Next in Line: 3. David De Gea.

Next up in our next in Line series is my outside pick. With only 1 goalkeeper ever managing to win the World Footballer of the year/Balon d’Or award. Lev Yashin in 1963. Will we ever see it happen again probably not, but Manuel Neuer was unfortunate enough to play in the same era as Messi and Ronaldo and where it not for them he might have done it. My next pick for the Next in Line series:

He is big, he is brave, he is Spanish Dave. He makes great saves. He never shaves. Flying trough the Air. Come and have a shot if you dare.

In my opinion the best chance we have of seeing a goalkeeper win the award again is David De Gea. The Spaniard is currently the best goalkeeper in the world by quite some margin and has been playing at this level for quite some time now. When arriving at Manchester United he came under a lot of criticism, with many people questioning his physicality and his ability to control the penalty area. The sum of €18 million now however is without a doubt some of the best money the club has ever spent. At Manchester United we have seen David De Gea grow from a 20-year-old boy into the best goalkeeper in the world.

What separates De Gea from his fellow shot stoppers is his ability to consistently stop the unstoppable and this is proven with him winning the Match of the day save of the season for 4 of the last 5 seasons. De Gea is in my opinion unchallenged when it comes to reflex saves, saving the ball with his feet and stopping the unimaginable. De Gea’s weakest part of his game is probably his distribution which is by no means below par. De Gea ability to stop the ustopable has even lead to an online craze with #ThingsThatDavidDeGeaWouldSave, find some of my favorites below.

De Gea has averaged 2.8 saves per goal conceded across 9 seasons and keeps a clean sheet every 2.8 games of European football. Along with this he has won Manchester United’s player of the season on three consecutive occasions. Therefore, if De Gea can manage similar feats in a season where United dominate or even at Real Madrid with all the rumors that are circulating, is it really that much of a stretch to think that the Spaniard can become the first goalkeeper to win the award since 1963?

De Gea’s stats in the top leagues just proves his quality.

De Gea Stats.

2009-2014.

2014-Present

Carreer

Individual Records/Achievements.

• Premier League PFA Team of the Year 2012/13, 2014/15, 2015/16, 2016/17
• Sir Matt Busby Player of the Year 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16
• UEFA Europa League Squad of the Season: 2015/16
• Match of the Day Save of the Season: 2012/13, 2013/14, 2014/15, 2015/16
• Most saves in a premier league game 14 tied with Tim Krul and Vito Manone.