Approaching 100 Barclays Premier League appearances as a 25-year-old for a goalkeeper that didn’t come through the ranks of an English top flight club is no mean feat, but having racked up 90 league appearances for Sunderland, fighting off competition from the likes of Craig Gordon; Simon Mignolet’s time at the Black Cats has certainly been a success. He joined the club three seasons ago in a £2 million deal from his hometown club in Belgium of Sint-Truiden and has not looked back, becoming one of the shining goalkeeping stars in the league – representing a coup of sorts in the transfer market for Liverpool.
A fantastically talented shot stopper, a calm and dominating presence in the box and very competent in the one-on-one situation, the Belgian was arguably the best keeper in the English top flight last season - a division that includes the likes of Petr Cech, David De Gea, Joe Hart, Asmir Begovic and of course our own Pepe Reina. In a Sunderland side that drastically underperformed in 2012/13, finishing fourth bottom, he was the shining star, managing to accumulate 11 clean sheets, a record that only four goalkeepers in the Premier League can better from last season.
His temperament and attitude is certainly an admirable one. According to a Sunderland journalist, he has driven the same Audi from the day he joined the Wearside club, he speaks five languages and is currently studying for a masters degree having completed a degree in Political Science while in Sunderland.
What we are getting, at a good value price of a quoted £9 million (half the price of David De Gea), is an all rounder with lots of room to develop. Many keepers do not hit their peak until their early 30's, and at 25, Mignolet has a great amount of time to develop his game, not that it needs much development. His at times gravity defying shot stopping is what has made him the second most expensive goalkeeper in Premier League history, and of course he may have to work on his distribution to match the expertise of Reina – one of the greatest goalkeepers I have ever seen with the ball at his feet – especially in the Brendan Rodgers style of play where the 11th man is so important in possession.
So what of our goalkeeping situation next season? Many Liverpool fans see Simon as a direct replacement for a possible outgoing Pepe Reina, but judging on the recent comments in the press of both Reina and Mignolet, this is not how I see it. Next summer, with Victor Valdes leaving Barcelona and Thibaut Courtois finally returning to Chelsea after a multi-season loan spell at Atletico Madrid, I can see Reina making the move to one of the two clubs at which his father (Miguel Reina) spent seven years apiece. But Brendan Rodgers’ desire is to have competition throughout the squad, including in the goalkeeping department where Brad Jones has been unable to give Reina real competition in his time at Liverpool. Competition for places can only be a positive thing and spur on the two world class goalkeepers we now have at our disposal. In a World Cup season, both keepers will have a fight to get into their national sides, with both Belgium and Spain looking like they will qualify for Brazil 2014. While we all know about the competition for places in the Spainish squad in almost any position including in goal, Mignolet will have a fight on his hands to retain the number 1 jersey from the aforementioned Courtois – yet more motivation to perform well at Anfield this season.
Another piece of the jigsaw, another reason for Reds fans to be excited this season and yet another example of Rodgers’ ability in the transfer market. This is certainly a signing that Kopites will look forward to welcoming into the team this coming season.
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