Liverpool fans would have rejoiced when the club decided to spend record money on Brazilian shot-stopper Alisson Becker. The former AS Roma man came in to solve an age-old problem at Anfield. The three clean sheets that he kept in the first three league games would have given the Reds faithful a lot of hope.
However, Becker cost the club their first goal of the campaign, as he tried to trick Kelechi Iheanacho, and was caught out to offer Leicester City a way back into the game at King Power on Game Week 4. This has made him a topic of discussion among the football fraternity and Everton’s no.1 Jordan Pickford also had his say about this incident.
Speaking to the media, the English international insisted that he would never take risks like his opposite number across Stanley Park. Pickford is a superb shot-stopper, and his distribution has already helped Everton set up attacks. He revealed that he puts extra effort to be confident and productive in possession of the ball. But he was quick to claim that he would not put his side under pressure as Alisson did against Leicester City.
These are shots fired, that would now bring out comparisons between the two goalkeepers. But who is the better shot-stopper among the two? What do the stats say?
In his first year in England, Alisson has already made a real impact on the squad at Anfield. He has ten saves in Liverpool Red, eight of which came when the Reds were leading by just a goal. He also has a passing accuracy of 86%, which would be helpful for Liverpool to retain possession for long periods.
Becker is a confident presence under the bar and has shown strength and agility to command his box from balls in the air. He has looked the complete package, and the mistake against the Foxes could not have come at a better game, as Liverpool went on to pick all three points anyway.
On the other hand, coming off an impressive World Cup, Pickford has made 13 saves for his side, a few which even won them a couple of points. However, with a passing accuracy of just 43%, he has hardly been helpful in build-up play, which could be an issue for Marco Silva’s side, against teams that are happy to sit deep.
Alisson has proven himself outside England and cannot be judged from his mistake or the first three clean sheets he kept. Pickford is already established, and it is clear from his comments that he would not risk giving away goals as Liverpool did at King Power. But he has his frailties which could be exposed in the long run.
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Liverpool’s Brazilian goalkeeper is a real upgrade on the options they had before, and there is no reason for them to panic about his blunder. It is hard to divide the goalkeepers at Merseyside yet, but as the season progresses, we could get a clearer picture as to who would come out on top.
