If you ask the majority of football fans about the best goalkeeper in Premier League history, the majority will mention either Peter Schmeichel or Petr Cech. The former was pivotal in Manchester United's dominance throughout the 1990s, while the latter has kept more cleansheets in the division than anyone else ever has.
Schmeichel spent eight years at Old Trafford, before finishing his career with stints at Aston Villa and Manchester City. Cech joined Chelsea in 2004 and spent 11 years with the Blues. He then moved to Arsenal and played for the Gunners for four years before retiring in 2019. Their legacies have remained firmly intact following their exits from the beautiful game and there has yet to be another goalkeeper who has come close to them in the English top flight.
That doesn't mean there haven't been others who have done excellent overseas, though. Steven Gerrard played against both Schmeichel and Cech multiple times during his career with Liverpool, but when quizzed about the best goalkeeper he ever faced, he named neither man and instead went with someone he'd faced in Europe.
Collage featuring Gianluigi Buffon, Manuel Neuer and Petr Cech. Related
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Gerrard Named Gianluigi Buffon the Best Goalkeeper He Ever Played Against
The Italian had an incredible career with Parma and Juventus
Making his professional debut in 1995, Gianluigi Buffon had an incredible career that spanned 28 years. Starting off with Parma, he then spent 17 years at Juventus, winning the Serie A title on nine occasions. After a brief stint at Paris Saint-Germain, he returned to the Old Lady in 2019 and lifted another Serie A trophy for his troubles. He spent 19 years in total with Juventus, playing 685 times for the club before returning to Parma to see out the final two years of his career.
Gianluigi Buffon's Career Statistics
Team
Italy
Parma
Juventus
PSG
Total
It wasn't just at club level where he shone either. Buffon was integral to Italy's 2006 World Cup triumph. He's one of the best players to never win the Champions League and made quite an impression on Gerrard. During an episode of The Greatest Game Podcast, as quoted by the Mirror, he simply said:
"Buffon, the best goalkeeper I have played against."
There was no beating around the bush from the Liverpool legend. He faced off against Buffon in Europe and the Italian had an impact on him.
All statistics courtesy of Transfermarkt and accurate as of 24/06/2025