Ranking West Ham’s Goalkeepers Since Premier League Return

West Ham have had seven goalkeepers turn out between the sticks since their return to the Premier League. All the keepers have had varying success for the Hammers, some have established themselves as cult-heroes, and some have failed miserably.

Robert Green was the keeper to get West Ham back into the Premier League but decided not to stay with the club at the end of his contract. The keeper moved to QPR before the start of the 2012/13 Premier League season and won’t be counted in this list.

The goalkeeper is one of, if not the hardest, position in football. Very often do they receive praise and can be blamed for a single mistake. The difficulty of being the last line of defence is there is rarely anyone able to bail you out of mistakes.

West Ham fans have always loved their good goalkeepers, from Phil Parkes to Luděk Mikloško. The safety a solid keeper provides puts minds at rest.

Bottom Of The Pile – Roberto Jimenez

There was only ever going to be one person that fell at the bottom of the Hammers keeper list. Roberto was signed as a free transfer to help replace Adrian. The Spaniard looked like a fish out of the water every time he took to the pitch.

Roberto conceded an abysmal 21 goals in only ten appearances for West Ham. The goalkeeper was the reason behind the Hammers downfall last season. Before Lukasz Fabianski’s injury, the club was doing relatively well. Roberto was not able to fill the void left by the Polish stopper.

You can see all the goals Roberto conceded in his video here.

The 35-year-old was at fault during defeats to Newcastle, Everton, Tottenham and the humiliation that was a League humbling to Oxford United. Due to his diabolical form, he was eventually dropped in place of David Martin, who had been signed as a training ground goalkeeper.

The scary fact about Roberto is that he was originally the club’s first choice instead of Fabianski before the Pole joined from Swansea City. The Spaniard is now playing his trade back in his home country, far away from the London Stadium.

Fall From Grace – Joe Hart

When Joe Hart signed for West Ham on a season-long loan, many fans thought he would become the base of the team for years to come. What actually happened as pretty much the opposite, and honestly, it rivals the awfulness of Roberto.

Hart was the England number one at the time, but never really showed that quality in goal for West Ham. The English stopper conceded a remarkable 39 goals in 19 Premier League appearances for the club.

This record meant he was in and out of the team as manager Slaven Bilic and David Moyes were forced to rotate him with Adrian. The keeper was not signed permanently, and after an unsuccessful spell at Burnley, he is now playing as a back-up to Hugo Lloris at Tottenham Hotspur.

David Martin

As mentioned earlier, Martin was signed as a training ground goalkeeper on a free transfer from Millwall. It was not expected that the son of West Ham legend Alvin Martin would actually play for the club.

Due to the horrific form of Roberto, Martin was given a chance as he could not be much worse than the Spaniard. Martin, on his debut, provided a memorable performance in a victory over London rivals Chelsea.

The goalkeeper kept a clean sheet and made a few key saves to keep the Blues out. The performance will be remembered for the scenes after the final whistle. Martin was celebrated by his teammates and shared a touching moment with his father in the stands.

While Martin was not spectacularly good, he provided the team with more confidence that not every shot would go in the goal. Overall the 35-year-old kept two clean sheets and conceded six goals in his five appearances for the Hammers.

Darren Randolph

The current West Ham number two, Darren Randolph, has proven himself to be a very reliable back-up to both Adrian and Lukasz Fabianski. There was a time when Randolph was on the cups of becoming the teams first-choice, but consistency let him down.

Randolph was signed ahead of the final season at the Boleyn Ground. Randolph was the back up to Adrian, who had cemented himself as the club’s number one the previous season. After a nervy start in the Europa League, the Irishman put in some quality performances in the cup competitions.

The two keepers would battle it out for the number one spot for the next two seasons until Randolph left for Middlesborough to become first-choice. Moyes then brought Randolph back to the club last January to replace David Martin and to become number two to Fabianski when he returned from injury.

Randolph has become a cult figure amongst fans for some of his performances at the club, as well as his chirpy personality. Across his two spells at the club, Randolph has played 50 games, conceding 72 goals and keeping 15 clean sheets.

Adrian

Little was known about Adrian when he was signed as a free agent from Real Betis. The Spaniard arrived in East London and took a while to break into the team. Adrian made 150 appearances for West Ham and had plenty of highs and lows during that time,

The goalkeeper kept 43 clean sheets and conceded 215 goals while in the Hammers goals. While Adrian did make plenty of errors that should have been avoided, he was capable of pulling off some world-class saves.

Adrian will most likely be remembered for his outstanding performances against Chelsea and Manchester City in his first and second seasons. The 34-year-old was also vital to the club’s brilliant season during the final season at Upton Park and was named in the FIFA Premier League team of the season.

The best moment of Adrian’s West Ham career was not him stopping a goal but instead scoring one. The keeper took the winning penalty in a FA Cup penalty shootout against Everton, sending the Hammer’s fans into raptures in the stands.

Jussi Jääskeläinen

Not only a cult-hero of West Ham but a cult-hero of the entire Premier League, you would have to look hard to find a person that does not like Jussi Jääskeläinen. The goalkeeper, like the majority of West Ham keepers, was signed as a free agent to replace the out-going Rob Green, and he did not disappoint.

Despite being 37-years-old when he joined the Hammers, Jääskeläinen was still able to perform at the highest level in England. The Finnish shot-stopper played 61 times for the club, only conceding 84 times and kept 20 clean sheets.

In his first season, Jääskeläinen helped the club to a tenth place finish in their first season back in the Premier League. Even though he was eventually replaced by Adrian, the Fin was a great keeper for the Hammers for a year and a half.

Jääskeläinen did not retire when he left West Ham; he continued to play and turned out for Wigan before making one appearance in the Indian Super League for ATK Football Club.

Lukasz Fabianski

There was only ever going to be one person that topped this list. Lukasz Fabianski has become one of the best goalkeepers in West Ham history, even if some fans don’t realise it yet. He signed from a relegated Swansea City for £7 million, making him the most expensive goalkeeper in the club’s history.

Although the large outlay compared to his predecessors, Fabianski has been the best keeper since the club’s return to the Premier League. The Polish goalkeeper became an instant hit in his first season and won Hammer of the Year after his performances between the posts.

That season West Ham came tenth and was their best finish since moving from the Boleyn Ground. Though this result will likely be topped this season as the team are currently challenging for a Champions League place.

During the veterans three seasons at the club, Fabianski has only ever made a couple of errors of note. This errors can be forgotten about due to the sheer amount of times the keeper has saved the club from conceding. Fabianski has kept 22 clean sheets in 89 appearances for the club so far, and this record could be improved by the end of the season.

The keeper is out of contract at the end of the season but is in negotiations with the club about extending his stay. This is something that must be done given how good he has been for the club. At only 35-years-old, the Polish stopper can play on for a few more years if he channels his inner Jääskeläinen.

It may not be for a couple of seasons, but whoever is tasked with filling Fabianski’s gloves will have a big task at hand.