On April 25, 2021, Between the Sticks celebrates its two-year anniversary. In honour of the milestone, goalkeeper journalist Mouhamad Rachini is ranking the 10 best goalkeepers of all time from each of the big five European leagues: the German Bundesliga, the Spanish Liga Santander, the French Ligue 1, the English Premier League, and the Italian Serie A.
Goalkeepers are ranked based on a number of different factors, including team honours, longevity, peak, and statistical success, but only in their SPECIFIC DOMESTIC LEAGUES.
Performances in continental competitions (like the UEFA Champions League) and international competitions (like the FIFA World Cup) WILL NOT be considered. On the other hand, domestic cup successes (such as the FA Cup) will be considered, but only to a small extent. Non-competition-specific individual accolades, such as Ballon d’Or votes and IFFHS top goalkeeper awards, will also be taken into account.
Furthermore, I’m only considering goalkeepers who played following the official founding of the league in question. For example, in the Premier League’s case, I’m only considering performances made in the Premier League, which was founded on Feb. 20, 1992. I will not be taking Football League First Division performances into account, so don’t expect to see the likes of Peter Shilton and Gordon Banks in that list.
If you’re looking for a ranking that considers everything a goalkeeper did in their career, check out my “Top 50 goalkeepers in football history” project from last year.
You can access each piece by clicking on the attached hyperlink.
Top 10 goalkeepers in Bundesliga history
Top 10 goalkeepers in La Liga history
Top 10 goalkeepers in Ligue 1 history
Top 10 goalkeepers in Premier League history
Top 10 goalkeepers in Serie A history
Mouhamad Rachini is a journalist and goalkeeper enthusiast. You can find him on Twitter via @BlameTheKeeper.
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