The Serie A 2016-17 commences from 21 August, with Juventus on the quest to win their 6th consecutive Scudetto. With some brilliant forwards on show, goalkeepers will have a huge role to play in their team’s challenge for Italy’s top prize.
The Italian game is famous for its defensive outlook and tactical nous but there are a number of great goalkeepers who will be fighting it out for the to prize as well.
Let’s take a look at the top 5 contenders for Golden Glove this season:
#5 Mattia Perin (Genoa)
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The 23-year-old is hailed as the best young goalkeeper in Serie A and a promising prospect. Many have tipped him to take over from Buffon, once he hangs up his boot. The boots may be enormous to fill, but the young Genoa sensational has certainly shown all the qualities.
Inspirational performances from him led Genoa to an incredible Europa League spot in the 2014-15 season and has captured the imagination of many since. Long touted as the man to take the place of the Italian legend both for club and country, it’s easy to forget that Perin is still very young at 23, and already has 6 years of first-team football under his belt.
Perin was certainly not at his best last season but still managed 8 clean sheets in 25 Serie A games. That speaks volume of his incredible calibre, and even though he has a long way to go, Perin truly deserves the title of “Buffon’s best replacement”.
#4 Gianluigi Donnarumma (AC Milan)
Donnarumma emerged as the biggest surprise last season, as he replaced Diego Lopez in AC Milan’s starting line-up, and put up some fine performances. He had a brilliant pre-season too in the International Champions Cup, especially when he saved a Toni Kroos penalty. He replaced Lopez against Sassuolo after the veteran keeper was sidelined due to injury, and Donnarumma has since established himself as a regular in AC Milan’s starting line-up.
Oh, he’s done all this at 17! Yes, the Italian keeper is just 17 years and is the youngest player ever to represent Italy U21. What makes it sweeter for AC Milan fans are that the youngster was on the verge of joining arch-rivals Inter, but as soon as AC Milan showed interest, ‘Gigio’ was ready to join them. He’s been a die-hard fan of the club since his childhood, and he could not resist playing for his favorite club.
Gigio was brilliant last season, and he kept 10 clean sheets in the process. The young Italian is set to be Milan’s No.1 once again, and a serious contender for the Golden Glove.
#3 Pepe Reina (Napoli)
The former Liverpool man joined Napoli on loan in the 2013-14 to reunite with former Anfield boss, Rafa Benitez. Reina won the Coppa Italia in his first season and became quite a fan favorite. He went on to join Bayern Munich in 2014, but a lack of first team opportunities saw him come to Napoli the very next year to pen a 3-year deal.
Napoli’s defense was shaky last season, especially in the first half of the season, but the heroics of Reina played a massive part in Napoli’s inspired 2nd place finish. He was Napoli’s unsung hero, as all the plaudits went to Higuain's sensational 36 goals in Serie A 2015-16.
Reina may not be the most by-the-book gloveman, but he always does what is expected of him. His heroics in goal, filled the defenders with much-needed confidence and Reina marshaled the defense well throughout the season. With 15 clean sheets to his name last term, the Spaniard is certainly one of the top contenders for a Golden Glove this season.
#2 Samir Handanovic (Inter Milan)
Inter Milan is going through a rebuilding phase, and recently sacked their manager, Robert Mancini to appoint former Ajax boss, Frank De Boer. Inter’s skipper, Mauro Icardi is set for a move away from the San Siro, too. In this period of uncertainty, Inter will cherish the presence of the Slovenian between the bars.
The 6’5” keeper has established himself as one of the best in Serie A, since joining Inter before the 2012-13 season. Handanovic has immense agility for a man of his stature, and his penalty stopping prowess makes him a serious contender for the Golden Glove.
Handanovic was brilliant last season with 15 clean sheets, second only to Juve’s Buffon. Rumors are doing the rounds that City’s Pep Guardiola is interested in the Inter shot-stopper, and the goalkeeper might be inclined to move to a team with Champions League football, following Inter’s failure to secure a spot in the elite competition.
However, if Handanovic does decide to stay put at Inter, he’ll be an absolutely vital part of the falling Italian giants. Can he inspire Inter back to the top to where they belong?
#1 Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus)
The Italian and Juventus skipper, Gianluigi Buffon recently signed a new 2-year contract to keep him at Turin until June 2018. The man is like wine- just gets better with age. The veteran goalie is showing no signs of stopping just yet, and is on a mission to win the tenth Scudetto.
Buffon’s story goes back 25 years to 1991 when he started his professional footballing career as a youth player in Parma, and he’s not looked back since. Juventus bought him for a staggering €53 million to fill the big boots of Dutch star, Edwin van der Saar, and he has not disappointed at all. The skipper stayed loyal to Juve when they got relegated to Serie B, but like most warriors, he inspired his team side to Italy’s top flight football. Since then, he has led Juve to 5 consecutive Scudettos and 2 Champions’ League Finals.
Most players are at the lag-end of their career at 38 years, but the Italian set a record as early as last season of the longest consecutive run without conceding a goal in Serie A (974 mins).
Come 2016-17 season, Buffon will definitely be the top contender of the Serie A Golden Glove. The legend had whopping 21 clean sheets to his name last season, which only indicates that the Italian’s career is a long, long way from the end.
