Fresh off the first week of MLS action, ISN columnist Philippe Chauveau continues his rating of MLS goalkeepers. Chauveau, a former collegiate keeper himself, will be completing this weekly column so ISN readers gain a better understanding of the goalkeeping profession.
Best Save: David Ousted vs Gyasi Zardes, LA Galaxy
Worst Mistake: Tim Melia vs Luke Mulholland
1. David Bingham
He didn’t have much work, but wasn’t able to keep the clean sheet this time around. On the cross that led to the D.C. United goal, an argument can be made that he should have come out and punched that ball before it even got to the attacker, but the ball came with a lot of pace, so I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt on this one.
2. David Ousted
The Great Dane is back! The Whitecaps were one of the six teams to play two games in these past couple of weeks, and with a commanding performance in both, Ousted shoots up to second in the rankings. It helps that Blake had a less than stellar performance against Chicago, but Ousted proved that he is one of the best in the league by using his size and command of the box to help Vancouver come out with four points. Ousted also provided us with the save of the round, on a Gyasi Zardes volley from about seven yards out. Ousted not only stays big and holds his ground, but he also swings a bear-like paw at the ball, enough to deflect it over the bar.
3. Andre Blake
Part of a very sloppy game in Chicago, Blake did not have much work. He didn’t have a part to play on the goal, a nice finish from a burgeoning Igboananike, but drops because of Ousted’s big week.
4. Bobby Shuttleworth
Shuttleworth was perhaps the biggest beneficiary from playing twice this matchweek. Although he only moved a couple of spots up, he definitely seems to have climbed to another level this season. In both games he displayed the full range of his athleticism, covering his near post while still spring out to the far post to make diving saves. Also, the New England back line seems to have complete trust in him, which leads to more confidence up the field.
5. Luis Robles
Robles did not have a bad game, but the rise of Shuttleworth causes him to drop a spot. His performance was solid, and that included a beautiful diving save on a header, where he shuffled across the goal and sprung to gobble the ball up midair.
6. Jesse Gonzalez
Gonzalez was one of a few goalkeepers not to play this week, as he was in international duty with the Mexian U-23 side. He drops a couple of spots because of Shuttleworth’s performances.
7. Tim Melia
Melia had an abysmal performance against Real Salt Lake, but due to goalies behind him either not playing or also having lackluster performances, he doesn’t actually drop this week – although he probably should have. With mistakes on both RSL goals, Melia cost Sporting some important home points. The first goal was a mess, as he should have come out first for the cross, and then somehow had his angles so wrong that a weak header from an impossible angle beat him far post. The second goal goes down as our worst mistake of the round. After a scramble in the box, Mulholland takes a first time shot – if we can even call it that – from about 25 yards out. This ball should not only be savable, but also laughable. And somehow, Melia reacts so late that the ball beats him as it bounces into the net. He knows he made a horrible mistake too, because he laid with his face on the grass for a few extra seconds.
8. Nick Rimando
Rimando got dropped for Jeff Attinella in this week’s RSL game. Attinella was important in RSL’s win in Kansas City this Saturday, and I did mention that he was a more than worthy backup in my initial power rankings. Some interesting developments might be coming out of Salt Lake City here soon.
9. Adam Kwarasey
Sometimes goalkeepers just have that look, like they’re not going to be beaten no matter what the attackers throw at him – Adam Kwarasey had the opposite type of look on Saturday. He never looked like saving anything, every single ball just outside of his reach. He’s looking a little bit on the heavier side, and while he is a bulkier goalie, I think he might be a little overweight judging by his reaction time and how much he’s able to get off the ground.
10. Josh Saunders
Saunders got scored on a deflection off of a free kick, which usually exempts the goalkeeper of any blame. However, he looked like he was going to get scored on before the deflection came, and it was definitely a ball that he should be saved.
11. Stefan Frei
Not much to do against a Drogba-less Montreal side, but Frei still had a commanding performance, gathering crosses and holding onto every ball headed for his net.
12. Steve Clark
He had the unlucky moment of the weekend, when a Maxi Urruti shot cannoned off the post right into his back, and just sat there 2 yards in front of goal for a tap-in. He showed off his athleticism with a nice low save, shuffling his feet and diving to his right on a curler from Michael Barrios. However, once again Clark looked like he wanted to give the game away with his dangerous passes, and extra touches in the box.
13. Brian Rowe
Another goalkeeper that got to show off his athleticism this week, and also a maturity beyond his limited MLS experience. A couple of impressive holds and a nice diving save to his right highlighted a good performance from the LA Galaxy backup.
14. Evan Bush
Bush continues to show that he has the potential to be a great goalkeeper in this league… if he can learn how to come out for crosses. His reaction time and instincts are among the best, but every ball in the box is still an every-man-for-himself situation. Montreal got scored on in a corner kick – again.
15. Joe Willis
The Houston backup made a really bad mistake in what should have been a Morales goal for the Whitecaps. After a goal kick, the ball was hit back towards his box and the Vancouver attacker was running onto it. Willis was neither on his line or outside of his box to meet it, opening up the perfect opportunity for a chip. Luckily for him, Morales messed up the chip and put it wide. He was caught in what we call “no-mans land”, which is a goalie’s worst nightmare and almost a guarantee to get scored on. With that being said, Willis looked to have kept his cool and made a couple of confident saves during the match.
16. Clint Irwin
Again, Irwin showed his lack of confidence when coming out for crosses. Dillon Powers hit the post for Colorado off a header where Irwin did everything wrong. Didn’t come out to meet the cross, and once the attacker made contact, Irwin was somehow extremely poorly positioned, cover his near post and leaving the entire other side of the goal open. Later on in the game, he somehow couldn’t hold onto a weak low shot from about 25 yards out, in which he reacted extremely slowly and hit the ground in what looked like slow motion.
17. Joe Bendik
Bendik had a game of ups and downs. One more time he showed his inability to come out on crosses, and that resulted in a penalty kick called for Portland. However, he made for it by saving Fanendo Adi’s free kick with a strong right hand.
18. Zac MacMath
The former Philadelphia starter actually looked like an MLS caliber goalkeeper this weekend, and a strong performance, which included an impressive save on a Sebastian Giovinco free kick, sees him climb the rankings a bit.
19. Travis Worra
Clearly not a starter in this league, Worra has been doing what he can to keep DC United in contention for anything this season. He doesn’t inspire confidence and his technique is off, but nothing too bad from him this week. However, he still on a level below most goalies in the MLS.
20. Matt Lampson
Speaking of players who aren’t starters in this league, here’s one who shouldn’t be seeing a minute of playing time. He almost had the worst mistake of the round when Ilsinho hit a shot straight at him that he not only couldn’t handle but barely parried it onto the crossbar – technique-wise, it was the worst mistake of the weekend, he just happened not to get scored on. It’s like he was surprised by the power of the shot, but seeing the path of the ball from multiple angles, it looks like a pretty straightforward strike.
