Clean sheet additionally referred to as shutout is a footballing term used once a team doesn’t permit the opposition to attain a goal during a match. A clean sheet by a goalkeeper is alleged to own an equivalent impact as a goal by any other on-field player. Each season the Premier League honors the Goalkeepers with the maximum Clean Sheets with the Golden Glove award.
Goalkeepers are sought to be the last line of defence, as a result of their mistakes nearly never go unrebuked. For this reason, the best clubs across the continent feature reliable goalkeepers, defensive capability and composure. The best goalkeepers within the Spanish La Liga are accounted for goalkeeping exploits.
Let us look at the five goalkeepers with the highest clean sheets in La Liga.
5. Luis Arconada (Real Sociedad, 150 clean sheets)
Arconada spent his twenty-year career at Real Sociedad. He won 4 trophies( La Liga: 1980–81, 1981–82, Copa del Rey: 1986–87; Runner-up 1987–88, Supercopa de España: 1982) with the club along with two La Liga titles.
His leadership, bravery and consistency were commendable. His energy, shot-stopping skills and reflexes galvanized several of Spain’s goalkeepers. In total, Arconada played 480 games in the Spanish La Liga.
Luis Arkonada retired from football in 1990 at the age of thirty-five. He played 418 La Liga matches and achieved 150 clean sheets (35.9%). One dark aspect of his career is the goal he conceded from a Michel Platini free kick in the 1984 European Championships.
4. Víctor Valdes (FC Barcelona, 173 clean sheets)
Víctor Valdes is a fantastic goalkeeper who analyzes the game like an intelligent sweeper. He knows when to or spring from his line to cut out a through ball or offer an option to a teammate. He joined Barcelona in 2019 and contributed tons to the club’s success, under the guidance of both Frank Rijkaard and Pep Guardiola. He gave unbelievable performances in the two UEFA Champions League finals against Arsenal (2004-2005) and against Manchester United (2008).
He won 21 major titles together with six La Liga, two Copa Del Rey, and three UEFA Champions League titles. He is the fourth record holder among the list of goalkeepers with 173 clean sheets(44.7%) in 387 matches.
3. Iker Casillas (Real Madrid, 177 clean sheets)
Iker Casillas joined Real Madrid in his teens. He had his first-team debut in La Liga and UCL at the tender age of seventeen. He established himself as Madrid’s first-choice goalkeeper.
In his first four seasons with Real Madrid, Casillas won 2 UEFA Champions League and 2 La Liga titles. He also won one Zamora trophy.
Casillas had a key role in Spain’s historical achievements from 2008 to 2012 because the national team won the FIFA tournament and 2 consecutive UEFA European Championships.
Casillas is the third record holder within the list of goalkeepers. He has 177 clean sheets(34.7%) out of 520 matches in La Liga history.
2. Pacu Buyo ( Sevilla FC, 213 clean sheets)
Pacu Buyo comes second among the record of goalkeepers with 213 clean sheets(39.3%) in 542 matches. Buyo had an awfully fascinating career. He started his amateur career when he was fourteen years. In his first season, Buyo played for the positions of goalkeeper as well as right-winger. Despite outdoing himself in several games as a goalkeeper, Buyo was the team’s best goal scorer at the tip of the season.
His professional career started in 1975 with Mallorca. He later traded to Deportivo La Cruna and Huesca. During his time with the 2 clubs, he performed military service for nearly 2 years.
In 1987 Buyo joined Sevilla where he stayed for 5 seasons. Throughout this period he established himself to be one of the most effective goalkeepers in the Spanish La Liga. His glorious performance persuaded Real Madrid management to sign him in 1986, a venture that paid off unbelievably as Buyo spent eleven years with Real Madrid, winning twelve major trophies ( La Liga: 1986–87, 1987–88, 1988–89, 1989–90, 1994–95, 1996–97; Copa del Rey: 1988–89, 1992–93; Supercopa de España: 1988, 1989, 1990, 1993; Copa Iberoamericana: 1994; UEFA European Championship: Runner-up 1984).
Buyo won 2 Zamora trophies in his career(1987–88, 1991–92). The first was earned in his second league campaign with Real Madrid by conceding twenty three goals in thirty five league contests.
1. Andoni Zubizarreta (Athletic Bilbao, 235 clean sheets)
Andoni Zubizarreta spent his eighteen years career at La Liga. A bewitching shot-stopper, he achieved 126 international awards. He played at 4 World Cups and 2 European Championships. He proudly owns the record for the highest number of clean sheets in La Liga history(235) the un-comparable record of the highest appearance in the league with an unbelievable statistics of 622 games.
Fondly known as “Zubi” among football fans, he won the Zamora Trophy just once in his career. His best season, on personal levels, was from 1986-1987. He had conceded twenty-nine goals in forty-three matches for Barcelona.
During his career, Zubizarreta was a part of four different clubs (Athletic Bilbao, Valencia, Alavez and Barcelona) in La Liga. He won several trophies together with six La Liga Tiles, one UEFA Champions League, three Copa Del Rey titles, 2 UEFA Super Cup, 3 Spanish Super cups, and one Club World Cup.
