Remember when we were nippers that we used to put the less talented and fattest kid on goal? Remember when we used to say that he won’t cause a lot of damage back there because that position is not as important as the striker’s?
Now that we’re all grown up we realise how wrong we were as the goalkeeper’s position is actually really important. The best managers in the world say: “Give me a good goalkeeper and I will give you a good squad”. A good stopper is someone who shows exceptional mentality during rough games, has skills, possesses some extraordinary reflexes, reads the game, is aware of his position and his surroundings, has an imposing figure and more importantly runs the extra mile when his team is not functioning.
Those are attributes that Stoke City’s keeper Asmir Begovic possesses and can therefore be considered as the Premier League’s best goalkeeper.
Lets’ start by examining the shallow demands that a good goalie is required to posses. The Bosnia and Herzegovina international is of perfect age, at 26 years old, which means that he is still young and also carries enough experience to play at the big leagues. He is also 1.98 m tall and weighs 83 kg which is just fine for a man of his height. So he answers to the cliché demands for a talented stopper but can he walk the walk?
The Potters had quite a tough time last season as they finished just six points ahead of the relegation zone, won a mere nine matches and lost an astonishing 14. The Bosnian however was somewhat of an oasis in the dessert at the Britannia Stadium as his exceptional skills contributed greatly in Stoke’s survival at the Premier League.
If we look at his stats last season we will find out that the 26-year-old had quite a lot of work cut out for him. Begovic kept 12 clean sheets in 38 matches which were more than David De Gea’s 11, Hugo Lloris’s nine and Wojciech Szczesny’s 10. He also made a total of 113 saves which were more than De Gea’s 84, Joe Hart’s 78, Lloris’s 54 and Szczesny’s 72 and keep in mind that Stoke’s defense was nowhere near as good as Manchester United’s, Manchester City’s, Arsenal’s, Tottenham’s or Chelsea’s for that matter.
The only goalkeeper from the top clubs that got a better record is Chelsea’s Petr Cech who counts 122 saves and 14 clean sheets in 38 matches. However, the Czech is now 31 years old which means that the Bosnian currently possesses more stamina than the Blues’ stopper.
Furthermore, in contrast to Begovic, Cech had the luxury of defenders such as Branislav Ivanovic, John Terry, David Luiz and Gary Cahill to take care of the opposing strikers. Same goes for Hart who had the likes of Vincent Kompany, Pablo Zabaleta and Joleon Lescott helping him keep as many clean sheets as possible.
His amazing performance couldn’t go unnoticed as he attracted plenty of interest from top clubs such as Arsenal as well as champions Man United and Europa League winners Chelsea. According to the Daily Telegraph he almost broke the record of the most expensive goalkeeper transfer in history as the Potters were set to sell him for £20 million.
Begovic nevertheless stayed at Stoke and has impressed everyone from the premiere match against Liverpool a few weeks ago. The Bosnian was being bombarded by the Reds’ side as the home team had a total of 20 shots but he still managed to make 10 saves throughout the entire match and holds no responsibility for Daniel Sturridge’s amazing goal.
If the 26-year-old wasn’t playing that day Stoke could have easily conceded at least four crackers and keep in mind that his brilliant performance pushed his team towards a goal. The Potters could have snatched a point at Anfield if Jonathan Walters scored that late penalty.
Out of all top keepers Simon Mignolet currently leads with a total of 15 saves and three clean sheets in three matches, which is very impressive. However, the Bosnian is a close second as he has made 14 saves, which are more than any other top stopper, and kept one clean sheet which is the same as De Gea and Szczesny.
The tall keeper also carries an exceptional ethos as he has plenty of aspirations that are not limited to just signing for a huge club and making a load of cash but to also be able to start at the big matches and leagues. He loves football and he is not in for the money or the fame but to achieve his goals and fulfill the obligations he promised to the fans and signed in his contract.
Begovic looks like he hasn’t missed a step since last season and can possibly make a bigger impression. He can definitely be considered as the best goalkeeper in the Premier League because he is very consistent in his good performances, rises above the team’s problems and still keeps them in the game, just like he did at Anfield.
