And in front of the expectant crowd at Zurich on 12th January, Thierry Henry announced the winner of the 2014 FIFA Ballon d’Or: “Cristiano Ronaldo”. The 29 year old Portuguese attacker ( who received 37.66% of the votes) rose up to roaring applause and cheers to claim his award once again, the one presented to the best footballer of the year. There were no surprises that he deserves the award; La Liga top scorer, Copa Del Rey top scorer, Champions League top scorer, top scorer of the year, Copa Del Rey winner, Champions League winner, FIFA Club World Cup winner. It was also evident that Lionel Messi (who received 15.76% of the votes), four time Ballon d’Or winner and 2014 World Cup Golden Ball winner, was going to give him a close race. However, the most intriguing was the position of Manuel Neuer (who received 15.72% of the votes).
The German shotstopper had an wonderful season with both Bayern Munich and his country’s national team. The winner of the Bundesliga, DFB Pokal and the 2014 World Cup, there’s no doubt that the 28 year old is the best goalkeeper in the world right now. Since Neuer’s predecessor Oliver Kahn lost it to Brazil’s Ronaldo in 2002, no goalkeeper has come even close to claiming the award. The first and only time a Ballon d’Or was won by a goalkeeper, it was back when the legendary Lev Yashin, celebrated as one of, if not the, best goalkeeper to have ever graced the game, won the accolade in 1963.
The position of a goalkeeper has always been underappreciated. Costa Rican former international Luis Conejo, who was in the sticks for Los Ticos in the 1990 World Cup, claimed in a FIFA seminar at Zurich that goalkeepers are never given the same attention as that of an attacker. “Why doesn’t a goalkeeper cost as much as a striker? The same thing happens when it comes to [award] nominations. It’s rare to see a goalkeeper among the candidates because fortune shines on the players who score the goal, not those who concede them” said the 54 year old.
“The hero is always the player who scores the goals.” continued the former Costa Rica No.1, “If a keeper faces 30 shots and saves 29 of them, but concedes one, people think he should have kept out, then he is made to be a scapegoat. And nobody takes the other 29 saves into account.”
Oliver Kahn, too, claimed that winning an award as big as the Ballon d’Or would be too difficult for a goalkeeper. “The world is black and white for a goalkeeper. Sometimes you have only one shot to deal with, but it goes in and you look stupid. On another day you save three or four shots and everyone says you’re world-class. There is no sense of proportion.” said the now 45 year old German who won the 2002 FIFA World Cup Golden Ball. Nadine Angerer, Neuer’s compatriot and former FIFA Women’s World Player Of The Year also claimed exactly one year ago that she’d be very surprised if she were to win the afore-mentioned honours before winning them.
The role of a goalkeeper is also a very different one, one that is opposite to the goal of the game. His motive is not to be scoring goals, but making sure that his own team don’t concede. Although you might say the outfield players have specific jobs too, they still participate in the same stages of the game and overall have the same motives. A goalkeeper plays differently. He has different abilities, different jobs and participates primely in the defensive stage of the game. Scenes of scoring a goal often relate with joy, enthusiasm and success, same cannot be said of a scene where the goalkeeper saves the goal; in fact, it may reflect a feeling of missing the goal, which is a negative one. Thus the majority pay attention to the goals scored, not those that were saved. Besides, whether a goalkeeper shines still depends on the opponent’s attacks. They cannot affect a game like an outfield player could.
Perhaps then, it isn’t a big surprise that Neuer didn’t win the award. But does it do justice to the outstanding 2014 the goalkeeper had? Both Bayern Munich and Germany lay immense emphasis on their brilliant attacking play; yet Neuer was a standout player. Of all the goalkeepers who have made more than 100 appearances in Bundesliga’s rich history, only Neuer has managed to keep the total number of goals conceded (217) lesser than his total number of appearances (268). Never mind his marvelous goalkeeping record, his incredible instincts and decision making; his unique on the ball skills make him into a very complete player. He can do things other keepers dare not do. He can do this. He’s the ultimate sweeper keeper. He can generate attacks from the behind by not only powerful throws or pin-point distribution, but even by dribbling the ball in. You can do a 9-minute compilation on all of the things he can do apart from his scintillating goalkeeping.He’s the best at his position, and still improving. There is no reason why he shouldn’t win the Ballon d’Or.
It is incredibly difficult to compare a goalkeeper and an outfield player. A goal cannot be compared to a save. Outfield players often involve team play when they need to score a goal, but for saving a goal, a goalkeeper has to work on his own. So, does that mean goalkeepers who play behind a more efficient defence be evaluated with the same criteria as one who plays behind a one less efficient, despite the fact that the former has to deal with less number of attacks? Even while keeping cleansheets, it is not only due to the good performance of the keeper, but the defenders also have a huge influence in keeping one; there may be days when the keeper makes nine saves but concedes one due to a horrendous defensive mistake, while there may be days when the keeper has nothing to do and the defenders keep a cleansheet on their own. Goalkeepers are also the only players allowed to use their hands; they’re trained differently to play a different game.
Obviously there is outrage in Germany that Manuel Neuer has not been voted as the best player in world football. If Neuer couldn’t win a Ballon d’Or after all his excellent performances and more, it could only get increasingly difficult for a goalkeeper to ever win the award. It is highly unnecessary for comparisons between a goalkeeper and an outfield player. Goalkeepers deserve their own awards. It’s a shame that a player as talented and idiosyncratic as Neuer had to finish behind two players of a different position.
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