Best South American Goalkeepers of All Time

You will very scarcely find a great team in history who did not have an incredible, or at least very good, goalkeeper. They are often the man who left with all the blame.

There are several various styles of goalkeeping, from those who are wild and eccentric to more dependable and safe shot-stoppers. South American goalkeepers have commonly been known to be more eccentric in style.

Throughout football history, no continent has produced talent in quite the same quantity and quality as South America. However, there is a particular position in which the South Americans have never succeeded to dominate worldwide and that is the goal.

If we review those who have been the best goalkeepers in the history of this sport, we will hardly find a South American among the first five. But there are still goalkeepers in the continent who have become absolute legends of the game, etching their careers into the history books forever.

After all, most of these goalies have what's needed to stand against the blows of the world's deadliest strikers. In this way, we decided to take a closer look at the 10

best

South

American

goalkeepers

of

all

time

.

This is a list celebrating the very best the continent has had to offer us. Yet, it is a herculean task trying to select the best ones from such a continent; while everyone will have different preferences.

 Related Article: 

Best South American Goalkeepers of All Time

Here is a look at the best south American goalkeepers of all time.

Sergio Goycochea

• Age

  : 57

• Height

  : 1,85 m

• Citizenship

  : Argentina

• Position

  : Goalkeeper

• Foot

  : right

Date

of

birth

: Oct 17, 1963

Place

of

birth

: Lima   

Current

club

: Retired

One of the

best

South

American

goalkeepers

of

all

time

is Sergio Goycochea who initially was the stopgap for Nery Pumpido both in River Plate and in the Argentine national team, and got his big break in the 1990 FIFA World Cup.

When Pumpido broke his leg in Argentina's second group game against the Soviet Union, Goycochea stepped in and remained the team's starting goalkeeper for the remainder of the game.

He was a very safe goalkeeper under sticks and very good in hand to hand. He became well known in history for his great performance in the World Cup in Italia `90, in which with his saves he put Argentina in the final.

He is best known for helping his country reach the 1990 FIFA World Cup Final with his penalty kick saves that has made him one of the best goalkeepers in the history of South America.

Blessed with excellent reflexes and cat-like quickness, he adds to the mix a calmness and confidence that both settles his teammates and unnerves the opposition.

Surprisingly, Goycochea’s success with the national team has not earned him a spot with a large European club, and he has tended to roam about since Italia ’90.

He has played for

in France and for Cerro Porteno and Olimpia in Paraguay, before returning home to lead River Plate to its most recent Argentine championship.

Among his honors one can mention World Cup runner-up in 1990; South American championship (Copa America) winner in 1991 and 1993; South American club championship (Copa Libertadores) winner in 1986. Three-time Argentine League champion with River Plate.

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Dida(Nélson de Jesús Silva)

• Age

  : 47

• Height

  : 1,95 m

• Citizenship

  : Brazil

• Position

  : Goalkeeper

• Foot

  : left

Full

name

: Nélson de Jesús Silva

Date

of

birth

: Oct 7, 1973

Place

of

birth

: Irará   

Current

club

: Retired

In his heyday, Neson de Jesus Silva was not only a 

South

Americas best

goalkeepers

ever

but also the best one throughout the whole world.

The name ‘Dida’ itself is taken from the name of the legendary Flamengo striker, the club he supported. Dida’s primary introduction to the sport was through handball and volleyball.

This ability for handling was to serve him well. So too was his organizational techniques, which were such that he formed a team with his brothers at the age of 13.

After starting his senior club career in Brazil in the early 1990s with Vitória, Dida became a penalty kick-saving professional with

and

.

He is probably best remembered for his prosperous and often stormy ten-year period with

from 2000 to 2010, where he made himself one of the world's

greatest

South

American

goalkeepers

of

all

time

and won numerous prizes and individual awards with the club.

But he became equally recognized for his propensity for errors as well as his excellent gameplay, while he captured media attention in 2005 for being hit by a lit flare during a match against crosstown rivals Internazionale.

Dida finally hung up his shoes in 2015 with the Brazilian club, International. His last appearance was at age 41 in April 2015, making him the oldest

player.

Dida’s glory led him to be the best Brazilian goalkeeper in the 21st-century version of the International Football Federation of History & Statistics (IFFHS).

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Claudio André Mergen Taffarel

• Age

  : 54

• Height

  : 1,80 m

• Citizenship

  : Brazil, Italy

• Position

  : Goalkeeper

Name

in

home

country

: Cláudio André Mergen Taffarel

Date

of

birth

: May 8, 1966

Place

of

birth

: Santa Rosa   

Current

club

: Retired

Among the

best

South

American

goalkeepers

in

soccer

history

, Taffarel played professionally for five clubs, including

, Atlético Mineiro, and

in the course of an 18-year career. Taffarel started his playing career by goalkeeping for Sport Club Internacional, where he spent five years.

Although he only made 14 appearances in the Serie A, he was granted the Golden Ball for the 1988 season, when he was just twenty-two years old. This made him one of the youngest awarded.

Taffarel was known to be a practical, consistent, and effective keeper, with good fundamental goalkeeping techniques, who preferred an efficient rather than spectacular playing style.

His main characteristics were his reflexes, positional sense, and composure in goal, as well as his penalty-stopping skills.

Besides, he was known to be quick when coming off his line and was also highly regarded for his skill with the ball at his feet.

Due to his lack of height, however, he sometimes struggled when handling crosses. Taffarel led his Galatasaray A.C. team to a UEFA Cup and a UEFA Super Cup victory in 2000.

He was even awarded the Man of The Match award in the UEFA Super Cup match against

, where he saved 3 out of 4 attempted penalties during the shootout after the match being 0-0 after 120 minutes.

He even won 2 leagues and 2 cup championships during his Turkish tenure. He gained domestic and European Cup success during his span at Parma.

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Emerson Leao

• Age

  : 71

• Citizenship

  : Brazil

• Position

  : Goalkeeper

Date

of

birth

: Jul 11, 1949

Place

of

birth

: Ribeirão Preto Brazil

Current

club:

 Retired

Emerson Leao is among the best Sought American goalkeeper of all time who currently works as a sports commentator on the Esporte iterative channels and as a coach.

He started his career as a goalkeeper in the basic levels of São José and later went to Comercial FC, in Ribeirão Preto, where he became a professional.

In 1968 he moved to

and took the position in the nets shortly after arriving, due to the injury of the goalkeeper Chicão.

At Palmeiras, he won the Brazilian Championship in 1969, 1972, and 1973 and the Paulista Championship in 1972, 1974, and 1976.

He played in 617 matches of the team, being the second player who mostly played with the Palmeiras shirt, behind only Ademir da Guia, who played 901 times.

In 1983, he was transferred to Corinthians, where he won the 1983 Paulista Championship. In 1984, he returned to Palmeiras, where he was placed second in the 1986 Paulista Championship. In 1987 he moved to Sport Club do Recife, where he ended his career.

He played 105 times for the Brazilian national team, starting from 1971 to 1979. Passed by Telê Santana at the 1982 World Cup, he returned to the national team in 1983 playing in the Copa America.

For his consistent performances, he was summoned to play in the 1986 World Cup, being the reserve holder Carlos Roberto Gallo. He played 80 times for the Brazilian national football team.

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Rene Higuita

• Age

  : 54

• Height

  : 1,75 m

• Citizenship

  : Colombia

• Position

  : Goalkeeper

• Foot

  : right

Name

in

home

country

: José René Higuita Zapata

Date

of

birth

: Aug 28, 1966

Place

of

birth

: Medellín  Colombia

Current

club

: Retired

Rene Higuita is one of the

best

South

American

goalkeepers

of

all

time

 who started his youth career by playing for the local club Millonarios. Apparently, he did not start as a goalkeeper but as a striker. He was even the top scorer in his school’s team.

An injury to the side’s keeper directed him to wear the gloves, but he showed so much as a goalkeeper that he finally changed his position forever. He was recognized as “El Loco” (The Madman) for his risky antics and eccentricity.

As a revolutionary goalkeeper, he redefined the role that goalkeepers are allowed to play and laid the foundations for what we call today the “sweeper-keeper” which role is employed by some of the best goalkeepers in the world like

and Hugo Lloris.

Especially, known for his ‘infamous’ scorpion kick against England, he deserves a lot of fame for revolutionizing the role of a modern goalkeeper.

He often strived to dribble with opposing strikers, and frequently ran out of the box to assist in the build-up play. Also good at free-kicks and penalties, he is considred as one of the highest-scoring and

greatest

South

American

goalkeepers

in

soccer

history

.

He was granted the Golden Foot Legends Award in 2009 and was ranked as the 8th greatest South American goalkeepers in soccer history by the IFFHS.

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Ladislao Mazurkiewicz

• Height

  : 1,78 m

• Citizenship

  : Uruguay, Poland

• Position

  : Goalkeeper

Full

name

: Ladislao Mazurkiewicz Iglesias

Date

of

birth

: Feb 14, 1945

Place

of

birth

: Piriápolis  Uruguay

Date

of

death

: 02.01.2013 (67)

Ladislao Mazurkiewicz is considered as one of the best South American goalkeepers of all time who was the emblematic goalkeeper for Peñarol and the Uruguayan team.

Born in the Bella Vista district, he rarely went through the constructive divisions. His link with Racing was a springboard. He appeared in Sayago in 1961, and in 1965 he was still with the aurinegra.

From that first time, he built his history defending the aurinegro bow. He was champion of the Copa Libertadores and the Intercontinental Cup with Peñarol in 1966, defeating River Plate and

, respectively.

At the club level, he went through Atlético Mineiro,

, and América de Cali de Colombia. With the selection, he also became a legend. He is remembered for his incredible performance in the 1970 World Cup in Mexico, where he put the sky blue in the semifinals with his saves.

At the local level, with Peñarol he set an unbeaten mark of 987 minutes without receiving goals. He retired in 1981 in Peñarol, as Uruguayan champion, to later return and be a coach in a Liguilla and dedicated to preparing goalkeepers for several years.

He died at the age of 67 at the Spanish Association of Montevideo. For days he was hospitalized for respiratory problems.

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Amadeo Carrizo

• Height

  : 1,88 m

• Citizenship

  : Argentina

• Position

  : Goalkeeper

Name

in

home

country

: Amadeo Raúl Carrizo Larretape

Date

of

birth

: Jun 12, 1926

Place

of

birth

: Rufino  Argentina

Date

of

death

: 20.03.2020 (93)

Amadeo Carrizo is among the best South American goalkeepers of all time who was also a manager. Since he was a child he liked football and he made his professional football debut in 1945, at the age of 19. He played for Club Atlético River Plate, Millonarios de Bogotá, and the Argentine National Team.

He was one of the forerunners in the creation oI techniques and strategies in the goalkeeping position, such as leaving the area to have a part in defense; throw yourself at the opponent's feet to grab the ball in an attack, and use the goal kick to begin a counterattack.

He was also the first to use gloves as an assist, a familiar tool for all goalkeepers today, and was chosen by the IFFHS as the best South American goalkeeper.

Carrizo's style of play formed a school among other famous Latin American goalkeepers. He played constantly for River Plate for 24 years, from 1945 to 1968, being the player who spent the longest time at the club and played the most games (513 played).

He got the nickname Tarzan, for the spectacular stunts in defense of the goal. He was also described in European media as the best goalkeeper of the 20th century in Latin America. The specialized magazine "El Gráfico", in a note depicted him as: "A Master Without Epoch".

He lived the last years of his life in the district of Villa Devoto in the city of Buenos Aires. He died in the city of Buenos Aires on March 20, 2020, at the age of 93.

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Ubaldo Fillol

• Age

  : 70

• Height

  : 1,81 m

• Citizenship

  : Argentina

• Position

  : Goalkeeper

• Foot

  : right

Name

in

home

country

: Ubaldo Matildo Fillol

Date

of

birth

: Jul 21, 1950

Place

of

birth

: San Miguel del Monte   

Current

club

: Retired

Ubaldo Fillol is also known as "El Pato" (the duck), is arguably the best South American goalkeeperer of all time that later become a football coach.

Many experts also had him on the South American dreamteam of the century. Fillol started his career in 1969 playing for Quilmes Athletic Club.

He was transferred to Racing Club in 1972, that season he also saved six penalties shots, hitting a record for the Argentinian league. In 1973, Fillol joined River Plate, where he played for 11 years, winning several league championships, becoming one of the most popular players in the club history.

He is often assumed to be one of the greatest south American goalkeepers of all time and is usually regarded as the best Argentine goalkeeper ever. Ubaldo Fillol represented Argentina in three World Cups.

Fillol retired from Argentina's national team in 1985 after 58 caps and he is still the goalkeeper with most appearances for Argentina in history. From River Plate he went to the Spanish team

, and after a season at the Brazilian team Flamengo, he came back to Argentina, but this time as the goalkeeper of Argentinos Juniors.

He went to Racing Club to win the first Supercup in 1988 and ended his career in 1990 playing for the club Vélez Sársfield.

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Gimar

• Height

  : 1,80 m

• Citizenship

  : Brazil

• Position

  : Goalkeeper

Full

name

: Gylmar dos Santos Neves

Date

of

birth

: Aug 22, 1930

Place

of

birth

: Santos, Brazil

Date

of

death

: 25.08.2013 (83)

Gylmar – also known as Gilmar – is

one

of

the

best

goalkeepers

in

the

history

of

South

America

who became the main figure in the famous

team that dominated international club football in the early 1960s.

First, however, he played for a local team, Jabaquara, and joined the illustrious Corinthians of São Paulo in 1951.

He helped them to win the state championship that year and did so again in 1952. He stayed with Corinthians for 10 years.

Admired by analysts as one of the greatest south American goalkeepers of all time, Gilmar was an agile shot-stopper, who possessed excellent reflexes, and who was also known for his equanimity under pressure, as well as his mastery to inspire a sense of calm and confidence in his defenders.

Gilmar was the starting goalkeeper for Pelé's world-famous Santos and Brazilian national teams of the 1960s. Therefore, he's famous around the world as "Pelé's goalkeeper." In 1998, he was granted the FIFA Order of Merit.

He was appointed the best Brazilian goalkeeper of the 20th century and one of the best in the world by the IFFHS. He is recognized for his sober style on the pitch and his peaceful personality. Gilmar died just three days after his 83rd birthday as a result of a stroke.

Related Article: 

Jose Luis Chilavert

• Age

  : 55

• Height

  : 1,88 m

• Citizenship

  : Paraguay

• Position

  : Goalkeeper

• Foot

  : right

Name

in

home

country

: José Luis Félix Chilavert González

Date

of

birth

: Jul 27, 1965

Place

of

birth

: Luque  Paraguay

Current

club

: Retired

The other South Americas best goalkeepers ever is Chilavert who made his football debut with Sportivo Luqueño, where he was trained by Modesto Sandoval.

In 1989, he played for the Paraguayan national team for the first time. He also played for Guaraní, San Lorenzo de Almagro,

,

, RC Strasbourg, Peñarol.

He is considered a fast and agile shot-stopper, known for his leadership, strong personality, and goalkeeping mastery, he was regarded as one of the greatest South American goalkeepers in soccer history in his prime.

Outside of his goalkeeping position, Chilavert was also known for his outfield skills as a free-kick specialist and mostly took penalties. He scored 67 goals in his professional career, many of them crucial, including eight in international matches.

In 1999, he became the first goalkeeper known to score a hat-trick in the history of football. Chilavert was voted World Goalkeeper of the Year by the IFFHS in 1995, 1997, and 1998.

He participated in the 1998 World Cup, where he became the first goalkeeper ever to take a direct free kick in the World Cup finals. After the tournament, FIFA indeed named Chilavert on the tournament All Star Squad for his performances.

Totally Chilavert played 74 international caps for Paraguay and hitter a goalkeeper-record of eight international goals. He retired from international football in 2003.

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