Best Ever Goalkeeper: You Vote

This hub will try to create the best football team ever and I would like the readers to decide who ultimately makes the team. Firstly we will concentrate on the position of goalkeeper. I have shortlisted a number of goalkeepers and I hope that readers will take a moment to vote on who is the best. If you think that I have omitted an obvious candidate from the shortlist, your suggestions will be appreciated and may be added to the vote. Here is my shortlist for best goalkeeper...

 Nicknamed The Great Dane, Schmeichel is the legendary goalkeeper of Manchester United’s team of the 1990’s. He was an integral part in United’s first title success under Sir Alex Ferguson in 1993, and he went on to win four more Premiership titles before leaving Manchester in 1999. Schmeichel’s last game for Manchester United was the Champions League final, where he captained the team to a dramatic 2-1 victory over Bayern Munich in the Nou Camp. Famed for shouting at his defenders, Schmeichel was also involved in one of the most amazing triumphs in International football history when he inspired Denmark in 1992 to become the champions of Europe. He was voted as the best goalkeeper in the world in both 1992 and 1993. In addition, Schmeichel was named UEFA Goalkeeper of the year on three occasions and Denmark’s footballer of the year on three occasions.

Shot Stopping (9/10)

Command of Area (9/10)

Kicking Skills (7/10)

Distribution Accuracy (7/10)

Leadership Qualities (9/10)

 Kahn is the only goalkeeper in history to win the Golden ball player of the tournament in World Cup finals, a feat he achieved in 2002 after helping Germany reach the final of the World Cup despite having a poor team by German standards. Kahn produced a string of world class saves before the team was ultimately outclassed by Brazil. As for his club career, Kahn spent fourteen seasons at Bayern Munich where he won eight league titles, four German cups and the Champions League in 2001. He is best remembered for his leadership qualities and for his ability to stop goals in a one on one situation. His reputation was in such high regard that he was voted as the 2^nd best player in the world in 2002 which is unprecedented for a goalkeeper.

Shot Stopping (8/10)

Command of Area (9/10)

Kicking Skills (8/10)

Distribution Accuracy (7/10)

Leadership Qualities (10/10)

Buffon has been the outstanding goalkeeper in the world in recent times having helped Italy to World Cup success in 2006 and has been a pivotal player for Juventus since he joined the club from Parma in 2001 for a world record transfer for a goalkeeper of £32 million. Despite the sizable price tag, Buffon has not disappointed on or off the field. Despite the Turin club’s imposed relegation in 2006, Buffon remained loyal to Juve even though it meant having to ply his trade in the lower division. His loyalty and character are therefore outstanding qualities. Another main attribute that Buffon possesses is amazing consistency in that he rarely makes any sort of error, both technical or in terms of judgement. As all the keepers in this list, his shot stopping ability is top class. He has been voted the best goalkeeper in the world in 2003, 2004, 2006 and 2007.

Shot Stopping (9/10)

Command of Area (7/10)

Kicking Skills (8/10)

Distribution Accuracy (8/10)

Leadership Qualities (7/10)

Known as the Black Panther, Lev Yashin is considered to be the greatest goalkeeper of his era despite only rarely appearing in matches of the highest level. He spent his entire club career at Dynamo Moscow where he won five league championships. In the international arena, he helped USSR win the European Championship in 1960. He is also the only goalkeeper to win the Ballon D’or award for European player of the year. He won this accolade in 1963. His style of play was very eccentric and his most famous match was in fact a friendly where he played for a world XI team at Wembley stadium and made many great saves. Compared to the other goalkeepers on the list, he was more prone to making errors but he also had a knack for making unbelievable saves at vital times.

Shot Stopping (9/10)

Command of Area (8/10)

Kicking Skills (6/10)

Distribution Accuracy (7/10)

Leadership Qualities (9/10)

Dino Zoff is the oldest ever winner of the World Cup. He won it in 1982 as captain of Italy at the age of 40. Zoff also won six Serie A championships with Juventus and the 1968 European Championship with Italy. He is recognised not only as one of the best goalkeepers ever, but also as one of the most intelligent and level headed, a tag emphasized by his progression to the manager of the Italian national team.

Shot Stopping (8/10)

Command of Area (8/10)

Kicking Skills (8/10)

Distribution Accuracy (7/10)

Leadership Qualities (10/10)

 Banks came to prominence during England’s run to win the World Cup in 1966 and his save from Pele in 1970 is widely regarded as the greatest save of all time. Despite his success for the national team, Banks was never part of a league winning team in England. He spent the majority of his career at Leicester City and Stoke City where he won only one league cup at each club. He appeared in two F.A. Cup finals but was on the losing team on both occasions in 1961 and 1963. Banks was well known for making heroic saves for which he could thank his innate physical agility. His positional sense and reading of the game were also to be admired.

Shot Stopping (10/10)

Command of Area (8/10)

Kicking Skills (6/10)

Distribution Accuracy (7/10)

Leadership Qualities (7/10)

 In order to put my team together I hope that you can vote on your favourite player. I think that all six keepers in the short list have a valid case so I expect the voting to be close. The next Hub will concentrate on the Right Back position.