The best goalkeepers in Europe in the first half of the season
The goalkeeping position is one of the most important spots in every football team, which explains why clubs now willingly break the bank to sign players in that position.
Previously, teams never thought they would need to spend big to sign goalkeepers, but Liverpool changed that in 2018 when they signed Alisson Becker from AS Roma for €72.5 million.
That fee was broken weeks later by Chelsea, who spent €80 million on Kepa Arrizabalaga from Athletic Bilbao.
Generally, clubs have not been breaking records to sign goalkeepers, but teams now think spending money on goalies is a good decision, at least better than before.
Several goalkeepers have stood out for their respective clubs in the first half of the 2024/2025 season across Europe’s top five leagues.
In this article, we consider the best goalies in the first half of the season across Europe’s top five leagues.
It is a list that celebrates the best goalies around the continent so far, and it would be interesting to see how they perform in the second half of the campaign.
Péter Gulácsi, RB Leipzig
Gulacsi has now spent ten years at Leipzig, and he is now a veteran at 34, but most people will not remember that the Hungarian was a flop at Liverpool.
He started his career there and failed to make the grade as their first choice, but he is now one of the goalkeepers who make fans buy Bundesliga tickets.
His form this term is one of the reasons neutrals believe RB Leipzig could challenge for the Bundesliga crown.
He has kept eight clean sheets from 14 matches, the highest in the German top flight so far and deserves a lot of credit for his terrific form.
Brice Samba, RC Lens
Samba shocked Nottingham Forest when he asked to leave them in 2022, but that decision has been a good one as he plays for a more prominent Lens.
He was one of the most reliable goalkeepers in English football when he played at Forest and has remained a capable hands in France.
Lens is constantly competing for the Champions League places and his form this term gives them a chance to qualify for Europe’s top club competition again.
He is leading the way in terms of clean sheets in Ligue 1, and his fine showing every time he plays makes fans buy his team’s match tickets.
Yann Sommer, Inter Milan
Sommer dumped his role at Bayern Munich to move to Inter Milan and the Inter fans are celebrating that decision.
He helped them win the Serie A title last term, and they remain one of the favourites to win the Italian top flight again this term.
The Nerazzurri have some of the best players in Italian football in their squad, but without Sommer pulling some outstanding saves, they might not be as successful as they have been in recent terms.
The Switzerland international would be hungry for more success, and that could start in the Super Cup this January.
He already has nine clean sheets from 17 Serie A games this season, and he could double that because the season ends.
Alex Meret, Napoli
Napoli is another Italian club from which we expect big things this season, especially after they made Antonio Conte their new manager.
The former Italy boss knows how to win league titles, having done so with Juventus, Chelsea and Inter Milan.
He has kept Meret as his first choice at the Italian has been in great shape, keeping eight clean sheets in just 15 matches.
Napoli has not had the best of seasons, but fans who buy their tickets want more in the second half of the season.
Meret is one of the players that will help Napoli to fulfil its potential and finish this season with a trophy.
Matz Sels, Nottingham Forest
Forest is the surprise team of the season in the Premier League, and the reason they are in the Premier League’s top three now is their superb defensive work.
Nuno Espirito Santo has transformed them into a fearless team, and it is impressive how he has done that, considering they have been battling relegation in the last few campaigns.
This second half of the campaign is the time more fans would buy Nottingham Forest tickets to see how they perform, and Sels can keep more clean sheets and win the Golden Glove.
Jordan Pickford, Everton
Everton is another team that prides itself on doing solid defensive work, and Sean Dyche has always been a manager who wants to keep clean sheets over scoring.
Jordan Pickford has been important to his plans for the team as the England number one continues to pull off important saves in games.
This has resulted in him keeping seven clean sheets from 19 Premier League games, the second most in the division this season.
2025 would be a tougher year for Everton, but everyone who buys their match tickets can bank on Pickford to deliver in goal.
Álex Remiro, Real Sociedad
Real Sociedad started this season poorly after losing Mikel Merino and coming close to also losing Martin Zubimendi to Liverpool.
However, as the season continued, they have improved, and their defence has been arguably the best in La Liga so far.
In 18 games, their goalkeeper, Remiro, has kept 10 clean sheets, which is a remarkable number for a team not competing for the league title.
Real Sociedad ticket holders dream of a return to the Champions League and Remiro would need to keep more clean sheets for them to achieve that goal.
Jan Oblak, Atletico de Madrid
A list of impressive goalkeepers would always be incomplete if Oblak is not in it, and the Atletico Madrid man completes our list.
He has remained consistent for so many years and is leading Atleti towards winning another La Liga title.
Oblak is not losing his competence as he ages, which is great news for Atleti because they do not need to worry about a goalie for several more years.
This season, he has the second-highest clean sheet in La Liga with 8 from 17 matches and he will keep improving that number.
His team wants to win the league and he needs to keep more clean sheets for them to achieve that.