Sportskeeda Football Awards 2016: Goalkeeper of the Year

#9 Stephane Ruffier (Reader’s Rank: 10 | Sportskeeda’s Rank: 7 | Average Score: 2.5)

Ruffier St-Ettiene Top Goalkeerper 2016 — Stephane Ruffier commands the goal for Saint-Etienne

Ligue 1’s relative unpopularity can be gauged by the fact that Stephane Ruffier received a grand total of 0 votes in our reader’s poll. It does the French keeper a great disservice, as Ruffier is undoubtedly the best goalkeeper in France, and perhaps ought to make the claim of being the national team’s goalkeeper ahead of Hugo Lloris.

Saint-Etienne are hardly one of the biggest clubs in France, and they possess what can be best described as a ‘nervous’ defence. Yet, Ruffier’s numbers are downright astonishing, as his saves-per-goal ratio of 3.05 is only bettered by the legendary Gianluigi Buffon in this list, while his tally of 110 saves in this calendar year is the highest out of all the 10 keepers listed.

Ruffier is also no mug when it comes to penalties, with a 50% success rate this season. Those are the kind of stats that explain why clubs of the stature of Manchester City, AS Roma and Arsenal have made moves for him in the past, only for St-Etienne to refuse to let go of their prize jewel.

If you’re still one of those who aren’t convinced, look at the proof of Ruffier’s talents in the video below: