With Gianluigi Donnarumma seemingly the chosen heir to Gianluigi Buffon’s international throne, there is considerably less pressure on other young and emerging goalkeepers to plug the iconic gap left behind by the Juventus and Azzurri legend.
But with the Milan stopper taking the limelight, it is easy to overlook another talent the Italians have in their midst – Cagliari’s Alessio Cragno. The 23-year-old has had an impressive campaign to date for the Sardinian side, who are currently languishing in the lower section of the table.
On the face of it 34 goals conceded in 22 league games does not make for particularly inspiring reading, but the former under-21 international missed a third of these through injury, in which 14 goals were shipped.
Without the impressive youngster between the sticks I Rossoblu’s goals against column could easily be worse. Not only has he pulled off a number of fine stops over the course of the campaign, he has also saved two out of five penalties faced.
The former Brescia man possesses many hallmarks of a top goalkeeper; a solid shot stopper with intelligent positioning, impressive athleticism, steady composure and quick reflexes, and while this is his first consistent run in top flight football for three years he has risen to the demands unerringly. Thus, it will be of no surprise if he is to go on to play for one of the top sides in the division in the near future.
The six-foot Italian burst to prominence last season during a successful loan spell in Serie B at surprise play-off champions Benevento. His performances were so notable in fact he went on to claim the accolade of Serie B footballer of the year, becoming the first goalkeeper to do so in its seven-year existence.
Cragno joins a list of talented household names to have won the award, many of whom have gone on to establish themselves as key players domestically and internationally – including the likes of Stephan El Shaarawy, Lorenzo Insigne, Marco Verratti and Ciro Immobile.
The almost incomprehensible failure to qualify for the 2018 World Cup highlighted many areas of weakness for the Azzurri, however the goalkeeping position is certainly not one they need to spend too much time worrying about. With Genoa’s Mattia Perin and Udinese’s Simone Scuffet also vying for contention, it seems the Italians have a wealth of talent on their hands.
