When it comes to the great goalkeepers in the history of international football, we have to mention the legends who once wore their shirts and guarded the goals on the pitch. With their excellent goal-line skills and excellent reflexes, they have become the backbone of the team's defense, bringing victory and glory to the team. Out of the many outstanding goalkeepers in the history of international football, we have selected 10 of them. Not only did they win the praise and respect of the fans, but they also left a deep impression on us.
雅辛（Yashin）
Team: USSR/Dynamo Moscow.
Major honors: European Cup winner, Soviet Premier League champion, Olympic football gold medal, Ballon d'Or, best goalkeeper of the 20th century.
Lev Yashin, born in Moscow, Soviet Union in 1929, is 1.85 meters tall, the best player in the fifties and sixties of the 20th century, and the greatest goalkeeper in the history of world football. He was well-rounded, well-positioned, quick to react, and especially good at saving penalty kicks, earning him the nickname "Octopus". Yashin played exclusively for Dynamo Moscow throughout his life and contributed greatly to the development and innovation of the goalkeeper position. In 1963, he became the first and only goalkeeper to win the Ballon d'Or. In 1970, he finished second behind Pele in the English Football World poll. In 2000, he was named Goalkeeper of the Century by FIFA, and in 2019 France Football established the Yashin Award to recognize Goalkeeper of the Year. Yashin played 812 games in his lifetime, kept 480 clean sheets and saved 150 penalties, setting an example for the modern goalkeeper.
布冯（Buffon）
Playing for: Italy/Parma, Juventus, Paris Saint-Germain.
Main honors: World Cup winner, Serie A champion, Coppa Italia champion, Ligue 1 champion, UEFA Cup winner.
Gianluigi Buffon, born in Carrara, Italy, in 1978, is one of the most iconic goalkeepers in modern football. Buffon has quick reflexes, amazing bounces, excellent reading and game skills, and is known for his steady goalkeeping style. Since Parma's debut, his career has been star-studded. Buffon joined Juventus in 2001 for a record transfer fee, and subsequently won the Yashin Award, which began his peak era. During his career, he won 29 titles, including 10 Serie A titles, one Ligue 1 title and one World Cup title. His performances not only earned him the title of Italian Footballer of the Year, but he was also twice named the best goalkeeper of the 21st century and the best goalkeeper of the last 25 years. At club level, Buffon's record of appearances is impressive, with 1,151 appearances and 506 clean sheets. In the Italian national team, he was the record holder for appearances, helping Italy win the 2006 World Cup and runners-up at Euro 2012.
A world-class goalkeeper, Buffon is a skilled goalkeeper who is adept at defending in the six-yard box. His size makes him not afraid to take high balls, and he is very accurate in his timing and excellent one-on-one. He is always quick to react to a shot from an opposition striker and try to block as many angles as possible before the striker gets to his feet. In December 2023, Buffon once again proved his preeminence in football by receiving the Special Legend Award at the annual award ceremony organized by the Italian Players Association.
Neuer
Playing for: Germany/Schalke 04, Bayern Munich.
Major honors: World Cup winners, Champions League winners, Bundesliga winners, German Cup winners, UEFA Super Cup winners, Club World Cup winners.
Neuer, 193cm tall, was born in 1986 in Gelsenkirchen, Ruhr District, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Neuer started his career with Schalke 04 FC as a youth team and made his debut in 2006. With his impressive performances, he captained Schalke 04 in 2010 and helped the team win the German Cup the following year. In 2011, he joined FC Bayern Munich for a transfer fee of 30 million euros and began an even more illustrious career.
Neuer's football career has been full of accolades. He won several titles with Bayern Munich, including the impressive "Five Crowns" and "Six Crowns". In the national team, he helped Germany win the 2014 World Cup in Brazil and won the World Cup Golden Glove Award. His performance has not only been recognized by fans, but also won high praise from industry experts. German goalkeeper Kahn has said Neuer deserves the Ballon d'Or and his performance has taken the goalkeeper position to the next level.
Neuer's goalkeeping style is unique and remarkable. He's not just a goalkeeper, he's a scavenger. In the game, he repeatedly burst out of the penalty area, killing the opponent's threatening ball from the start with headers, sliding tackles and clearances. This style of play requires a high sense of distance, positional and defensive ability, and Neuer shows these characteristics to the fullest.
佐夫（Zoff）
Teams: Italy/Udinese, Mantua, Napoli, Juventus.
Major honors: World Cup winners, European Cup winners, Serie A winners, Coppa Italia winners, League Cup winners.
Legendary Italian goalkeeper Zoff is an icon for fans of all ages, born on February 28, 1942 in Mariannu. His career has been full of glory and brilliance, and he has shown great quality on the stage of both the European Championship and the World Cup. In 1968, Zoff was selected for the national team for the first time and began his illustrious journey when he won the European Championship with Italy. And in the 1982 World Cup, at the age of 40, he still performed well, helping the team defeat Germany to win the championship, becoming the oldest member of the championship team in the history of the World Cup. He played 115 games for his country and set a staggering record of 1,145 minutes without conceding a goal, a record that no one has ever beaten.
Zoff's goalkeeping skills are simple and practical, he is cool-headed, quick to react, excellent in positioning, and unrivalled in his adaptability and explosiveness. He is known as a goalkeeping wizard because his performances are always so consistent, reliable and trustworthy. His career spanned several World Cups and he was awarded the FIFA Medal of Honour for his outstanding contributions to world football technology. His outstanding performance is not only reflected in his individual skills, but also in his tacit cooperation with the whole team. He is always able to accurately judge the opponent's offensive intentions, attack in time, and defuse the crisis. His goalkeeping skills left the opposition with no chance to take advantage of them, leaving the shooters worried.
Banks
Played for: England/Chesterfield, Leicester City, Stoke City.
Major honors: World Cup winner, League Cup winner.
Born in Sheffield, England in 1937, Banks is the greatest goalkeeper in the history of English football. His saving skills and reflexes are impressive, and he has shown excellent performances on both club and national stage. Banks began his career in 1958 with Chesterfield, Leicester City and Stoke City. In 1978, he announced his retirement.
Banks' most celebrated moment was undoubtedly the 1966 World Cup when he helped England win the title. In the match against Brazil, Banks saved Pele's close-range header, which was hailed as the "save of the century" and became a classic moment in football history. In addition, Banks has also set a record of 23 consecutive appearances and seven consecutive clean sheets for the national team, showing his excellent goalkeeping skills and steady style of play. During his career, he was named Goalkeeper of the Year by FIFA six times, and in the 20th Century World's Goalkeeper of the Year poll organized by the IFFHS, Banksy ranked second behind Lev Yashin and above the legendary Italian goalkeeper Zoff.
舒梅切尔(Flatter)
Played for: Denmark/Havedev, Brondby, Manchester United, Sporting, Aston Villa, Manchester City.
Main honours: European Cup, Champions League, Premier League, FA Cup, League Cup, UEFA Super Cup, Portuguese Super League.
Schmeichel was born in Denmark in 1963 and holds dual Danish-Polish citizenship. He had an illustrious career, starting at Gladsachs Heroes FC and reaching the pinnacle of his career at Manchester United, with the likes of Harvedev and Brondby. He won five Premier League titles, one Champions League and many other titles, and helped United achieve the treble of the season. He has received numerous personal honors, including two IFFHS World Goalkeeper of the Year and three European Goalkeeper of the Year. In 2003, he announced his retirement, leaving behind countless wonderful moments.
In the national team, Schmeichel made 129 appearances, the most of any player in Denmark's history. He helped Denmark win the 1992 European Championship and set a staggering record of 470 minutes without conceding a goal. His deterrence, control and judgment are unrivalled and his unpretentious saves always keep the ball out. In addition to his goal-line skills, he is also known for his leadership temperament and "long-distance hand-tossed ball" skills. During his time at Manchester United, his hand-tossed ball often helped the team to launch threatening attacks. In 2022, he was inducted into the Premier League Hall of Fame.
Zamora
Played for: Spain/Espanyol, Barcelona, Real Madrid, Nice.
Major honors: La Liga champion, Copa del Rey champion.
Zamora was born in Barcelona in 1901. He started his football career at the local Estudiantes SC football club in Barcelona, where he showed exceptional goalkeeping talent at the age of 15. He then moved to RCD Espanyol and began an eleven-year blue-and-white career. At Espanyol, Zamora not only helped the team win the Catalan Football Championship, but also won the first Copa del Rey in their history in 1929. His outstanding performances attracted the attention of the national team, and he became a member of the Spanish national team, with which he won a silver medal at the 1920 Olympic Games.
Zamora's height and strong physique make him an impregnable barrier in front of goal. His quick kick-off and awareness of assists also make him unique among goalkeepers. A South American journalist once described his dominance on the pitch as the net seemed to shrink and the post automatically retreated when he stood in front of the goal. Zamora helped the team win the Copa del Rey in 1929 and competed in La Liga's inaugural competition in the same year. His outstanding performance attracted the attention of Real Madrid, and he eventually joined Real Madrid for a sky-high transfer fee, and at one time became the highest-paid player in Europe at that time. At Real Madrid, he quickly became a key player in the team, helping them win the league title for two consecutive seasons and conceding just 32 goals in 36 games.
In 1934, Spain played in the World Cup for the first time, and Zamora played as the starting goalkeeper. He was outstanding in the game, even saving a penalty in the second half, becoming the first goalkeeper in World Cup history to save a penalty. In 1958, Marca established the Zamora Award in honour of the legendary goalkeeper to recognize the most efficient goalkeeper in La Liga. RCD Espanyol also named the Historical Hall of Honour Zamora in honour of the team's exploits.
By Maier
Team: Germany/Bayern Munich.
Main honors: World Cup winners, European Cup winners, Champions League winners, Bundesliga winners, German Cup winners, Intercontinental Cup winners, Cup Winners' Cup.
Meyer, born in Germany on February 28, 1944, is a legend of the German national team and FC Bayern Munich. His football career has been full of accolades and achievements, having won many titles such as the World Cup, European Championship, German League, European Champions Cup and Intercontinental Cup, and is one of the major players in football. From 1966 to 1977, Meyer played an astonishing record of 422 games for Bayern Munich for 11 consecutive years.
Meyer's career has also been marked with personal accolades, as he was named German Footballer of the Year three times, even more than Caesar the Great Beckenbauer. His place in the history of German football is irreplaceable, and even the future goalkeeper Kahn could not shake his status. Meyer's greatest achievement was undoubtedly the 1974 World Cup victory. As the main goalkeeper of the West German team, he played well in the game, defusing the opponent's attacks again and again, and made great contributions to the team's eventual victory. In addition to his brilliant achievements on the football field, Meyer is also known worldwide for his unique image and style. He wears oversized gloves and knee-length pants, and likes to wear black shirts and pants like his predecessor, Yasin, so he is affectionately known as "Black Swallow".
卡西利亚斯 (Casillas)
Played for: Spain/Real Madrid, Porto.
Main honors: World Cup winner, European Cup winner, Champions League winner, La Liga winner, Copa del Rey winner, Club World Cup winner, UEFA Super Cup winner, Portuguese Super League winner.
Casillas, known as "San Cassi", is a legendary goalkeeper in Spanish football. Born in Madrid in 1981, he showed exceptional goalkeeping talent from an early age. In 1990 he joined Real Madrid's academy and was promoted to the first team in 1999. During his illustrious career, Casillas made 725 appearances and helped the team win 18 trophies, including three Champions Leagues and five La Liga titles. He has won the World Goalkeeper of the Year award for five consecutive years and has been named to the FIFA and UEFA Team of the Year several times. In 2015, Casillas moved to Porto, where he won the Portuguese Super League and Portuguese Super Cup, extending his record of Champions League appearances to 177.
In the national team, Casillas has also performed well. He made 167 appearances for Spain, the second-most in the club's history, keeping 101 clean sheets. He won Euro 2008, the 2010 World Cup and Euro 2012 with his side winning three consecutive tournaments. In the course of his third consecutive tournament title, Casillas has not conceded a goal in three consecutive knockout stages. Among them, in Euro 2012, he set a record of 509 consecutive minutes without conceding a goal, breaking the all-time record of the European Championship finals.
Amadeo
Played for: Argentina/Millionaires, River Plate.
Main honors: Argentine football top league champion, Ibaguren Cup champion, Aldo Cup champion, Nations Cup champion, best goalkeeper in South America of the IFFHS20 century.
Amadeo Carrizo, born in 1926 in Rufino, Argentina, is known as the most outstanding goalkeeper in the history of South American football for his outstanding goalkeeping skills. During his career at River Plate from 1945 to 1968, he made 521 appearances for River Plate and helped River Plate win seven Argentine First Division titles, one Ilbagulen Cup and two Aldo Cups. At international level, he also made 20 appearances for Argentina and helped the national team win the Nations Cup in 1964.
When Amadeo Carriço left River Plate in 1968, he still held the Liga record (513) and consecutive clean sheets (eight). His career lasted until the age of 44, eventually hanging up his boots with the Colombian Millionaires. Carrizo's football career was not only about athletic glory, but also groundbreaking for many of his contributions. As the first goalkeeper to wear gloves on the pitch, break out of the box and instigate attacks, he is hailed as a pioneer of the modern goalkeeper and has had a profound influence on later generations of goalkeepers such as Ikita and Chilavert. In 1999, the International Association of Football Historical Statistics awarded him the best goalkeeper in South America of the 20th century.