The field has been narrowed down to two: only Spain and Argentina have remained in a race for the World Cup trophy. And while fans all around the world are patiently waiting for the clash of Argentina’s legend, Lionel Messi, and Barcelona’s legacy, Lamine Yamal, we will also have a battle of two goalkeepers. Athletic Club’s own Unai Simón will defend La Roja’s colors, and from the other side of the pitch Emiliano “Dibu” Martinez will be waiting for his chance to shine in a white and blue jersey. Everything is ready for the biggest match of the year and the question remains: which goalkeeper will be the one?

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Unai Simon: the keeper of the net

Spain certainly has a roster of quality goalkeepers; David Raya of Arsenal and Joan Garcia of Barcelona are reliable players who have proven themselves this year at their clubs, but somehow Unai Simon of Basque Athletic Club has earned Luis de la Fuente‘s trust and secured his place as the first goalkeeper. Let’s see how is he handlig the stress of being de la Fuente’s primary choice.

Almost impeccable tournament

If we look at the stats, Unai Simon had an almost perfect tournament. He played all seven matches for La Roja, and in those seven matches he conceded only one goal. He helped Spain go through the group stage with a clean sheet and managed to save them several times against Cristiano Ronaldo‘s Portugal. The only time he wasn’t able to be the firm wall in front of the Spanish goal was in a quarterfinal match against Belgium, but that was more of a series of unfortunate events than Simon’s own fault. In those seven games, only twice did he receive a mark that’s less than 7 on Sofascore; in the match against Austria, where he didn’t have much work to do, and in the match against the Red Devils when he conceded the goal. Other than that, statistically he had a marvellous tournament so far.

The modern goalkeeper

One of the factors why Unai Simón is so good is probably his style of playing the game. He is a sweeper keeper, which in modern football describes a goalkeeper that goes outside of his box and helps the defensive line in creating the attack. Simón is the epitome of a modern goalkeeper: he’s fast, plays well with the ball, is very precise in reading the game, and, what’s important, he is well-timed in his positioning and copes well with pressure when surrounded by opposition forwards. When facing a well-organized attack with dangerous forwards, like Argentina’s Messi, Julián Alvarez and Enzo Fernández, being cool under pressure might be the key thing that will keep Spain in the game. Of course, not everything should fall on the goalkeeper, the defensive line will be the key component, but having a calm, precise goalkeeper like Simón helps in matches like this.

Emiliano Martínez: confirmed (master)class

On the other side of the pitch stands Dibu Martínez, a proven masterclass with one gold medal already around his neck. He’s set on helping Argentina win another trophy, and with his winner mentality and on- and off-the-pitch outbursts, he is proving why he is Lionel Scaloni‘s choice number one.

On the way to the top

Just like Simón, Martínez also played all seven matches to the finals, but unlike his Spanish counterpart, he had clean sheets in only two of them. Martínez conceded 7 goals in total: one in a group stage match against Jordan, and four in the knockout stage: two in matches against Cabo Verde and Egypt and one in each of the games against Switzerland and England. Of course, this could tell a lot about the Argentine defensive line and that they often leave their goalkeeper in the open, where he is vulnerable to opposing attackers, but it is a fact that Martínez’s stats are inferior to Unai Simón’s, who concedes an average of 0.1 goals per game compared to Dibu’s one goal per game. Sofascore’s average mark confirms it, where Simón’s average mark in this tournament is 7.0, and Martínez’s is 6.7. But there is still one game to be played and it can change everything.

Successful provocator

One of the things Emiliano Martínez is known for is his extraordinary mind games before the penalties. It has been noticed that he likes to taunt his opponents before they try to score, and usually they fail after his psychological provocations. His cockiness and confidence make him one of the best goalkeepers in the world when the game comes to that final penalty stage. Other than that, he is very good in one-on-one situations; the whole world (or rather, whole France) remembers the 123rd minute of the World Cup final in Qatar when Randal Kolo Muani was in a 1v1 situation with Martínez and the goalkeeper successfully blocked the Frenchman’s attempt, leading Argentina to the trophy. Martínez’s style would be described as an old-style sweeper keeper because he does get out of his box, but in critical moments he stays on the goal line.

Surprise that might ruin the fun?

Emiliano Martínez and Unai Simón are certainly in a run for this year’s Golden Glove, since both of them have proven that they are excellent goalkeepers for their teams, but there is also another goalie that surprised and stunned the crowd. Cape Verde’s Vozinha also had a fantastic tournament. No matter how early this small island nation got knocked out of the World Cup, Vozinha’s bravado against Spain and Argentina will be remembered. Now stands the question: who will be the best goalkeeper of the tournament?

Logic dictates that it’ll be the keeper of the winning team, but there were exactly three instances when the best goalkeeper wasn’t the one with the gold medal: in 1994. It was Belgian Michel Preud’Homme and in 2002 Germany’s Oliver Kahn, when both times the winner was Brazil, and the last time it happened was 8 years ago when Thibaut Courtois went home with this prestigious award, leaving champion Hugo Lloris without an individual award. It seems that it all depends on the finals.