Buffon, Neuer, Cech: Goalkeepers with the most penalty saves in the 21st century

Penalties as a whole is a wholly underappreciated and underestimated piece of the jigsaw that is football.

While many are quick to discard them as nothing more than a lottery, that has changed with the modernisation of the game and we are now seeing penalty experts pop up more frequently, both on the spot and between the goal posts.

There’s a major psychology that goes into penalties, and an education in general. No matter how often the pundits tell both taker and stopper to merely ‘pick a side and stick with it’, there is more to it.

Goalkeepers are now reading run ups, watching eyes and leg movements, studying their opponents’ penalty history before games and so on. Takers, meanwhile, continue to perfect their technique and are now boosted by rules forcing goalkeepers to strictly stay on their line.

You get the idea. Penalties, while still a much less predictable element of the game than normal, are nowadays not just complete pot luck. Some goalkeepers have proven that, with their eye for saving spot kicks becoming a habit and highlight of their careers.

In tribute to those who have developed a fine knack for the art of stopping spot kicks, GIVEMESPORT counts down the top ten goalkeepers with the most penalty saves.

Emerging from a sporting family whereby his mother and father were both Olympics medal winners at handball, German goalkeeper Rost carved out a fine career throughout the 1990s and 2000s.

Rost was capped four times by the German national team and, aside from being particularly handy at stopping penalties, was also a reliable Bundesliga level goalkeeper, with 426 appearances in the league.

Capped once by the French national team, Costil has spent his entire career so far in his native France, and has a