almost always ensures he gets the ball to a teammate.
Ederson is however not just a ball playing goalie good at nothing else, as he ranks up there with the best in the business, possessing sharp reflexes and an imposing physique to ensure that he also excels at his primary duty viz: keeping the ball out of his net.
While he might not have the most aggressive of defenders in front of him, Manchester City's possession based style of play ensures that opposition players rarely get hold of the ball to have a shot at goal and having lost out on the Golden Glove last season due to a goal conceded on the last day, Ederson would be hoping to go one better next term.
#1 Alisson Becker (Liverpool)
Alisson Becker arrived Liverpool in July 2018 and instantly became a Messiah, as he provided a solution to what had been a recurring problem at Anfield.
While Van Dijk's purchase was extremely important to the transformation of Liverpool; Alisson's addition was arguably more important, as the 26-year-old has proved to be the missing piece in the puzzle that Liverpool needed to become genuine title contenders.
In his first season at Anfield, Alisson appeared in all 51 matches Liverpool disputed across the Premier League and Champions League, keeping 27 clean sheets across both competitions to help Jurgen Klopp's men to second place in the former and the trophy in the latter.
The Novo Hamburgo native's 21 clean sheets in the Premier League were enough to see him win the Golden Glove, which is a feat he also repeated in the Champions League and Copa America to put him firmly in the running to be named the 2019 UEFA Best Men's Player.
