Liverpool shot stopper Alisson
Becker has received numerous commendations for settling to life at Anfield very
quickly. He was named the UEFA Goalkeper of the season 2018/19 last night. He
was ranked ahead of Barcelona’s Marc-Andre Stegen and Hugo Lloris of Tottenham
Hotspur. Atletico Madrid’s Jan Oblak and Andre Onana of Ajax completed the top five.
Alisson did this in a pressure-laden
season at Anfield after the sacking of two goalkeepers and the club paid a
record fee of 63 million Euros to land him from Roma. In the 13 games run to
the Champions League title, the Brazilian kept six clean sheets. More
importantly he has been a huge boost to the confidence of the team since he
joined.
Many pundits say the goalkeeper has
settled quicker than Manchester United legend Edwin van der Sar at Fulham and
even David De Gea at Manchester United when he arrived. Alisson arrived at England
and hit the ground running, and becoming a fan delight instantly. The player
has been praised for his mental strength and goalkeeping contributions since
Jurgen Klopp took a leap of faith to sign him.
He is expected to return soon from his six weeks injury to continue his fine work. Adrian has been representing decently for Liverpool but the team needs Alisson back. Liverpool are hoping to challenge Man City for the league title, whilst maintaining dominance locally.
Alisson remains a contender for
player of the year but it is increasingly likely that the FIFA award would go
to his teammate Vigil van Dijk, who won the UEFA Men’s Player of the Year
award.