David De Gea vs Thibaut Courtois – A Statistical Comparison
Goalkeeping in football is one of the most crucial positions. Having a solid foundation at the back, that can inspire the backline and act as a solid last line of defence is absolutely crucial for teams. And the Premier League clubs are blessed to have some of the best shot-stoppers in the game playing for them.
Petr Cech, Victor Valdes, Hugo Lloris are world-renowned names and are world-class goalkeepers that perform at unbelievable levels week in week out in England. And then there are the up and coming, promising talents like Jordan Pickford of Sunderland, Jack Butland of Stoke City who are ready to take the big stage. But when it comes to the best keeper playing in the English top-flight, two names that come up are Manchester United’s David De Gea and Chelsea’s Thibaut Courtois.
The two goalies are, without a doubt, the best in Europe alongside German keeper Manuel Neuer and the evergreen Gianluigi Buffon. Both De Gea and Courtois arrived in England back in 2011, but the Belgian chose to move to Atletico on loan, coincidentally to replace De Gea, while the Spaniard became a part of the United first-team.
Things could have hardly gone any more differently for the two stars. While Courtois excelled immediately in Spain, the Spaniard had to endure a lot of hardships in his early years at Old Trafford. But by the time Courtois returned to London as a Champions League finalist and a top shot-stopper, after a three-year loan spell with the Los Rojiblancos, De Gea had blossomed into one of the finest goalkeepers in the business. So, the comparisons between the two were bound to happen.
Over the years, both of them have grown in stature and have developed into the best in the game and have on plenty of occasions saved their teams in crucial games. And it hasn’t been very different this season. Courtois has been instrumental in Chelsea’s title run while De Gea has also been very influential for United, playing a crucial role in their EFL Cup triumph.
So, who has been the better among the two? Who comes out on top in the battle of the best goalies in England? Let’s analyze:
Courtois, this season, has played 26 times for the Blues and has kept 13 clean sheets – highest in the league, while De Gea has played a game less than his Belgian counterpart and has managed 10 shut-outs – second best in the division. The Belgian has let in 19 goals so far this season, meaning he averages a lowly 0.73 goals let in per 90 minutes played. while the Red Devils’ stopper has conceded just one more (20) and averages marginally higher at 0.84 goals per ninety.
De Gea averages just a shade more saves per game (1.68) than Courtois (1.65), but the Belgian beats the Spaniard comprehensively when it comes to average successful punches. Courtois enjoys a healthy 27% success-rate on punches in the box compared to a paltry 8% for De Gea, indicating the difference in the physical stature of the two goalkeepers. However, De Gea has more joy when it comes to claims, enjoying a brilliant 99% success with Courtois completing 88% of his claims for the ball successfully.
Courtois makes an average of 2.39 saves per every goal that he has conceded this term, while De Gea makes an average of 2.10 stops for every goal he lets in. The Belgian also triumphs when it comes to distribution from the back, completing 69% of his passes while De Gea comes just a little short at 66%. However, it needs to be noted that the average distribution length in case of Courtois is 37m compared to De Gea’s 44m.
On an overall, it is Courtois who edges out De Gea slightly in the contest of the two best goalkeepers in the Premier League. But, it should be considered that Courtois has enjoyed a stable backline in front of him, that has been performing excellently while De Gea hasn’t had the same privilege with Jose Mourinho having had to change his personnel in defence quite often due to some or the other issues. But take nothing away from the Belgian who has stood up when needed for Chelsea and has played a crucial part in their brilliant run that looks like culminating with a title win come May.
Stats are taken from squawka