In football, scoring goals is the aim of the game. We all know that. However, while many teams win games by outscoring their opponents, some build their success on preventing their opponents from scoring.
But who has kept the most clean sheets across England’s top four tiers since the start of the 2018/19 season? You can find out below.
Under the guidance of super-meticulous manager Marcelo Bielsa, Leeds have taken their game to another level in recent seasons. The fallen giants are finally back in the top flight following a 16-year absence – and their defensive record is largely to thank for that.
The Whites conceded 50 league goals in 2018/19 before only letting in an astonishing 35 goals in 46 games on their way to the Championship title last term.
Despite conceding seven in their opening two matches this season, Leeds kept what is likely to be the first of many Premier League clean sheets against Yorkshire rivals Sheffield United last weekend.
You may be slightly surprised to see Manchester City so high up on this list, especially considering their well-documented defensive problems. However, let’s not forget just how good Pep Guardiola’s side have been since the Spaniard took over at the Etihad in 2016.
Granted, Man City have spent a fortune on defenders, with Ruben Dias (£64m), Nathan Ake (£40m), Joao Cancelo (£58.5m), Aymeric Laporte (£58.5), Benjamin Mendy (£51m), Kyle Walker (£47m) and John Stones (£50m) all joining in recent years for huge fees.
But the signing of Ederson has arguably been Guardiola’s best acquisition. The Brazilian was signed from Benfica for £35m in 2017 and has since established himself as one of the best goalkeepers on the planet.
Remarkably, Liverpool conceded just 33 goals on their way to winning the Premier League title by 18 points last season. Indeed, the Reds’ backline was immense throughout the entire campaign.
Of course, Virgil van Dijk is now widely regarded as the best centre-back in world football. But it could be argued that Alisson is the main reason why Liverpool have kept so many clean sheets over the past two seasons.
The former Roma shot-stopper kept 15 cleans sheets in 29 games (51.7%) last term. Only Ederson kept more in the Premier League (17), but the Man City goalkeeper played five more games than Alisson (48.6%)
Sheffield United stunned everyone by finishing ninth in their comeback season in the Premier League. Chris Wilder’s forward-thinking side finished the campaign with the fourth-best defensive record in the division and only missed out on a Europa League spot by five points.
The Blades have got off to the worst possible start in 2020/21, losing each of their opening three league games. But having only conceded four goals during that period, it will surely only be a matter of time before Sheff Utd notch up their first clean sheet of the campaign.
Colchester have been stuck in the fourth tier for a few years now, but if they continue to keep as many clean sheets as they have, promotion will almost certainly come their way sooner rather than later.
Only Cheltenham (27) conceded fewer goals than Colchester (37) in League Two last term, with Steve Ball’s side sitting sixth when the campaign was curtailed. Colchester were unfortunate to miss out on the play-offs in 2019/20, but they have already kept two clean sheets in three league games this season.