The 10 best goalkeepers in world football RANKED: Raya where?
Goalkeepers from Arsenal, Barcelona and Real Madrid are currently among the best in the world, but who deserves the top spot?
It’s safe to say that there’s currently a plethora of talented goalkeepers, and ranking the 10 best was certainly no easy job.
Taking into consideration things like current form, accolades and ability, here’s our ranking of the 10 best goalkeepers on the planet right now.
10. Alvaro Valles
Who?
Fair question. Real Betis’ relatively unheralded 29-year-old has beaten off competition from the likes of Bart Verbruggen and Jan Oblak to sneak into our top 10.
Accuse us of recency bias if you like. We wouldn’t have given Valles a second thought back in the summer, but his performances this season have been impossible to ignore. He’s prevented 8.6 goals in La Liga according to the xG data, comfortably the best figure of any goalkeeper across Europe’s five major leagues this season.
Spain manager Luis de la Fuente is absolutely spoilt for choice when it comes to options.
9. Emiliano Martinez
Martinez always raises his game on international duty too, and was once again a key figure for Argentina at the World Cup this summer.
One of the biggest personalities in the game today and the ultimate big-game goalkeeper, although those occasions have been in shorter supply at Chelsea, who aren’t competing in Europe.
He’s currently sidelined with injury and clean sheets have been hard to come by. Martinez isn’t flawless; mistakes have crept into his game and his week-to-week league form needs to improve if he’s to re-enter the conversation of being among the world’s best.
Still, a very clear upgrade on Robert Sanchez, and you wouldn’t fancy many keepers more when the stakes are highest.
8. Mike Maignan
Maignan is surely the best goalkeeper in Serie A, and France’s No.1 enjoyed a decent World Cup.
He was astonishingly good in the surprise title-winning campaigns with both Lille and Milan, but they were a while ago now. There is the occasional wobble – that bizarre red card against Bournemouth being a case in point – but those moments are generally the exception rather than the rule.
He’s also been a major factor in Milan’s increased solidity under Ruben Amorim, with the Rossoneri rarely losing so far this season.
7. Unai Simon
Simon saved 10 of the 11 shots he faced at the World Cup, but watching them back makes a mockery of his Yashin Trophy win. Most were routine stops, with Spain’s defence doing the hard work in front of him.
He’s silenced some critics with an excellent start to 2026-27 at Athletic Bilbao, though, proving there’s a pretty handy goalkeeper in there after all.
6. Gianluigi Donnarumma
The Italian remains capable of producing saves that defy belief, but there’s little point making the impossible look routine if you’re then making a mess of the straightforward stuff. His start to 2026-27 has been particularly shaky, with regular errors becoming an increasingly concerning feature of his game.
His first season at Manchester City didn’t quite go to plan, either. James Trafford was preferred in their Carabao Cup and FA Cup wins, while Donnarumma’s last truly memorable run of performances came during PSG’s Champions League-winning campaign in 2025. That feels like an increasingly long time ago.
There’s no question about his ability, and he’s still among the best goalkeepers in the world when everything clicks. But he has plenty to prove again.
5. Diogo Costa
We’re somehow still waiting for Costa to make the big move his performances deserve. Porto’s No.1 has developed into a thoroughly modern sweeper keeper who is excellent with the ball.
Costa’s numbers also took another leap forward last season, keeping 20 clean sheets as Porto won the league. He’s picked up where he left off in 2026-27, with Porto winning every league game so far and conceding just four goals.
It’s not like he’s got Maldini and Costacurta protecting him, either. Porto’s centre-back options are Jan Bednarek, Jakub Kiwior and a 36-year-old Chris Smalling.
4. Alisson Becker
When fully fit, there’s an argument that Alisson is the best goalkeeper on the planet.
However, having missed a sizeable number of matches over the past two years, there are some concerns that his mobility and fitness are beginning to catch up with him.
But he’s still one of the world’s finest shot-stoppers, as a spectacular save to deny Christos Tzolis recently demonstrated.
As the old saying goes, form is temporary, class is permanent.
3. Joan Garcia
Joan Garcia is the goalkeeper Barcelona have needed for years, and has become an important part of the progress they’ve made under Hansi Flick.
The 25-year-old is an increasingly assured presence between the sticks and looks every inch the goalkeeper of a serious European contender.
His performance against PSG was particularly impressive, making a string of excellent saves to prevent the scoreline becoming a cricket score.
2. David Raya
Last season Raya collected another Golden Glove, his third in succession, after keeping 19 clean sheets in Arsenal’s title-winning campaign. He’s showing no signs of regression, either.
The Spaniard finished second to Unai Simon in the 2026 Yashin Trophy voting, with his compatriot getting the nod as Spain’s No.1 at the World Cup.
Fair enough, Simon has never put a foot (hand?) wrong for La Roja and deserves to retain his place, but there’s little comparison between what the two are producing for their clubs week in, week out.
Raya is afforded the luxury of playing behind Europe’s meanest defence, and he does have a slight weakness when it comes to stopping shots from distance.
But he regularly wins Arsenal points with spectacular saves on the rare occasions he’s called into action. They wouldn’t have won the title last season without him.
1. Thibaut Courtois
For us, there can be no doubt that Courtois currently ranks as the best goalkeeper on the planet. You could make a compelling case for him being the finest of the 21st century, and he continues to justify that billing with some quite ridiculous saves.
He’s arguably been Madrid’s best and most important player in the early months of 2026-27, producing a string of extraordinary saves as Jose Mourinho worked to get his side clicking.
His World Cup was cruelly cut short by injury during Belgium’s quarter-final defeat to Spain – who know what might’ve happened if he’d remained between the sticks?
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