5) Angelo Campos v Uruguay Under 20s
Now aged 30 and with a largely forgettable career behind him, Campos made just one appearance for his country, an outing for Peru U20 at the 2013 South American Youth Championship.
And with exquisite timing, he chose that singular moment in the spotlight to pull off a quite extraordinary stop.
In fairness, the Lima-born keeper was initially at fault, misjudging the pace of a lofted throughball and haring recklessly into no man’s land.
Once easily by-passed however, and with the ball rolling to his deserted net, he put the after-burners on and gave chase impressively, managing to half-smother it on the line.
His razor-sharp reactions to block a follow-up shot was a lifetime’s training condensed to an instant.
4) Fraser Forster v Rangers
We are deep into extra-time of an Old Firm League Cup final and Rangers and Celtic are locked at a goal apiece.
The tumultuous Celtic contingent at Hampden Park quietens because their arch foes have a free-kick, situated dangerously just outside the box and standing over it are Steven Davis and Nikica Jelovic. Both are decent at set-pieces.
The online betting community swiftly check out the odds on a Gers win.
It is the Croatian who steps up, curling a beauty seemingly up and over the wall only to be foiled by an outstretched arm of Forster in nets. The crowd gasp, half in relief, half in disappointment. A corner is given and the drama continues.
It is only when the replay is viewed do we notice the wicked deflection that deviated the ball’s flightpath. Forster’s improvision mid-air is remarkable.
3) Gregory Coupet v Barcelona
When it comes to assessing the greatest goalkeeping feats, double saves are a grey area. They’re two-for-one. A main with a side dish. There is an undeniable advantage in that.
For this reason, only one from Jim Montgomery’s ridiculous double-stop in the 1973 FA Cup final and Coupet’s superman heroics at Camp Nou has been chosen and it’s the French international’s twin acts of brilliance that wins out, for an exacting reason.
Because whereas a nation was left gob-smacked by Montgomery’s lightning reflexes, Coupet’s header against his own bar, followed by a superb one-handed stop from a Rivaldo bullet-header made us giggle. It still does now.
It’s the kind of astonished laugh a child emits when seeing a magic trick for the first time.
2) David Seaman v Sheffield United
The Blades were very much underdogs in the football odds to negotiate a way past Arsenal in their 2003 FA Cup semi-final. The Gunners were the reigning Premier League champions and are just 12 months away from becoming invincible.
Worse yet, behind the Gallic charms of Henry and Pires was David Seaman, capped 75 times for his country and a stonewall legend.
Late on, with Arsene Wenger’s men a goal up, the outsiders carved out a chance for Paul Peschisolido to nod in an unlikely equaliser from very close range.
How the moustachioed Yorkshireman managed to save with his palm and deflect with his fingers in the same movement still puzzles two decades on.
1) Gordon Banks v Brazil
According to legend, Bobby Moore jokingly chastised Banks seconds after one of the most iconic moments in footballing history.
“You’re getting old, Gordon. You used to hold on to them.”
In reality of course, after hurling himself to his right to somehow beat out a thunderous Pele header, as England took on the mighty Brazil in the 1970 World Cup, Banks had just summoned up pure genius.
It has gone down in lore as the ‘save of the century’.
*Credit for all of the photos in this article belongs to Alamy*
