FeatureShootout specialist, penalty prowess and leaving as a champion - Caoimhin Kelleher's best LFC moments
Reflect on Caoimhin Kelleher’s Liverpool career with our compilation of the goalkeeper’s best moments with the Reds.
The Republic of Ireland international has completed a permanent transfer to Brentford after a decade-long stay on Merseyside.
Here, we take a look back at some of Kelleher’s Liverpool highlights…
Shootout specialist
No goalkeeper in the club’s history can match Kelleher’s record of winning four penalty shootouts and one of that quartet in particular will live long in the memory.
Having already produced an outstanding performance throughout the 120 minutes, Kelleher stepped up to coolly score the decisive spot-kick as Liverpool beat Chelsea 11-10 on penalties in the 2022 Carabao Cup final at Wembley.
Overall, Kelleher won all four of his League Cup shootouts with the Reds and saved six kicks while doing so. That is also a club record, topping the five stops Pepe Reina produced in shootouts.
More success at Anfield South
Another Carabao Cup final against Chelsea – and another Wembley clean sheet for Kelleher.
In 2024, the goalkeeper was again in excellent form to shut the Blues out and help deliver the final trophy of Jürgen Klopp’s reign.
He was one of seven players who had progressed from the Reds’ Academy teams to feature in an unforgettable showpiece that was settled by Virgil van Dijk’s 118th-minute winner.
Penalty prowess
Kelleher proved adept at saving penalties during regulation time, too.
Last year, he became just the second Liverpool goalkeeper in history – and first since Augustus Beeby in 1909 – to save spot-kicks in consecutive games.
First, he stopped Adam Armstrong’s attempt in a 3-2 Premier League win at Southampton and, three days later, he thwarted Kylian Mbappe as Real Madrid were beaten 2-0 at Anfield in the Champions League.
Incredibly, Kelleher had also saved a penalty for Ireland against Finland during the international break that preceded the Reds’ trip to St Mary’s, meaning he stopped three spot-kicks in just 13 days.
Vital Villa saves
Liverpool’s ultimately successful pursuit of the 2024-25 Premier League title was boosted by the events of November 9.
The Reds hosted Aston Villa in a rare nighttime kick-off on a Saturday at Anfield knowing that, with Manchester City having lost earlier in the day, a win would take them five points clear at the top of the table ahead of the international break.
Victory was secured thanks to goals from Darwin Nunez and Mohamed Salah – and a fantastic couple of saves from Kelleher, who showcased brilliant reflexes to deny Amadou Onana and then Diego Carlos to make sure his side went into half-time 1-0 up.
Signing off as a champion
Kelleher made an important contribution to Liverpool’s Premier League title victory in his final season at Anfield.
An injury to Alisson Becker resulted in him making seven successive starts in the top flight during October, November and December.
The Reds remained unbeaten – winning five and drawing two – in a testing run of fixtures against the likes of Chelsea, Arsenal, City and Newcastle United.
Kelleher then kept a clean sheet in the crucial Merseyside derby victory over Everton at Anfield in April and made 10 Premier League appearances overall as the 2024-25 championship was secured.