Best goalkeepers in the world 2023
Our comprehensive round-up of the 10 best goalkeepers in the world in 2023.
A football team is only as good as the person between the sticks... but who is the best goalkeeper in the world? We thought we'd try and answer that very question despite the fact that everyone, no doubt, has their own controversial opinion.
The Premier League is home to some of the best stoppers on the planet such as Liverpool's Alisson and Manchester City's Ederson, but there are also plenty of top-quality 'keepers keeping clean sheets week in, week out in some of Europe's other top leagues.
We've based our list on long-term success with a sprinkling of short-term form, but the odd wobble or particularly rogue season has been overlooked so that players going through a tough time aren't shuffled too far down the pack.
Silverware, the strength of leagues, juicy stats, the x-factor and a host of other factors have come together to form our criteria for the list, and we know you're going to wholeheartedly disagree with us.
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To highlight the strength in depth to our top 10, all three of England's World Cup goalkeepers - Jordan Pickford, Nick Pope and Aaron Ramsdale - have been left out.
RadioTimes.com brings you our definitive list of the 10 best goalkeepers in the world in 2023.
Check our more football features: Best players of all time | Best players in the world 2023 | Best strikers 2023 | Best midfielders 2023 | Best defenders 2023 |Best young players 2023 | Best teams in the world 2023
10. Yassine Bounou (Sevilla)
OK, you're probably thinking there is a bit of recency bias to this selection after Yassine Bounou played a starring role for Morocco at the World Cup, but those four weeks in Qatar can hardly be considered an exception to his norm.
The Sevilla stopper was a key member of Unai Emery's team that won the UEFA Europa League in the 2019–20 before keeping the most clean sheets of any goalkeeper in Europe's top five leagues in 2021.
If that wasn't good enough to think he deserves a place on the list, Bounou also won the Zamora Trophy in the 2021/22 campaign for boasting the lowest goals-to-games ratio of any 'keeper in La Liga.
9. Mike Maignan (AC Milan)
Despite playing second-fiddle to Hugo Lloris for the French national team, we reckon Mike Maignan has the edge on the Tottenham goalkeeper thanks to his lightning reflexes.
A title winner in France with former club Lille, the AC Milan goalkeeper has more than filled the gloves of predecessor Gianluigi Donnarumma (more on him later) and played a key role in last season's Serie A triumph.
Maignan has missed a stack of games due to a calf injury this season and it's no surprise that the Rossoneri have struggled defensively without their first choice between the sticks and look set to forfeit their league crown to Napoli.
8. Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich)
You're probably thinking this is quite a low ranking for one of the greatest goalkeepers of all-time, but the years are beginning to catch up with Manuel Neuer and a broken leg suffered when skiing in December means he has a proper job on his hands to regain his place in the Bayern Munich team when he returns to fitness.
The 36-year-old has pretty much won all there is to be won: the World Cup, two Champions Leagues, 10 Bundesligas and five DFB-Pokals. He's been a silverware-winning machine throughout his career.
As well as his superb shot-stopping skills, Neuer has taken the role of sweeper-keeper to new heights with his defensive clearances breeding confidence in the Bayern backline for 12 seasons and counting.
7. Jan Oblak (Atletico Madrid)
Jan Oblak has taken his game to the top under the tutelage of Diego Simeone, a manager that has come to define defensive, dogged football.
Atletico Madrid's style of play can polarise opinion, but Oblak can point to a La Liga title and Europa League crown as testament to the methods and tactics employed by Simeone. A fine reader of play with a real presence in the box, he has been the backbone of the team's success for a number of years.
The Slovenian stopper has never appeared at the World Cup, but he has racked up plenty of individual honours including the Zamora Trophy on five occasions, and was second in the voting for the 2021 Yashin Trophy, the Ballon d'Or for goalkeepers.
6. Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa)
Speaking of the World Cup, Emiliano Martinez was awarded the Golden Glove after Argentina's triumph in Qatar and his celebration with the trophy was one of the most memorable moments of the whole tournament.
A late bloomer after failing to establish himself in the team at Arsenal, the Aston Villa stopper has made up for lost time and was named Player of the Season in his maiden campaign at Villa Park.
It's at international level that Martinez, 30, has delivered his best performances with his penalty-saving antics proving crucial in Argentina's 2021 Copa América and subsequent World Cup successes.
5. Gianluigi Donnarumma (PSG)
Gianluigi Donnarumma was destined for the top ever since making his debut for former club AC Milan at the age of 16.
He racked up more than 250 appearances in all competitions for the Rossoneri before a blockbuster free transfer to PSG in the summer of 2021 that allowed him to win a first league title in his maiden season in France.
Big and strong, Donnarumma is a throwback to the old school goalies compared to the ball-playing equivalents of the modern era, and he used his frame to good effect when stopping two penalties in the Euro 2020 final shootout against England to win the trophy for Italy for the first time since 1968.
4. Marc-Andre ter Stegen (Barcelona)
The German is enjoying one of the best seasons of his career at Barcelona having conceded just six goals in 17 La Liga matches and keeping 13 clean sheets in the process. OK, it helps that he plays behind a well-drilled defence but, crucially, he is outperforming his xG.
It's perhaps easy to forget about Marc-Andre ter Stegen because he rarely starts for Germany, but he boasts an extensive resume with four La Ligas, five Copa del Reys and a Champions League.
He has been Barcelona's first choice for the best part of seven seasons - which probably feels like longer because of the club's off-the-field problems in recent times - but Ter Stegen is in the prime years of his career and playing like it.
3. Ederson (Manchester City)
Ederson is so good with the ball at his feet that he could easily play in midfield for Manchester City and not look out of place alongside the likes of Kevin De Bruyne and Bernardo Silva.
It probably does the Brazilian a disservice that people talk more about what he does with his feet instead of his hands, but he's not a bad shot-stopper and collector of crosses either.
A regular fixture in goal for Pep Guardiola's team for the last six seasons, Ederson is collecting plenty of silverware including four Premier League titles, but the Champions League is missing from his trophy cabinet.
2. Alisson (Liverpool)
He's won the battle with Ederson for the number one jersey with Brazil and he's won the personal duel with his City rival here as well.
Alisson is prone to the occasional gaffe - which goalie isn't? - but he's won Liverpool far more points than he's cost them over the years and was one of the final pieces in the jigsaw as the Reds finally won the Premier League in 2020.
Dynamite with the ball at his feet and an expert shot-stopper, the 30-year-old won the Yashin Trophy in 2019 and was second in last year's vote. A Premier League, FA Cup, EFL Cup, Champions League and Copa America winner, it's fair to say his trophy cabinet is bursting with silverware.
1. Thibaut Courtois (Real Madrid)
Who else but the latest winner of the Yashin Trophy? It simply had to be Thibaut Courtois.
Sure, Belgium's Golden Generation have flattered to deceive time and time again but Real Madrid fans are grateful to have such a commanding presence between the sticks.
Courtois has won all the major trophies at club level, including a first Champions League last season after turning in a man-of-the-match display against Liverpool in the final - and he really is the complete package with few weaknesses to his game.
It feels like he has been around forever but, incredibly, Courtois is only 30 (he turns 31 in May), so you'd expect he has plenty more years left at the top level.
Who is the best goalkeeper in the world?
Thibaut Courtois is our first choice in goal, though there is little separating the majority of 'keepers on this 100 per cent, completely correct list.
He's done the business in more than one league, collected plenty of major silverware and is only missing an international trophy before he can really say he's done it all. It's a good job he still has time on his side to achieve that!
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