Best Goalkeepers in La Liga: Veterans and Rising Stars (2024)

Marc-André ter Stegen, Jan Oblak, and Unai Simón are the best goalkeepers in La Liga. They have been regularly for several years. Nothing changed in 2024. Simón, however, is the best goalkeeper in La Liga. He was awarded the Ricardo Zamora Trophy for the 2023/24 season. The trophy is handed out to the ‘keeper with the best goals-to-game ratio. The Athletic Bilbao goalkeeper was part of the 2023 UEFA Nations League-winning team. He won domestic honours too when Bilbao won an historic 2023/24 Copa del Rey title.

Oblak has won the Ricardo Zamora Trophy five times. He was awarded the trophy four times, consecutively from the 2015/16 season to the 2018/19 campaign. His most recent win was in 2020/21. Víctor Valdés and Antoni Ramallets, who both played for Barcelona, also won the award five times. Ter Stegen won the award last season for the first time. 

Simón, Oblak, and Ter Stegen are the only ‘keepers on these three 2023/24 La Liga rankings charts to win the Zamora. Thibaut Courtois was injured early in the season. He is one of the best ‘keepers of his generation. Courtois won titles for Atlético Madrid, Real Madrid, and Chelsea in the English Premier League.

However, goalkeeping ratings are deceptive. The players can be misrepresented by the data. The great intangible, however, is the “eye test.” Add the “eye test” to the data, and you have your rankings. Goalkeepers playing in the top teams face fewer shots, which leads to conceding fewer goals. This is because their defences and midfields are strong and filled with the best players in those positions. 

Jan Oblak//Getty Images

Conversely, ‘keepers playing for weaker clubs concede more shots and goals. This often distorts the quality of the men between the posts. The mindset of a goalkeeper is different to the outfield players. Concentration is key, staying focused while doing little is mentally challenging, and mistakes occur when players switch off. 

The best goalies can do little during a game but often need to make that one crucial save or intervention to keep their team in the contest. Goalkeepers from weaker football clubs tend to get more work during the game. They make more saves because they concede more shots. The best goalkeepers make fewer errors. Their all-round quality is better, especially in the era of playing out from the back. This goes for every ‘keeper in every league at all levels.

The Best Goalkeepers in La Liga 2023/24?

Despite all the data analysis regarding “sweeper-keepers” and “ball-playing goalies,” clean sheets, shots saved, and save percentage are still the tangibles to judge a ‘keeper’s performance. Shot-stoppers will never go out of fashion. SportsBoom has collected the data for these statistics to rank the best goalkeepers in La Liga in the 2023/24 season.

Unai Simón tops two of the three data tables. He kept 17 clean sheets, the most of any goalkeeper in La Liga. Simón conceded 32 goals from 126 shots in 36 matches. The Athletic Bilbao ‘keeper saved 94 shots, with a save percentage of 75%, the best in the league. It is no wonder the Bilboa shot-stopper was awarded the Ricardo Zamora Trophy in 2024.

Marc-André Ter Stegen Jan Oblak, and Simón play for Barcelona, Atlético Madrid, and Athletic Club Bilbao, respectively. All three clubs finished in the top five of La Liga. Bilbao (37) conceded the second-fewest goals of the season, Atlético Madrid (43) the third-fewest, and Barcelona (44) the fifth-fewest goals in the 2023/24 campaign. 

Ørjan Nyland’s save percentage (75%) matched Simón but faced fewer shots. The Sevilla ‘keeper only kept six clean sheets in 24 games. Nyland (2,160 min) conceded 22 goals in 24 games and faced fewer shots because he played 1,000 fewer minutes than Simón (3,184 min). Sevilla finished thirteenth in La Liga; Bilbao came fifth. 

Ter Stegen and Álex Remiro kept 15 clean sheets, but the Barcelona goalkeeper played more games (minutes). They were, however, equal-fourth in save percentage (73%). Remiro conceded 28 goals in 37 matches from 134 shots. Ter Stegen shed 25 goals in 28 games from 96 shots. Barcelona came second; Real Sociedad finished sixth. 

Oblak, Paulo Gazzaniga and David Soria are the only players to feature three times on these charts. Gazzaniga was part of the surprise of the season, Girona. The Catalan club finished third in La Liga, while Atlético Madrid (Oblak) ended fourth. Getafe (Soria) came twelfth. 

Gazzaniga (73%) had the better save percentage of the three. He made 126 saves from 172 shots, the second-most on the list. Oblak and Soria were equal-tenth (70%) with save percentage. Oblak made 100 saves (ninth-most) from 143 shots. Soria made 120 saves (third-most) from 172 shots. 

Ter Stegen and Simón are not on the shots saved chart. Barcelona and Bilbao finished at the top end of the La Liga table. This highlights the two clubs’ strong defences and midfields. Atlético Madrid might have finished fourth, but Oblak conceded 39 goals from 143 shots in 38 games. Ter Stegen conceded 25 goals from 96 shots, and Simón let in 28 goals from 126. 

Ter Stegen and Simón only had a slightly better save percentage than Oblak. Filip Jörgensen (142) made the most saves, 16 more than Gazzaniga (126), and 22 more than Soria (120). Oblak (100) is ninth, but he kept one more clean sheet than Gazzaniga, and three more than Soria, who only played six minutes less than both. 

In conclusion, these three Spanish goalkeeper charts highlight how little there is to choose between top-class goalkeepers in La Liga. After measuring the data - the tangibles and intangibles - club positions, and the goalkeepers’ rankings on the three lists, six names stand out. Simón, Ter Stegen, and Oblak are world-class, and the top three goalkeepers in La Liga in 2024. 

Gazzaniga, Soria, and Remiro sit below, but not by much. They do, however, measure better than the rest of La Liga’s goalkeepers. This is not to say the other players on these rankings are poor. Moreover, they are all excellent. There are fine margins between all the listed players. Finally, after careful consideration, and reviewing the data, SportsBoom concludes that the best goalkeeper in La Liga in 2024 is Simón. 

Iñaki Peña | Barcelona | Age: 25 Years Old

Barcelona goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen missed ten La Liga games through injury in 2023/24 (seventeen matches total). Ter Stegen is facing months on the sidelines after he ruptured the patella tendon in his right knee. The German needed knee surgery. He is out for the rest of the season. Iñaki Peña is his deputy and has the rest of the campaign to prove his quality.

Peña is an able replacement. He is a UEFA Youth League Winner with Spain. He has one La Liga, Copa del Rey, and Spanish Super Cup winner with the Catalan club. The 25-year-old played seventeen matches in the 2023/24 season. He conceded 32 goals, with only three clean sheets, but Barcelona’s defence was only equal fifth in Spain’s top-flight, which cost them the title. 

Peña has started this season in better form, and Barcelona’s defence has been better. He has played five matches in the 2024/25 campaign, four La Liga and one UEFA Champions League. He has already kept four clean sheets and only conceded once. The Blaugrana will need Peña to perform at a high standard to compete with Real Madrid for the title. 

Andriy Lunin//Getty Images

Andriy Lunin | Real Madrid | Age: 25 Years Old

Andriy Lunin is another promising up-and-coming goalkeeper. The Ukraine gloveman had a memorable 2023/24 season. Lunin played 31 matches across all competitions for Los Blancos after Thibaut Courtois tore his ACL in his left knee in August 2023. Like Peña at Barcelona, the Real Madrid backup conceded 32 goals. However, he kept 12 clean sheets.

Lunin won the La Liga and Champions League double; however, he did not start the UCL final because Courtois recovered in time to start against Borussia Dortmund at Wembley Stadium in London. He finished equal tenth for the most clean sheets (10) in La Liga, which propelled Madrid to both titles.

The 25-year-old has played two matches up to late October in 2024. He beat out Spanish compatriot Kepa Arrizabalaga – who is now on loan at Brighton & Hove Albion in the English Premier League – for the backup role at the club. Lunin will probably need injury or retirement to claim the No. 1 jersey in Madrid. 

Giorgi Mamardashvili: Valencia | AGE: 24 Years Old

Giorgi Mamardashvili is one of the most highly-rated up-and-coming goalkeepers in the world. Mamardashvili finished the season with the sixth-most clean sheets (13) and most saves (107). The 24-year-old had the equal fourth-best save percentage (73%), just two percent less than first-placed Unai Simón (75%). However, the Georgia ‘keeper faced 20 more shots than Simón. 

Mamardashvili also saved the most penalties (3) to complete his best season in Spain. He helped Georgia qualify for EURO 2024 when he saved a penalty in the shootout against Greece. His heroics sent Georgia to their first European Championship. Mamardashvili finished the group stage with a clean sheet against Cristian Ronaldo and Portugal, which sent his nation to the knockouts. He ended with 20 saves in the group stage, the most by any goalkeeper in the tournament. 

The talented gloveman attracted interest around Europe, eventually being sold to Liverpool Football Club. He will join the Reds in June 2025. However, it has not been a good start to the new season. Valencia is in the relegation zone, and they have the second-worst goal difference (-8) after nine games. Mamardashvili wants to finish his time in Spain on a high note before his move to the English giants, Liverpool.