NewsLiverpool's Greatest - No.16: Alisson Becker
Years: 2018-present
Appearances: 333
Goals: 1
Trophies: Champions League (2019), FIFA Club World Cup (2019), Premier League (2019-20, 2024-25), League Cup (2022), FA Cup (2022)
Alisson Becker takes 16th place on the Liverpool’s Greatest list as one of the best goalkeepers ever to stand between the posts.
He was a transformative signing made by Jürgen Klopp that helped propel the Reds to new heights, and is still considered among the finest in his position in world football.
Arriving from AS Roma in the summer of 2018, the Brazilian’s brilliance – both in using the ball with his feet and keeping it out of the net with his hands – was present right from the start.
Klopp was blown away after just one training session with Alisson, recalling: “We were a bit like kids in a candy shop with, ‘Oh, what did we get here?!’”
Liverpool would perhaps not have lifted their sixth European Cup in 2018-19 had it not been for his miraculous save in the closing seconds against Napoli to preserve the team’s spot in the knockouts.
There were then unbelievable performances against Barcelona and Tottenham Hotspur in the semi-final and final respectively.
It is worth highlighting that his Champions League winner’s medal was earned after he also claimed the Premier League Golden Glove for 21 clean sheets.
More success followed in the season after, this time domestically as Alisson was a much-relied-upon figure in the side that ended the Reds’ 30-year wait for a league title with a club-record points haul of 99.
It was not just with his goalkeeping skills, either. His assist and celebration for Mohamed Salah’s clincher against Manchester United at Anfield is a lasting memory of that historic campaign.
The 2020-21 season was hugely challenging personally and professionally, but Alisson delivered joy with a headed winner in stoppage time at West Bromwich Albion that went a long way to securing Champions League qualification.
It is the only time in club history a ’keeper has scored.
He was soon adding to his impressive CV, lifting the FA Cup and winning another Golden Glove in 2021-22, before being voted Liverpool’s Player of the Season in 2022-23.
Alisson’s growing presence and leadership was utilised when Arne Slot replaced Klopp in the dugout for 2024-25 and culminated in lifting the Premier League trophy again.
He continues to add to his legacy and in the past season became just the fifth Liverpool goalkeeper to reach a century of league clean sheets.
“Every game I play is special. Every time you play at Anfield is special. Every time you listen to the anthem is special,” said the No.1. “When I wear the Liverpool shirt it’s a special thing.
“But there is a big responsibility, it’s a huge responsibility. It’s an exchange between the players and supporters; sometimes we lead them, sometimes they lead us. Sometimes we push them, sometimes they push us.
“For me, as a goalkeeper being there in front of them looks like I’m not protecting only the goal, I’m protecting all the people behind me and all the people at the stadium. I like this responsibility of defending 60,000 people.”
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