Grading the Squad: Goalkeepers

Now that the football season is officially over it's time to take a look back at the year that was and hand out some grades. Over the course of the next couple of weeks we're going to go through the Tottenham Hotspur squad position by position and hand out grades to every single player that made an appearance in any competition for the club.

This has been a pretty big undertaking by the staff and I'm pretty pleased with the results. Players will be listed in alphabetical order at their position. Each players number of appearances will appear in italics next to their name. After the authors and editors of the site have written a little bit about each player and assigned them a grade.

The first position we have is goalkeepers. Tomorrow we'll do the fullbacks and then after that the central defenders. Let us know what you think of the grades in the comments. Did he hit the nail on the head or were we way off?

Carlo Cudicini 12:

Ashlock: Carlo played mostly in cups. We didn’t win any cups. He wasn’t bad though. The 5-1 thumping from Chelsea is still fresh in my mind though. C+

Mechanick: Cudicini was quite good in almost all the cups, adding a lot of stability to the young sides that were utilized (especially in the Europa League). HOWEVA, the crap show that was the FA Cup semifinal against Chelsea is way too fresh in my mind. B-

TheRoosevelts: We didn’t see him much, but when we did, he wasn’t bad. While it would be nice if he played better, he is old as the hills so lets not beat up on him for that B-

Ed: Willing to sit on the bench for 9/10 games in a season and has never disappointed me in that 1/10 he does play. Probably one of the most valuable backup keepers in the Premier League. Did a job for us every time we called on him and even threw a few flashy saves in too. B

Ryan: I still hate how hesitant he is to come off his line, but he’s a good shot-stopper and I doubt many teams have a better backup. That’s the key, he’s a backup. B+

Nick: We talkin’ bout backups. Seriously though, Cudicini is likely the best backup there is in the EPL, he doesn’t complain about being a backup, he’s not a 24 year old learning the ropes backup, and he has a champion pedigree. He did what was asked, and he did it extremely well. I’m grading on a backup scale. A

Brad Friedel 38:

Ashlock: We knew what we were getting with Friedel. A keeper that was solid, but unspectacular. His consistency was exactly what this club needed this season. Sure he has some weaknesses, but his strengths outweigh them. I can’t specifically remember him costing Spurs a game this year so he gets an A-.

Mechanick: I’ll say I was a bit biased on Friedel coming in, since I consider him arguably the greatest American goalkeeper of all time. But seriously, the crazily accented Yank added some delightful stability in goal, devoid of the usual f**k-ups we had been so accustomed to seeing (cough, cough Gomes). His physical limitations kept him from a perfect rating, and there were some rough periods in defense to start the season. But a great job nonetheless. A-

Ed: Throughout this season people have seemed surprised just that Friedel hasn’t made any major errors. It’s easy to overlook the fact he’s made some of the most athletic saves seen in the Premier League this year and has consistently displayed the ability to catch and hold a ball more solidly than most of his counterparts. On a free, he was our signing of the season for sure. A-

Ryan: All we really wanted was a goalkeeper who wouldn’t make us cry and Friedel was better than that, making several exceptional saves. He exceeded expectations and I think the confidence that he instilled in the defense had a lot to do with Kaboul’s strong season as well so I’d rate him even better than his highlight reel and lack of howlers might suggest. A-

Nick: What Friedel lacks in the exciting, he makes up in dependability and the fact he knows where to be. I can barely remember incidents where he was out of position on a shot, and while he couldn’t make the impossible save, it’s not that important since the impossible shot happens so rarely. Factor in his ability to keep a constantly revolving center back duo cohesive, and did all he could on defending set pieces without practice, and I’m not complaining. A

TheRoosevelts: I admit it, I was wrong about Brad Friedel. I didn’t think someone as ancient, I mean advanced in age could handle the job. He is the anti-Gomes. He was more than solid and I wouldn’t have any hesitation with bringing him back for another year. That is, if he will have us. A+

Heurelho Gomes 4:

Ashlock: I didn’t even realize that Gomes played this many games for Spurs. In three Europa League games and our Carling Cup loss to Stoke, Gomes conceded 2 goals, both against PAOK. He never played again. What a disappointment. D

Mechanick: I can’t even bother hating on Gomes, the fact that he wasn’t loaned out or sold this year made zero sense. Levy and/or Redknapp, WTF? Incomplete

TheRoosevelts: I’m sorry, we didn’t sell this guy in January? Too good a talent to sit on the bench, just not the reliable guy a top team in a top league needs to be a top club. He is not a top lad, but he is an ok lad. He didn’t play enough to really do anything. Incomplete

Ed: His mistreatment has been one of the most objectionable aspects of Redknapp’s management this year. Incomplete

Ryan: He didn’t cause a fuss on the bench or in the dressing room, which so many others would have done in his situation. That’s not enough to justify a rating, but he can have a hug. Incomplete

Nick: Review shoved under the mattress by Harry Redknapp Incomplete