Premier League Golden Glove Contenders

By grvadmin

Clean sheets have become a rare commodity in football with teams and fans preferring to win 4-3 than 1-0. However, a goalkeeper’s importance shouldn’t be underestimated and that is the reason the coveted Golden Glove is awarded in the Premier League. Since its inception in the 2004-05 season, just five goalkeepers have claimed the prize, all of who have been representing one of the league’s top five teams. Joe Hart has kept the most clean sheets in four of the past six seasons making him  the individual with the most golden gloves while Petr Cech and Pepe Reina have won the award three times each and Edwin Van der Sar and Wojciech Szczesny have a sole glove on their mantelpiece.

The award also shows the changing nature of football with Cech’s tally of 21 clean sheets in the award’s inaugural season being the joint highest with Van der Sar’s 2008/09 tally, the season in which he kept an incredible 14 clean sheets in succession. Hart’s tally of 14 last year was the lowest required to win the award with Cech and Szczesny’s number of 16 in the previous two seasons the next lowest.

So who will receive the honour in the upcoming 2015/16 season and will it take another low total as goals continue to take priority? I discuss the goalkeeping talents who will by vying for the award and debate who is best suited to claim the award.

Joe Hart

After a spell on the sidelines two years ago, Hart is the undisputed Manchester City number one. Despite the defence in front of him being incredibly shaky last year, Hart still scooped the golden glove award for the fourth time. If Vincent Kompany is back to somewhere near his best, City will expect to be more solid at the back and keep more clean sheets.

Hart is one of the best individual goalkeepers in the league and his self-confidence will mean he has faith in his own ability to pick up a fifth award. Injury permitting, he is likely to play all 38 games this season, something that will naturally help in his aim to keep a greater number of clean sheets. However, if the City defence doesn’t improve on last season, Hart will be exposed too often to capture a fifth golden glove.

Petr Cech

The Czech is the only other current Premier League keeper to have won the award and will be getting plenty of game time this season after his move to Arsenal. Cech was limited to a handful of appearances at Chelsea last season but still showed his ability remains with a string of impressive displays.

Arsenal’s backline has been continually questioned in recent seasons but their first choice back five kept a clean sheet against Chelsea in the Community Shield last week-end. Cech is far more consistent than Wojciech Szczesny and the Pole won the award two years ago playing behind a very similar defence. Since then, Laurent Koscielny has developed into a top class centre half and Per Mertesacker has won a World Cup, so expect Cech and Arsenal to be dark horses for this year’s golden glove.

Thibaut Courtois

The Belgian replaced Cech as Chelsea’s number one last year, so must be a serious contender for the golden glove award. Chelsea and Mourinho are notorious for their defensive approach meaning the Belgian should be consistently recording clean sheets this season and the Stamford Bridge outfit also have the strongest back four of any club in the league, a key factor in accumulating clean sheets.

Courtois has also been used to a similar outlook at Atletico Madrid as he was part of the 2013-14 title winning side which was based on a solid defensive unit containing captain and leader Diego Godin. John Terry plays a similar role at Chelsea whilst the 23 year-old’s huge size is also daunting prospect for opposition attackers. If he remains fit, Courtois is the favourite to scoop this season’s prize.

Sergio Romero

With David De Gea’s ongoing transfer saga, the Argentinian will have a chance to prove himself as Utd’s number one. If he puts in some good performances, the club may decide to cash in on De Gea whilst they can, leaving Romero as the undisputed number one for the rest of the season.

The lack of strength in Utd’s central defence could be Romero’s biggest problem, requiring him to pull off performances of the standard of De Gea last year when the Spaniard still only kept 10 clean sheets. However, if he can reach somewhere near those heights and the Utd defence becomes less porous with the added protection from central midfield, Romero may surprise some people during this season. He also has the benefit of starting the season and potentially playing all games, something De Gea wouldn’t have the benefit of should he return to the fold.

Notable mentions

Jack Butland: With Asmir Begovic moving to Chelsea during the summer, the 22 year old will start the season as Stoke City’s number one. The club now have a more expansive style than under Tony Pulis but the Brittania remains a tough place to go and the Potters still maintain a fearsome defence.

Lukasz Fabianski: The Pole was heavily criticised during his spell at Arsenal, but was a revelation during his debut season in Wales. Fabianski quietly went about his business, amassing 13 clean sheets last season as he built a solid platform for Swansea’s plethora of attacking players to build on. With club captain Ashley Williams remaining at the club for another season and riding high from captaining his country to the brink of Euro 2016 qualification, expect the Swansea backline to record many more shutouts this season.

Simon Mignolet: Despite Liverpool’s defence appearing shambolic at times and being dropped half way through last season, the Belgian still recorded 13 clean sheets, one shy of Joe Hart’s golden glove winning number. With Nathanial Clyne brought in to bolster the defence and Emre Can likely to move to his more natural holding role, Mignolet will be looking to build on his impressive clean sheet record.

This list may appear quite boring, but history suggests that the golden glove is always won by somebody playing for one of the top three or four teams. However, the competition promises to be tightly contested again this season, just as it was in 2014/15 when the award was decided on the last game of the season. With the number of goals being scored continually increasing, the number of clean sheets required will be similar to last year’s 14. However, the cream always rises to the top, so look for Hart, Cech and Courtois to be the main protagonists.

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