The stats that prove Caoimhin Kelleher is one of Europe’s top goalkeepers
Caoimhin Kelleher(Image: INPHO/Ryan Byrne)Troy Parrott may have stolen the headlines with his five goals in the two magical wins against Portugal and Hungary, but he wasn’t the only player to produce heroics during the campaign.Ireland’s progression to the World Cup play-offs next March were also down to the starring role played by someone at the other end of the pitch.Caoimhin Kelleher pulled off crucial save after crucial save to keep Ireland in contention - and to keep the goal-difference respectable ahead of the unforgettable November window.Kelleher, who kept Ireland in the opener against Hungary when the visitors to Dublin threatened to run riot after racing into a 2-0 lead, produced a memorable penalty save against Cristiano Ronaldo in Lisbon.Then there was his point-blank save in the 3-2 win in Budapest.And who can forget his contribution for Parrott's winner on that famous day, when he launched one final Irish attack with a long ball into the box, which was headed on by Liam Scales and nudged home by the AZ Alkmaar man.Now, the FAI have come out with statistics that back up what we all know - that Kelleher is one of the best goalkeepers around these days.He ranks number one out of all 55 UEFA national team goalkeepers in one category - and fifth in another.According to xG, Kelleher was on top of the list when it came to preventing goals during the qualifiers.Fans are divided over the controversial metric, but it shows that Kelleher, due to the quality of shots that he faced, was expected to concede 11.1 goals. He only conceded seven, so his preventing of 4.1 goals was the best of all goalkeepers across the continent.Next up was Montenegro netminder Danijel Petkovic, who prevented 3.2 goals.When it comes to save percentage, Kelleher ranked fifth with 26 saves from 33 shots (78.8 percent).Ahead of him were England's Jordan Pickford (100 percent), Spain's Unai Simón (83.3 percent), Albania's Thomas Strakosha (80 percent), and Croatia's Dominik Livakovic (79 percent).Click here to sign up to our soccer newsletter, bringing you the top stories and biggest headlines from the League of Ireland and beyond
