Opinion

Don’t sleep on Gianluigi Donnarumma! PSG star sets reminder in world’s best debate

It is fair to say that Gianluigi Donnarumma was on top of the world back in 2021.

So much happened for the Italy international that summer, with European Championship glory savoured with his country.

Penalty shootout heroics at Wembley Stadium saw Donnarumma land another major honour while being named UEFA Euro Player of the Tournament and making the Team of the Tournament.

He was also named Serie A Best Goalkeeper that year while making another Team of the Year, and was recognized as the best goalkeeper on the planet by IFFHS, Globe Soccer, and FIFA – as he claimed the prestigious Yashin Trophy.

It was also the year in which the commanding shot-stopper completed his move to Paris Saint-Germain as a free agent.

Well over 100 appearances have been taken in for the French giants since then, collecting three successive Ligue 1 titles.

Donnarumma is about to come back into contention for international accolades, with Italy preparing to defend their continental crown at Euro 2024.

Triumph

The Azzurri are not as well fancied as they were three years ago, but that means value can be found among the various Free Bets offers that have leading odds providers pricing Italy at around 14/1 to go back-to-back on the Euros triumph front.

Donnarumma may head into that tournament believing that he has something of a point to prove.

Having reached the very top of his chosen profession in 2021, there was only one direction in which his career could go from that point.

There has been no spectacular tumble from the loftiest of perches, but the odd step backwards has been taken – at least in the eyes of some.

For those closest to him, Donnarumma remains the pick of the bunch when it comes to elite goalkeepers in the global game.

His agent, Enzro Raiola, has said of his client still filling the No.1 spot: “I don’t want to exaggerate, but I think they can’t be compared right now. Gigio is the best goalkeeper in the world, all the goalkeeper coaches who have been working with him say so. To them, Gigio is a talent out of reach. Real Madrid wanted him, but he rejected them for Milan.”

That is not an opinion shared by everybody, with consistency questions being asked amid the regular trophy lifts in Paris.

While Donnarumma’s meteoric rise carried him to the very top, others have come into the ‘world’s best goalkeeper’ debate.

Liverpool and Manchester City fans need no second invitation to tell you how good Alisson and Ederson are, while supporters in Madrid of Real and Atletico will happily sing the praises of Thibaut Courtois and Jan Oblak respectively – as Marc-Andre ter Stegen of Barcelona also comes into the mix.

Donnarumma has been as good, if not better than all of those at times in his career.

He boasts all of the credentials required to be a world-class keeper – from his imposing physical frame, to cat-like reflexes and distribution of the ball with both feet and hands.

His current coach, Luis Enrique, is another who believes PSG still have the finest custodian on the planet.

He has said: “Donnarumma is one of the best goalkeepers in the world, without a doubt, and he is a great man on and off the field. When a striker or a defender makes a mistake, there is no problem, if a goalkeeper makes an error and even more so if that goalkeeper is Gigio, then there is total chaos. I have a great deal of faith in Donnarumma.”

Exploits

With Italy surprisingly failing to qualify for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, Donnarumma has been denied an opportunity to strut his stuff on the grandest of international stages since the aforementioned shootout success of July 2021.

He has been out of sight and mind for many, allowing the exploits of others to catch the eye and dominate debates that rage among supporters in every corner of the planet.

Donnarumma’s time has come again, with the PSG superstar ready to remind a global audience of what he is all about.

Anyone who has been sleeping on the Italy international is being lined up for a rude awakening, with a man who knows all about delivering under intense pressure ready to stake his claim for the world’s best tag once more.

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