OFFICIAL: Emi Martínez wins The Best Men’s Goalkeeper 2024🇦🇷

OFFICIAL: Emi Martínez wins The Best Men’s Goalkeeper 2024🇦🇷

The nominees:

Gianluigi Donnarumma

It was a very prolific year for the 25-year-old Donnarumma, who helped Paris Saint-Germain to another trophy-laden season. Among the silverware collected by the Italian goalkeeper was the 2023/24 French Ligue 1 crown, the 2023/24 Coupe de France and the 2023 French Trophee des Champions. Donnarumma started 25 matches in Ligue 1, as PSG bested second-place Monaco by nine points in the final standings.

On an individual level, Donnarumma’s efforts merited a spot on the 2023-24 French Ligue 1 Team of the Season, and he was also named the 2023/24 French Ligue 1 Goalkeeper of the season.

Ederson

Manchester City remained at the top of English football thanks in large part to the efforts of 2023 The Best FIFA Men’s Goalkeeper award winner Ederson, who delivered a mammoth campaign across different competitions. It started when the Citizens rolled past Brazilian giants Fluminense to lift the FIFA Club World Cup Saudi Arabia 2023™, with Ederson registering a clean sheet in each of City’s two wins.

The second piece of silverware picked up by the Brazilian was the 2023/24 English Premier League, with City fending off a stiff challenge from Arsenal to collect the title, as Ederson started 33 of the club’s 38 league matches. That was followed by a triumph in the 2024 English FA Community Shield over local rivals Manchester United during which Ederson saved a penalty and converted one of his own in the team’s 7-6 shootout victory following a 1-1 draw.

Andriy Lunin

The most decorated team in European football history, Real Madrid, were back to their continental winning ways in the last year, claiming a 15th crown with Lunin as the main man in goal for much of their UEFA Champions League quest. The Ukraine international played in all the knockout rounds for Los Blancos, except the final, with his finest hour coming in the 4-3 penalty shootout victory against Manchester City in the quarter-final, when he saved two spot-kicks.

Lunin and Real also enjoyed success on the domestic front by winning the 2023/24 La Liga season in commanding fashion, beating out rivals Barcelona by 10 points. Lunin played a key role, starting 21 of the team’s 38 matches to secure their 36th league crown. He was also in goal for the 2024 Supercopa de Espana final when Real downed Barcelona 4-1, giving the 25-year-old three titles for the year.

Mike Maignan

Following the retirement of Hugo Lloris from the French national team in early 2023, Les Bleus turned to Maignan to serve as their No.1 and he performed with aplomb on European football’s biggest stage at the national team level.

Maignan registered four clean sheets in six matches at the 2024 UEFA European Championship and was named to the 2024 UEFA European Championship Team of the Tournament. Maignan kept clean sheets in a 1-0 win over Austria and a 0-0 draw with The Netherlands in the group stage. He then followed that up with clean sheets in the last 16 and quarter-finals before a 2-1 semi-final defeat to Spain.

Emiliano Martinez

It was another title-rich year for the 2022 winner of The Best FIFA Men’s Goalkeeper award, as Martinez helped Argentina claim a second consecutive CONMEBOL Copa America crown. Martinez collected the 2024 CONMEBOL Copa America Golden Glove honour and was named to the tournament’s Best XI.

His finest moment for La Albiceleste came in the quarter-finals against Ecuador when he made two saves in Argentina’s 4-2 penalty shootout victory following a 1-1 draw. The Aston Villa shot-stopper would finish the tournament with an outstanding five clean sheets, including in the 1-0 victory in the final over Colombia, which went into extra time.

David Raya

It was a magical year for Raya both at club and international level, as the Arsenal man secured the prestigious Premier League Golden Glove award for the 2023-24 season. Raya kept the most clean sheets during the Gunners’ campaign with 16, three ahead of his nearest competitor, Everton’s Jordan Pickford. His efforts in goal made him an easy selection for the division’s highly-coveted Team of the Year.

At international level, Raya enjoyed success with Spain, forming part of the squad that won UEFA EURO 2024 and featuring in the team’s 1-0 victory over Albania in their group-stage finale.

Unai Simon

Like his compatriot Raya, Simon was a member of the Spain team that won the 2024 UEFA European Championship. The 27-year-old started six of La Roja’s matches in Germany, keeping clean sheets in the 3-0 win against Croatia and 1-0 triumph over Italy. He was the man in goal in all four of Spain’s knockout round victories, including in the decider against England.

At club level, Simon also enjoyed success in winning the 2023/24 Spanish Copa del Rey with Athletic Bilbao, the Basque side’s first Copa del Rey title since 1984. Athletic finished fifth in La Liga for 2023/24, with Simon being named to La Liga’s Team of the Season.