Sunderland goalkeeper Vito Mannone would’ve been hoping the ground would just open up and swallow him after watching back his howler against Manchester City last night.
But fear not Vito, because as we know, those brave men between the sticks are renowned for getting themselves in the most bizarre of footballing pickles.
Over the years, even the greatest shot-stoppers in the world have provided us with those unexplained moments of madness.
Here we look at the top goalkeeping blunders in recent times.
1. Allan McGregor vs Celtic
Former Rangers keeper McGregor won over the hearts of Celtic fans briefly with this error which saw a shot from on-loan full-back El Kaddouri sneak through his legs. The Scotland stopper was let off the hook luckily as the Gers went on to win 3-2.
2. Artur Boruc vs Arsenal
The modern game does require goalkeepers to be a little more technically gifted than in the past. Former Poland and Celtic No1 Boruc demonstrated his dribbling ability with this shocker against Arsenal.
Boruc later posted a picture of the blunder on his Instagram, comparing it to the legendary “Cruyff Turn”. Well, close enough Artur.
3. Joe Hart vs Everyone
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NguGKLl5Xlk
England No1 Joe Hart has become prone to the odd mistake in recent seasons as this clip shows. Perhaps less of the shampoo ads and more catching practise is in order.
4. Steve Simonsen vs Dundee Utd
Stand-in Rangers keeper Steve Simonsen made himself an instant Dundee United hero with this calamity. Simonsen’s poor touch allowed Arabs striker Nadir Ciftci in to roll the boll in to an empty net and send Jackie McNamara’s side to the Scottish Cup Final.
5. Simon Mignolet vs Man City
The pressure of playing at the top appears to be getting to our Premier League stoppers as Liverpool keeper Simon Mignolet demonstrates here. The Belgian’s fluffed save against title rivals Manchester City is just one of several errors in judgement this season.
6. Victor Valdes vs Real Madrid
Victor Valdes sure knows when to pick his moment. How about against your fiercest rivals? That ought to do it. The Spaniard has made a string of errors between the sticks for the Catalan side such as this El Clasico nightmare.
7. Pepe Reina vs Everton
What is it with goalkeepers making mistakes against their rivals? Spanish star Pepe Reina got this one all wrong against Everton in 2009 after fumbling what seemed to be a routine save.
8. Oops! Pepe Reina vs Beach Ball
Okay, so it’s Reina again. But don’t get me wrong, Reina was amongst the top goalkeepers in the world during his time at Liverpool. He’s also very unfortunate.
When a Reds fan pelted this harmless inflatable object on to the pitch, who could have known what drama would soon unfold?
A Darren Bent strike collided with the beach ball, sending Reina the wrong way. Poor Pepe!
9. Rob Green vs USA
Dear oh dear. It’s another howler from and England goalkeeper.
Rob Green’s fumble against the USA at the 2010 Fifa World Cup in South Africa is up there with the best. To be fair, a shot from the mighty Clint Dempsey could give any goalkeeper something to think about.
10. Andy Marriott vs Spurs
On-loan Birmingham City keeper Andy Marriott forgot to have a little look over his shoulder as he gifted a goal to deadly Spurs striker Robbie Keane just seven minutes into his Blues debut.
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