In 2019, France Football created a new award to honor the best keeper of the previous season, naming it after the only goalkeeper in history to win the Ballon d’Or Award – USSR icon Lev Yashin. Liverpool star Alisson (2019), Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) man Gianluigi Donnarumma (2021), and Real Madrid ace Thibaut Courtois (2022) won the Yashin Trophy in the last three years.
The 2023 Yashin Trophy nominees 🧤 pic.twitter.com/o4RZ4frwbT
— B/R Football (@brfootball) September 6, 2023
On Wednesday (September 6), France Football released the 10-man shortlist for the 2023 Yashin Trophy, and today, we will rank the top five based on their chances of winning it. Now without further ado, let’s check out the five favorites to take home the Yashin Trophy 2023 in Paris on October 30.
#5 Thibaut Courtois (Real Madrid/Belgium)
Last season’s Yashin Trophy winner Thibaut Courtois has once again been nominated for the prestigious award, and deservedly so. The Belgian was Los Blancos’ best player for the majority of the 2022-23 season, making some stunning saves. The Whites failed to win La Liga and the UEFA Champions League, but Courtois helped them avoid a trophyless season by dropping remarkable performances in the Copa del Rey. He played five matches in the Copa del Rey last term, making an impressive 15 saves.
Courtois has unfortunately ruptured his ACL and is set to miss a major chunk of the 2023-24 season.
#4 Andre Onana (Manchester United-Inter Milan/Cameroon)
Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana was a brick wall for his former club Inter Milan in the 2022-23 season. In the 2022-23 UEFA Champions League, Onana started all 13 games, making a whopping 47 saves and conceding just 11 goals. His heroics went a long way in helping the Nerazzurri to the Champions League final, where they eventually lost 1-0 to Manchester City.
Onana, unfortunately, did not feature for Cameroon at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, leaving the squad prematurely after falling out with the hierarchy.
#3 Yassine Bounou (Sevilla-Al Hilal/Morocco)
Current Al Hilal goalkeeper Yassine ‘Bono’ Bounou was at his best in the 2022-23 season, both for his then-club Sevilla and his country, Morocco. Bono proved to be an impenetrable wall as Sevilla lifted the UEFA Europa League at the end of last season, beating AS Roma in the final. Bono emerged as the undisputed hero of the final, saving two penalties and allowing Sevilla to secure a 4-1 shootout win.
Bounou also made headlines for Morocco at the 2022 FIFA World Cup. In the quarter-final clash against heavyweights Spain, Bono made two massive saves in the shootout, denying Carlos Soler and Pablo Sarabia. It allowed the Atlas Lions to become the first-ever African team to reach the FIFA World Cup semis.
#2 Ederson (Manchester City/Brazil)
Manchester City shot-stopper Ederson enjoyed a historic 2022-23 campaign. The Brazilian goalkeeper won the UEFA Champions League, Premier League, and FA Cup with City, becoming only the second first-choice goalkeeper behind Manchester United legend Peter Schmeichel to win the Treble with an English club. Ederson did not have to make too many saves for City, as his team love to keep the ball, but he came good whenever called upon. His best performance came in the UEFA Champions League final against Inter Milan, with him making two excellent saves in the dying embers of the game to secure a 1-0 victory over City.
The 30-year-old, however, continued to play second fiddle to Alisson for Brazil, making just one appearance at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
#1 Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa/Argentina)
Having not only won the 2022 FIFA World Cup but also the Golden Glove Award, Argentina star Emiliano Martinez will fancy bagging the 2023 Yashin Trophy. Throughout the campaign in Qatar, Martinez made some astonishing saves. He stopped two Netherlands penalties in the quarter-finals, denied France’s Randal Kolo Muani in extra time in the final, and lastly, kept out Kingsley Coman’s penalty to ensure World Cup glory for La Albiceleste.
Martinez also performed impressively for Aston Villa over the course of the 2022-23 campaign, making 98 saves in 36 games as the Villans secured a seventh-placed finish.
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