Sign up to Miguel Delaney’s Reading the Game newsletter sent straight to your inbox for free Sign up to Miguel’s Delaney’s free weekly newsletter
Despite failing to sign a single outfield player in the summer transfer window, Arsenal have waited until now to take their full first-team squad photo after a number of players returned from international duty.
With just one new addition in Petr Cech added this summer plus a whole host of player exits including Lukas Podolski and Abou Diaby, the squad picture has a very familiar looks to it – with one exception.
Given that 23-year-old goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez spending the 2015/16 season on loan at Wolves, a place among the three goalkeepers came up for grabs and was duly filled by man-mountain Matt Macey.
Show all 20 1 /20FIFA 16 top 20 goalkeeper ratings FIFA 16 top 20 goalkeeper ratings 1. Manuel Neuer – 90 (Bayern Munich and Germany) A World Cup winner, Bundesliga extraordinaire and still FIFA’s No 1. Neuer may not have been at his best during the recent Euro 2016 qualifier against Scotland, but over the course of the past season it’s difficult to argue with his place at the top of the tree.
FIFA 16 top 20 goalkeeper ratings 2. David De Gea – 86 (Manchester United and Spain) He could quite easily have been playing for Real Madrid this season, but as it is United have their goalkeeper in at No 2 in the rankings. Having progressed rapidly from his 2012 ranking of 80, the 24-year-old will no doubt have his eyes on the top spot.
Getty Images
FIFA 16 top 20 goalkeeper ratings 3. Thibaut Courtois – 86 (Chelsea and Belgium) The man who ousted Petr Cech from his home at Stamford Bridge has pipped his rival once again as Chelsea’s young talent states his claim to reach the top three. Two years younger than De Gea, their future rivalry could well go down in football history – not just FIFA’s.
FIFA 16 top 20 goalkeeper ratings 4. Petr Cech – 85 (Arsenal and Czechc Republic) Arsenal’s only recruit trails his Premier League rivals and just misses out on a place in the top three. However, if he reaches the heights that Arsenal fans expect of him, that won’t matter one bit to the Gunners’ faithful this season.
Getty
FIFA 16 top 20 goalkeeper ratings 5. Bernd Leno – 84 (Bayer Leverkusen and Germany) The German No 2 will be a surprise inclusion for many, but he is another young name making his way rapidly through the ranks across Europe. Interestingly, all of the top five are judged to be a goalkeeper of ‘traditional’ technique.
Getty Images
FIFA 16 top 20 goalkeeper ratings 6. Hugo Lloris – 84 (Tottenham and France) The first name on the list who will not be playing Champions League football this season, Lloris has repeatedly been linked with a move away from White Hart Lane in order to play in Europe’s premier competition. But while he remains committed to Spurs, FIFA clearly rates him highly.
PA
FIFA 16 top 20 goalkeeper ratings 7. Gianluigi Buffon – 84 (Juventus and Italy) A man who seems to get better with age, Buffon helped Juventus all the way to the Champions League final last season at the ripe old age of 37. While Italy remains desperate to seek out his replacement, Buffon is certainly giving them plenty of time before he does indeed need replacing.
FIFA 16 top 20 goalkeeper ratings 8. Iker Casillas – 84 (Real Madrid and Porto) Bizarrely deemed surplus to requirements at Real Madrid – perhaps in expectation that they would sign De Gea – Porto are the lucky recipients of one of the finest goalkeepers in Spanish history. While he may no longer possess the talent he once did, he still makes the top 10 goalkeepers in the world.
Getty Images
FIFA 16 top 20 goalkeeper ratings 9. Samir Handanovic – 83 (Inter Milan and Slovenia) While he may not have quite reached the dizzying heights once expected of him, Handanovic is still rated highly by FIFA with the Slovenian international seeing off the best of the rest outside the top eight.
Getty Images
FIFA 16 top 20 goalkeeper ratings 10. Steve Mandanda – 83 (Marseille and France) Somewhat unlucky to be in the France national set-up as the same time as Lloris, Mandanda has worked wonders for Marseille in recent years that has helped them repeatedly reach the Champions League. However, Marseille missed out last season, and Mandanda will have to showcase his skill in Ligue 1 and the Europa League instead.
Getty Images
FIFA 16 top 20 goalkeeper ratings 11. Joe Hart – 83 (Manchester City and England) England’s No 1 doesn’t even make the top 10, and after City’s unblemished start to the season – in which Hart is yet to concede a single goal – Hart may well feel a touch hard done by. The 28-year-old also helped England become the first team barring hosts France to qualify for Euro 2016. Not a bad record at all.
Getty
FIFA 16 top 20 goalkeeper ratings 12. Claudio Bravo – 83 (Barcelona and Chile) Having fended off young rival Marc-Andre Ter Stegen (more on him later) for the majority of last season, Bravo capped off his year by helping Chile to a brilliant Copa America success in the summer. However, despite beating his Barcelona team-mate in the FIFA rankings, he may well find himself second choice throughout this season.
Getty images
FIFA 16 top 20 goalkeeper ratings 13. Diego Alves – 83 (Valencia and Brazil) Alves is included among the top 20 after helping Valencia return to the Champions League courtesy of last season’s fourth-place finish and subsequent play-off victory over Monaco. Despite being 30 years of age, Alves has just 8 Brazil caps to his name – somewhat bemusing for the highest-rated Brazilian goalkeeper on FIFA by some way.
Getty Images
FIFA 16 top 20 goalkeeper ratings 14. Stephane Ruffier – 83 (Saint-Etienne and France) Fans would be forgiven for not knowing Ruffier’s name due to him having to play understudy to both Lloris and Mandanda on the international stage, but the 28-year-old has carved out quite a reputation across the channel that helped St Etienne to a fifth-place finish in Ligue 1.
Getty Images
FIFA 16 top 20 goalkeeper ratings 15. Asmir Begovic – 82 (Chelsea and Bosnia-Herzegovina) The deputy to Courtois didn’t let himself down when he was given an early chance to impress for new club Chelsea, and after a number of strong seasons at Stoke, he is finally getting his chance on the big stage. The only problem is that stage looks set to be the substitutes’ bench, but at least he still rates highly on FIFA.
Getty
FIFA 16 top 20 goalkeeper ratings 16. Marc-Andre Ter Stegen – 82 (Barcelona and Germany) The hotly-tipped star of the future will hope to make the Barcelona No 1 spot his own this season, and given he is (somehow) now 23 years old, 2015/16 may well be the season of Marc-Andre Ter Stegen.
FIFA 16 top 20 goalkeeper ratings 17. Yann Sommer – 82 (Borussia Monchengladbach and Switzerland) England fans will know a lot more about him following the recent Euro 2016 qualifier against Switzerland, but Sommer has been a key factor behind Monchengladbach’s incredible third-place finish in the Bundesliga last season.
Getty Images
FIFA 16 top 20 goalkeeper ratings 18. Salvatore Sirigu – 82 (Paris Saint-Germain and Italy) Sirigu was one of the first to make the switch to PSG when they suddenly found themselves to be one of the richest clubs in the world, and he has done extremely well to stand the test of time following four years of loyal service to the Parisian club.
FIFA 16 top 20 goalkeeper ratings 19. Fernando Muslera – 82 (Galatasaray and Uruguay) Having enjoyed success on the international stage with Uruguay following two Copa America successes and a fourth place in the 2010 World Cup, last season proved to be quiet year for his country, but Muslera still added a third Super Lig winners’ medal to his collection to maintain his standing in the top 20.
Getty Images
FIFA 16 top 20 goalkeeper ratings 20. Jasper Cillessen – 82 (Ajax and Netherlands) A reported Manchester United target during the summer, Cillessen has made the Netherlands No 1 shirt his own. The signs point to a move to the Premier League in the near future, but for now he remains one of Ajax’s finest players in their bid to regain the Eredivisie title.
GETTY IMAGES
While you’d expect all eyes to be on new signing Cech in the middle of the back row, it’s the man that towers over him on his right that attracts the attention. At 6’6”, Macey is the tallest member of the Gunners squad, and he makes David Ospina look tiny in comparison.
Arsenal's 2015/16 first-team squad (Getty Images) A rear view of Arsenal's three goalkeepers alongside their teammates (Getty Images) Arsenal goalkeepers Matt Macey and Petr Cech (Getty Images) Signed in 2014 from Bristol Rovers after deciding against joining Everton, Macey could be set to make his Arsenal debut this season with the Capital One Cup the most likely option for him to gain first-team experience.
The 21-year-old spent part of last season on loan with Accrington Stanley in League two, and it’s fair to say that the Arsenal first-team will be a step up from anything he has experienced in his short career.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies