Top 10 Saves from World Football in September
There were plenty of great goals in world football in September, but there were also some good saves, too.
Plenty of the planet's most recognisable goalkeepers were seen springing around their penalty areas to acrobatically keep out efforts from the opposition and here are 10 of the best.
Which is your favourite? Let us know in the comments below.
Luis Robles, New York Red Bulls vs. Seattle Sounders
1 of 10
The New York Red Bulls' Luis Robles won one of Major League Soccer's "Save of the Week" awards for this, a stunning double effort against the Seattle Sounders in which he looked to be beaten twice.
First, Robles reacted brilliantly to keep out a deflected effort from Marco Pappa, then he sprung to feet to save a header from Clint Dempsey, which looked as though it was certain to beat him.
Julian Speroni, Crystal Palace vs. Burnley
2 of 10Julian Speroni's brilliant penalty save from Burnley's Scott Arfield was good enough on its own, but you have to give him even greater credit due to the fact that it occurred in the dying minutes of the game with the score goalless.
With Crystal Palace seemingly facing certain defeat, Speroni sprung to his right to keep out Arfield's fierce strike and make himself even more of a hero at Selhurst Park.
Hugo Lloris, Arsenal vs. Tottenham
3 of 10
"https://t.co/BG7UqfX2vo What a save Hugo Lloris. Never leave us
— Tottenham Hotspur (@THFC__Fans) September 28, 2014"
Hugo Lloris underlined his immense quality with this fine save low down to his left in last weekend's north London derby.
Per Mertesacker must have thought that he'd scored when he sent his header goalwards, only for Lloris to plunge low and brilliantly keep it out.
Iker Casillas, Villarreal vs. Real Madrid
4 of 10
"IKER CASILLAS!!! http://t.co/nVL1sCQeYA
— IkerCasillas Türkiye (@casillasturkiye) September 27, 2014"
Iker Casillas hasn't been having too happy a time of it just lately, but he showed his enduring class with this double stop in Real Madrid's recent 2-0 win at Villarreal.
Showing immense fitness and body strength, Casillas got up off the ground immediately after making his first save to produce an even better second.
Tim Howard, Liverpool vs. Everton
5 of 10
"What a save from Tim Howard. http://t.co/JcFO8quW8L
— Football Vines (@Vine_Football) September 27, 2014"
At first glance this just appears to be a miss from Liverpool's Mario Balotelli, but when you look again you see a flying Tim Howard, who is no stranger to these sort of lists, get a hand to the ball and touch it onto the crossbar during the Merseyside derby at Anfield.
The save proved crucial, too, as Everton came back and managed to pick up a point.
Manuel Neuer, FC Koln vs. Bayern Munich
6 of 10
"Splendid double save from Manuel Neuer. not only a sweeper keeper! https://t.co/dVkg20gB5L
— Nasiruddin (@NumberNineNas) September 27, 2014"
None of these lists is ever complete without the German World Cup winner, and Manuel Neuer produced this terrific double save to keep out FC Koln in Bayern Munich's most recent Bundesliga game.
Neuer's speed was vital here as he ran out to block the second shot so quickly after he'd saved the first.
Wojciech Szczesny, Aston Villa vs. Arsenal
7 of 10
"Szczesny super save https://t.co/w529JKWLtk
— Arsenal Future (@madimaadi) September 26, 2014"
Aston Villa's Ciaran Clark should certainly have scored here, but Arsenal's Polish goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny did a great job of making himself big and putting the defender off.
The result was that his header ended up going pretty much straight at the Arsenal No. 1, but it was the hard work he put into it which made that possible.
Rafael, Torino vs. Verona
8 of 10He ended up getting a little help from his friends, but Verona goalkeeper Rafael's penalty save from Torino's Omar El Kaddouri, then his reaction stop and help in clearing the loose ball must make this a great contender for the best save of September.
Throw in the fact that only two minutes remained in the match and Verona won 1-0 and it's going to take some beating.
Joe Bendik, Toronto vs. Chicago
9 of 10
Toronto FC's Joe Bendik came up with another top stop from the MLS when he kept out a penalty, the follow up and then a third effort on the way to helping earn his side a point from a draw with Chicago.
And earn it he certainly did.
You can see the saves here.
Gianluigi Buffon, Atalanta vs. Juventus
10 of 10
"Gigi Buffon doing what he does best v Atalanta#Juventus http://t.co/FZHTJZvksS
— BlueSoldier (@BlueSoldier_8) September 28, 2014"
The master of them all, though, remains Gianluigi Buffon, with the veteran stopper still going strong at Juventus and still pulling off penalty saves like this one from Atalanta's German Denis.
Denis could have equalised from the spot but Buffon kept him out, thereby setting the stage for a 3-0 victory for his side.
