Top 10 World Cup Goalkeepers

jonjoward1998
3 days ago
5 min read

The World Cup is coming up very soon and as we look ahead to the tournament this summer, I've decided to do a World Cup related top 10 each week in the lead up to the tournament.

The top 10 I've decided to start with is World Cup goalkeepers.

Many of the world's best keepers have lit up the World Cup over the years with the majority of them going on to win it.

The role of a keeper has changed a lot over the years as the majority of keepers now are being asked to use their feet more and it was at the World Cup where we first saw the role begin to change.

We still have keepers who are excellent shot-stoppers but the majority of them these days and good with their feet as well as their hands.

The majority of the keepers on the list won the World Cup and most of them were excellent shot stoppers.

Now here is the list:

Lev Yashin

Gilmar

Manuel Neuer

Gianluigi Buffon

Gordon Banks

Hugo Lloris

Fabien Barthez

Iker Casillas

Dino Zoff

Bodo Illgner

Lev Yashin

Yashin would be a lot higher up this list if this was the greatest keepers of all-time because he was arguably the greatest keeper of all-time.

He was a keeper who could pull off any kind of save due to his incredible reflexes which gave him the nickname the Black Spider and he was so good that he has an ward named after him.

But as this is about the World Cup, I had to have him down in tenth because he never won it.

He played in three World Cup's for the Soviet Union in 1958, 1962 and 1966 respectively with the latter being the closest he got to winning it as the Soviet's finished 4th.

Bodo Illgner

Illgner won the World Cup with Germany in 1990 and was impressive throughout that tournament by commanding his defence and making lots of crucial saves.

Germany had tight and well drilled defence during their World Cup winning campaign at Italia 90 and it was because they had a keeper who they could rely on to make big saves and crucial moments.

He was a keeper who was always in the right place at the right time to make a save due to his positioning and shot-stopping abilities and he was also a calm presence between the sticks.

Hugo Lloris

Lloris played in four World Cup's with France and he captained them at three of them including 2018 which was the year he won it.

He was one of the best keepers in the world when he was in his prime because of how good a shot-stopper he was and his ability to come off his line and make crucial saves.

He made many top and crucial saves during France's World Cup winning campaign in 2018 and all of them were key to the French going all the way.

He did make that mistake in the final against Croatia, but it didn't make much of a difference as France had already had the game wrapped up by then.

Fabien Barthez

Barthez won the World Cup with France in 1998 and was even named in the team of the tournament after conceding just two goals throughout the entire tournament.

He was a keeper who was very athletic, was always in the right place at the right time to make a save and was a an excellent shot stopper due to his incredible reflexes and his positioning.

He pulled off many top class saves during the 1998 World Cup and all of them were key in France's journey to glory and made him an integral part of that side.

Gordon Banks

Banks was England's keeper during their 1966 World Cup win and was one of the greatest keepers of his generation because of the kind of saves he could pull off.

He was an integral part of that England side in 1966 because of the saves he made throughout the tournament which played a key role in England going all the way.

1966 may have been his best tournament with England because of the role he played in them winning the World Cup.

But his finest moment came in 1970 when he pulled off that iconic save from Pele against Brazil.

Dino Zoff

Zoff played in three World Cup's with Italy and captained them to glory in 1982 where he became the oldest player to win the World Cup at the age of 40.

He was a safe pair of hands throughout that tournament as he made important saves whenever his team required him to and always held onto the ball when making a save with both hands.

As a keeper he was calm and composed when his team were under pressure and was always in the right place at the right time to make a save.

Gianluigi Buffon

Buffon was part of the Italy side that won the World Cup in 2006 and he was an integral part of that side too as he was a solid presence between the sticks all tournament.

He conceded just two goals throughout the entire tournament and pulled off a lot of key and crucial saves all of which played a key role in Italy going all the way.

He played in four World Cup's with Italy captaining them at two in 2010 and 2014 which didn't go well as the Italian's crashed out at the group stage on both occasions.

He was one of the finest keepers of his generation due to his incredible shot-stopping abilities and ability to defend his box well.

Iker Casillas

Casillas captained Spain to World Cup glory in 2010 where he was named in the team of the tournament and won the golden glove.

He was the best keeper in the world around that time and he showed throughout that entire tournament by making lots of quality and crucial saves with all of them playing a key role in Spain going all the way.

Spain rarely conceded a goal with him in goal because of his excellent shot-stopping abilities and leadership on the pitch, which also played a key part in them winning that World Cup in 2010.

Manuel Neuer

Neuer won the World Cup with Germany in 2014 where he won the golden glove award and impressed right throughout the tournament with both his footwork and shot stopping abilities.

He played in four World Cup's with Germany with his first one in 2010 being the one where he first announced himself with his impressive and solid displays between the sticks.

He changed the role of a keeper by being able to come out of his box to clear the ball up the pitch and act as a sweeper keeper, which he did a lot during the 2014 World Cup.

Gilmar

Gilmar won the World Cup twice with Brazil in 1958 and 1962 respectively and it's because he's won it twice that he's my no.1.

He was an exceptional shot stopper on his day due to his incredible reflexes and reaction time which is what made him one of the best keepers of his generation.

He's arguably Brazil's greatest ever keeper because of the quality of saves he could pull off and him being a key part of both World Cup winning sides he was part of.

MY TOP 10: