Performance analysis of 2019 Ballon d’Or nominees for the period Jan to Oct' 19, Part 4: Goalkeepers

#1 Alisson Becker (Liverpool, Brazil)

Allison Becker

Alisson Becker became the first Brazilian goalkeeper in nine years to win the Champions League this past season. He played a key role in Liverpool's first triumph in 14 years in the blue riband event of European club football.

Widely regarded as one of the best goalkeepers of the modern era, Alisson has modeled his style of play on Barcelona's Víctor Valdés in a reprisal of the 'sweeper-keeper' role. He is renowned for his outstanding reflexes, athleticism, agility and shot-stopping ability.

Alisson impressively kept 5 clean sheets in 7 knockout stage games of the Champions League last season. Moreover, he did not concede a goal in 14 out of 18 Premier League games since the turn of the year as Liverpool narrowly fell short in a pulsating domestic title race.

The 27-year-old's strong form spilled over to the national team too, as his 5 clean sheets in 6 games led Brazil to the 2019 Copa America title. That was before an injury in the early part of the 2019-20 season forced a lengthy break from the game.

During the course of his career, Alisson has made 5 penalty saves out of 21 faced, for an impressive rate of over 1 save every 4 penalties faced. The Brazilian custodian has kept 20 clean sheets in 38 games for club and country during the period January to October 2019.

Alisson Becker in 2019