The history of Liverpool is decorated with keepers whose names resound throughout the centuries – and some have more distinction than others.
But who is the best of all time? One man in Geel reminded everyone how good he is on Wednesday evening, when Alisson Becker again pulled a series of hardly credible saves to seal a Smash-and-Grac victory for Liverpool on Paris Saint-Germain.
After a remarkable night in Paris thanks to the man with the gloves, Mail Sport Dominic King asked to arrange his top five Liverpool -keepers.
This is how he answered …
5. Pepe Reina
June 2005 – July 2013
A strong character and a leader in the dressing room, the importance of Reina for Liverpool was so great at one point that the club had a six -year -old deal.
During the 2009-10 season, when there were financial storm and property problems, Reina's performance was remarkable.
He had arrived in 2005 from Villarreal, shortly after the victory of the Champions League in Istanbul, and had an immediate impact.
The defense of Liverpool was Memenly and he got 50 clean sheets faster than anyone for him. He left with three major awards and 177 Shutouts in 394 performances.
4. Bruce Grobbelaar
March 1981 – May 1994
Flamboyant and eccentric; Flammable and, sometimes, chaotic.
Many wondered what Bob Paisley thought when he replaced Clemence with a young man from Vancouver Whitecaps who had previously served in the Rhodesian army, but an uncertain start came a remarkable career.
Grobbelaar had an elasticity -there is a rescue in the 1986 FA Cup final of Everton -Spits Graeme Sharp that defeated gravity -and could do things unexpectedly (take his spaghetti legs in the European Cup finale in Rome), but he was a fantastic goalkeeper.
He held 267 clean sheets in 628 performances (at one point he made 317 consecutive starts) and won 13 major awards; His teammates knew they could trust him and he was a hugely popular figure with supporters. He was confronted with allegations of competition confirmation after leaving Anfield, but was not found guilty.
3. Elisha Scott
September 1912 – May 1934
This name may not mean much to the modern audience, but in terms of a history lesson there was a period in which this combative Noord -Ier was considered Liverpool's biggest football player ever, even at a time when the target machine that Billy Liddell was in the conversation was.
Scott made his Liverpool debut on New Year's Day 1913, held the first of 137 clean sheets, against Newcastle and he remained effectively between the posts from that moment until he left in 1934.
This was a career that was remarkable because of his lifetime and consistency, with 468 performances and two league titles.
'Elisa was the largest I have ever seen. You can have Swift, Trautmann, Banks, Wilson. You can have them all. I will take Elisha Scott, ” – those were the words of none other than Dixie Dean.
2. Ray Clemence
July 1967 – June 1981
The goals of Mohamed Salah have led to forensic research in recent months of the score cards, but one record that we can say with certainty that will never be broken, is the one who is a charity of the head in a wall painting in a wall painting.
In 665 performances, Clemence held a stunning 323 clean sheets (of which 226 in the competition), 56 free from Bruce Grobbelaar and 146 for the third placed Pepe Reina. He was elegant, agile and the cornerstone of the team that won everything twice.
His medal sleeve could be shown in a museum and contains five competition championships, three European cups, two UEFA cups, a FA cup and a competition cup. He played during what could be considered the biggest era for English keepers, which explains why he received 'only' 61 caps.
It is amazing to think that Clemence hardly got a look during his first three years in Anfield, after he had arrived from Scunthorpe, and he and his wife, cattle, wondered if they should leave for him to get the opportunities he desired. Fortunately he remained – and he created history.
“My eyes and ears as a teammate,” said Phil Thompson. “And, oh, what a keeper.”
1. Alisson Becker
July 2018 – Present
There is no recent bias in this choice. The arrival of Alisson in Liverpool from Roma seven years ago was just as fundamental for everything the club has achieved since Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah.
He is the best to put on to Anfield on a gloves and that is not something that we say slightly.
When Alisson reported for a duty at Liverpool, De Ploeg trained in Evian, a city at the back of Lake Geneva.
There was a huge expectation, given his £ 64.6 million fee, but within one session everyone in the team knew that they had signed someone a little differently.
It was the speed with which he covered the ground, the power he showed in situations that surprised spectators.
Alisson made saves that he did not have the right to do and John Achterberg, the then goalkeeper coach, remembers that he thought: 'F ***! This is a different level! '
Achterberg was on his trial since he started in Internacional in Brazil in 2013 and spoke with Liverpool's old no. 2, Doni, about him.
When Liverpool and Roma stood opposite each other in St. Louis in August 2016 in St. Louis, Alisson played for Roma and Jurgen Klopp. To follow Achterberg, Alisson has since been a different level.
Yes, what he did in Paris was extraordinary, but there are so many other games in which he decides – Napoli in December 2018; The header he scored at West Brom in May 2021, the penalty saves in the FA Cup final of 2022.
However, the most vibrant memory of this reporter comes from the 2019 Champion League final when he grew in form while Tottenham fluid back.
He walked out of the stadium at 1 am, grabbed the trophy and simply said: 'Sorry, I have to go. I have to protect this. '
He protected Liverpool from the day he became a member.
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