World Cup 2018: Top 10 Goalkeepers in the tournament

Loris Karius is a decent goalkeeper. Yes, that seems incredibly absurd considering the events of the last few weeks. In reality, Karius was statistically competent in the Premier League this season, finishing as the 5th best goalkeeper according to Squawka stats. Yet, all that will be remembered about Karius’s season is the two errors he made against Real Madrid in the Champions League final. That is the nature of the goalkeeping position, where players (with the exception of aliens like David De Gea and Manuel Neuer) are remembered for their mistakes, rather than their successes.

This is partially justified because how a poor goalkeeper can change the fortunes of a team. After all, the Champions League final may have been very different if Karius had not made those two catastrophic errors. On the other hand, the role of an excellent goalkeeper is often understated. One could even argue that a good goalkeeper is the most vital ingredient of a successful World Cup team. Don’t believe me? Just ask Oliver Kahn, Gianluigi Buffon, Iker Casillas and Manuel Neuer. Those are the starting goalkeepers for the last four winners of the World Cup. They are also arguably the four best goalkeepers of the past twenty years. Coincidence? I think not.

Note: For the purposes of this analysis, only likely starting goalkeepers will be included. Thus, the likes of Marc-André ter Stegen, Ederson, Pepe Reina and even Nick Pope have been excluded from the rankings.

---

Honorable Mentions:

Obviously, there are more than 10 excellent goalkeepers in the world. Before we get to the rankings, it is necessary to acknowledge some players who were close to making the standings.

David Ospina

Ospina was excellent in the last World Cup, as his performances in goal helped guide Colombia (along with the extraordinary exploits of James Rodriguez) to the quarter-finals. Ospina’s performances in that tournament helped earn him a move to Arsenal, where he has been decent as a backup goalkeeper over the past four years. In a very limited sample size, Ospina finished 11th out of 38 goalkeepers in the Premier League over the past season. Despite this, Ospina’s lack of playing time for the Gunners may be an issue in the World Cup.

Jordan Pickford

England manager Gareth Southgate seems to have settled on Pickford as his first-choice shot-stopper in the World Cup. While Pickford has been decent in past seasons, he endured a rather inconsistent campaign for Everton (like many of his teammates). In fact, according to Squawka, Pickford ranked 37 out of 38 Goalkeepers in the 2017-18 Premier League. Statistically, Southgate’s decision to start the 24-year-old over Nick Pope and Jack Butland may not be the correct one.

Rui Patricio

Patricio was the last goalkeeper left off the list; the Portuguese was excellent in the Primeira Liga last season for Sporting CP as the Lisbon team finished third. Patricio's Squawka Performance Score of 547 was exceptional in the Primeira Liga, as his nearest challenger finished with a score of 435. The 30-year-old’s experience will be extremely valuable for Portugal, having been a starter in three previous major international tournaments. Patricio’s excellence was a major reason why Portugal won the Euro 2016 final, as he kept a clean sheet.

Follow Sportskeeda for 2018 World Cup Scores, Latest News & Updates, Match Analysis, Detailed Stats, Fantasy Tips, Controversies, Match Predictions and much more.

#10 Guilherme Ochoa

Ochoa was one of the stories of the 2014 FIFA World Cup, as his performances managed to help the El Tri reach the knockout stages. Ochoa made a variety of eye-catching saves and even kept a clean sheet against hosts Brazil in Mexico’s second game of the tournament. Over the past season, Ochoa has managed to replicate those performances for Standard Liege, as the Belgian club finished second in the First Division.

Ochoa was particularly excellent in the Championship Playoffs stage of the First Division, where he only conceded nine goals in ten gamWhile Ochoa played in a relatively weak league, his spectacular performances in the past for Mexico are enough for him to finish 10th in this list. Ochoa will need to replicate these performances if Mexico are to break their streak of exits in the Round of 16 since 1994.

#9 Yann Sommer

Switzerland’s first game might be their toughest as they face one of the favorites Brazil. If the Swiss are to get a result from that game, Yann Sommer’s performance will be crucial. The 29-year-old shot-stopper has been consistently excellent for Borussia Monchengladbach over the past four seasons. While his best season was four years ago (when he was statistically the best keeper in the Bundesliga), he has continued to be great for the Die Fohlen.

Last season, the Swiss keeper was (according to Squawka Stats) the 5th best keeper in the Bundesliga. However, his ranking is affected by the decline in his club’s fortunes as Gladbach have fallen from the Champions League to mid-table performances (finishing 9th the past two seasons). Defensively, they have regressed spectacularly from conceding only 26 goals in 2014-15 to 52 in 2017-18. While this is mainly due to a regressing defense, Sommer’s declining performances are also partially responsible. Switzerland will be hoping that Sommer can replicate his 2015 performances in the World Cup, especially against Brazil.

#8 Wojciech Szczesny

Szczesny’s presence in this list may be surprising to some readers who were familiar with his inconsistent performances for Arsenal and his status as a backup goalkeeper for Juventus. However, Szczesny played 17 games for the Bianconeri in Serie A last season, as Gianluigi Buffon missed significant time due to a bruised calf.

In those games, Szczesny only conceded 9 goals. While that was partially due to Juventus’s excellent defense, Szczesny’s performances were also responsible for that excellent record. In fact, Szczesny conceded fewer goals per game (0.53) than Buffon (0.67) in Serie A. Thus when watching Poland battle Colombia, Japan and Senegal in Group H, remember that Szczesny is not your typical “back-up” goalkeeper.

#7 Kasper Schmeichel

The son of Manchester United legend Peter Schmeichel, Kasper has become a great goalkeeper in his own right. His best performances were probably in the 2015-16 season, when the Dane’s excellent shot-stopping help Leicester City mount one of the greatest upsets in sports history.

Schmeichel has continued his good form over the past two seasons, where his shot-stopping was 5th in the league according to Squawka stats (minimum of 15 games played). On the other hand, Schmeichel was poor in terms of his distribution finishing 19th out of 24 qualified goalkeepers. This will have to improve in the World Cup if Denmark are to progress past the group-stages. His performance will be especially important in Denmark’s last group stage game where they face one of the favorites in France.

#6 Keylor Navas

Based on club performances, Keylor Navas should not be placed as high in these rankings. The Real Madrid goalkeeper made several errors for the Los Blancos over the past three seasons, for which he has been ostracized by fans and pundits alike. Statistically, his performances have also been unimpressive as the Costa Rican keeper’s shot-stopping ranked 7th in La Liga, rather poor for a Real Madrid goalkeeper. However, Navas is ranked highly simply because the 31-year-old is a different player when he plays for Costa Rica. Famously, Navas was excellent in the last world cup as his goal-keeping helped Costa Rica make the quarter-finals when most had fancied them to be the bottom team in the “Group of Death”. In fact, Navas kept three clean sheets (only conceding two goals )in five games in the tournament. Navas continued this form for the national team during qualifying for this World Cup as he only conceded four goals in six games during the ‘Hex’ stage.

Navas is also certainly a winner, having started for (and won) three Champions League finals with Real Madrid. That winning experience along with his usual international form will be necessary for Costa Rica against the likes of Brazil, Switzerland, and Serbia.

#5 Thibaut Courtois

This is where we really start to consider the most elite goalkeepers in the World Cup. Courtois has been an excellent shot-stopper for both Atletico Madrid and Chelsea, having won three league titles along the way. Courtois has been similarly excellent for the national team, performing well as a member of Belgium’s “Golden Generation”. This was apparent in the last World Cup, where Courtois only conceded three goals in five games. However, Courtois slipped from his usually excellent standards over the past season as he made several errors in crucial games especially the Blues’ 3-0 defeat to Barcelona. In that game, the Belgian was beaten twice at the near post, almost a criminal offense for a Goalkeeper. Such errors are why Courtois is 5th in these rankings, when perhaps a year ago he would have been placed 3rd in these rankings.

Nonetheless, Courtois’s underlying statistics continue to be impressive as according to Squawka stats, the Chelsea keeper was the 3rd best keeper in the Premier League over the past season. If Belgium’s Golden Generation is to finally live up to its promise and win the World Cup, Courtois will need to replicate his 2017 form.

#4 Hugo Lloris

The French goalkeeper beat Courtois by a whisker in these rankings, simply because of more consistent performances over the past season. The Frenchman’s shot-stopping prowess is indisputable as the Frenchman makes outstanding saves on a regular basis for one of the Premier League’s best defences in Tottenham Hotspur. Lloris is also particularly excellent in the air, a skill that will be particularly useful for France as inferior teams will look at set-pieces to score against the Les Bleus. Perhaps, the most interesting aspect of the 31-year-old’s game is his ball distribution where his desire to play as a sweeper-keeper can range from revolutionary to catastrophic.

Lloris’s rather erratic style can often lead to goals against his team as according to Opta’s data, the Frenchman has made the most errors leading to goals since 2015/16 in the Premier League. At the same, Lloris has the potential to be spectacular which is why despite his errors, statistically he ranked among the top two goalkeepers over the past three seasons. Lloris will need to continue that form and eliminate his errors if he is to lead France to their first World Cup title since 1998.

#3 Alisson

Two years ago, Alisson made several errors as Brazil crashed out of the group stages in the Copa America Centenario 2016. At that point, his international career seemed to be in ruin as he had failed in what was a second-string Brazil side. His struggles continued in 2016-17 where he didn’t make a single appearance in Serie A for Italian giants AS Roma. Yet, over the past season, Alisson transformed from a backup to one of the best goalkeepers in the world.

In fact, statistically, the Brazilian was the best goalkeeper in Serie A. This in a league that includes Buffon, Szczesny, Samir Handanovic and Pepe Reina. He also performed well at the biggest stage, where he was exceptional in the Champions League. This was especially true at the Stadio Olimpico, where Alisson only conceded two goals in five games as Roma upset Barcelona and Atletico Madrid to reach the semifinals of the Champions League. Such error-free performances is why the Roma shot-stopper is ranked above the more erratic Lloris and Courtois. Alisson’s performances have led to several transfer rumors surrounding the Brazilian. However, Alisson will need to set those rumors aside if he is to help Brazil avenge the humiliation of 2014 and win a record sixth World Cup.

#2 David De Gea

What can one say about David De Gea? The Spanish goalkeeper’s spectacular shot-stopping is second to none in the world and it is that attribute which helped Manchester United finish second in the league. The Spaniard’s excellence statistically is well-documented. Yet, perhaps the best way to understand De Gea’s excellence is to look at how he performed in games versus Sevilla, Arsenal, and Liverpool where it was only his brilliance that stood between Manchester United and a thrashing.

Yet, what prevents De Gea from the top of this list is other aspects of goalkeeping. His ball distribution is decent (7th in the Premier League according to Squawka stats) but feels rather inadequate for the crisp passing of the national team. Additionally, while De Gea has improved in the air, he still sometimes struggles under pressure. Perhaps most troublingly for the La Roja, De Gea hasn’t saved a penalty in the Premier League since 2014-15. Penalty shootouts can often decide crucial knockout games and for Spain to win the World Cup (as many expect them to do), De Gea will need to improve on this aspect of his game.

#1 Manuel Neuer

It seems incredibly wrong to select a goalkeeper with three league appearances in the past league season as the best goalkeeper in this World Cup. Then again, there is nothing conventional about Manuel Neuer. Ever since becoming a household name after a heroic effort for Schalke against Manchester United, Neuer has defied all conventions to become the world’s best goalkeeper.

What is so unique about Neuer is how he has perfected all aspects of modern goalkeeping. Neuer can save shots as well as De Gea, is as aerially dominant as Courtois, has an excellent penalty record and most impressively, has perfected the “sweeper-keeper” role in a manner that the likes of Lloris and Ederson can only dream of. Those were the qualities that Neuer displayed in 2014 as he only conceded four goals in seven games as his performances helped Germany win the World Cup. While Neuer has just come from a horrific metatarsal injury, he has impressed in recent friendlies. This bodes well for the defending champions as they try to defend their crown in Russia.