Is Marcus Hahnemann the most skillful keeper in the Premier League?

2707

BY JOHN GUBBA

Have you ever wondered who would be voted the most skilfull goalkeeper in the Premier League, if the men between the sticks were judged on their footwork?

Despite the abundance of stats we are bombarded with these days, any comparison is purely a matter of personal opinion. But it is fair to say that anyone paying attention pre-match at the Theatre of Dreams when Wolves visited in the League Cup last season would support my vote for American shot stopper Marcus Hahnemann.

Hahnemann put on an impressive display of ball juggling when the  Wanderers’ warmed up for the midweek match against Manchester United, as demonstrated in this exclusive video clip from the visionsport archives.

So what else do we know about Marcus Hanemann, who played for Fulham, Rochdale (on loan) and then seven years at Reading before joining Wolves as a free agent in 2009?

Born in Seattle, Washington, Hahnemann made his international debut for the United States national team on 19 November 1994, in a 1-0 friendly defeat against Trinidad and Tobago. After earning three caps inside a month, he did not feature again until a friendly in June 2003.

He won two further caps during 2005 and was then an unused substitute at the 2006 World Cup in Germany, where Kasey Keller and Tim Howard were ahead of him in the pecking order, as USA exited at the group stage.

On 11 May 2010, Hahnemann was named by coach Bob Bradley in the United States’ 2010 World Cup squad.