3) Pepe Reina (Liverpool)
Eight seasons at Liverpool saw Pepe Reina win one FA Cup (he was the hero in the penalty shootout in the final where he saved three penalties in the win over West Ham in 2006) and a League Cup but he really should have been picked in the Team of the Year at least once.
In three consecutive seasons (2005/06, 2006/07 and 2007/08), it was the Spaniard who won the Golden Glove when the likes of Chelsea and Manchester United were dominating the Premier League. In those three seasons, he kept 20, 19 and 18 clean sheets respectively – a total of 57!
But every year he was ignored and it was Shay Given (Newcastle United), Edwin van der Sar (Manchester United) and David James (Portsmouth) who were picked. If not for his heroics in goal, the Reds would never have finished in the Top 4 and qualified for the Champions League in every season.
In four consecutive seasons, Reina was a permanent fixture in the starting lineups starting all 38 league games. As the Reds went into decline soon after, Reina was the standout performer – even picking up the club’s Player of the Year award in 2010. By then he was nowhere in the picture to be picked but his exploits in the seasons prior really should have been rewarded.