Have Liverpool made a £30m Caoimhin Kelleher BLUNDER? | OneFootball

Republic of Ireland battled to a hard-fought 1-0 win over Finland in the UEFA Nations League last night.

The victory came in no small part due to the heroics of Caoimhin Kelleher. The Liverpool man saved a 78th-minute penalty in addition to making three other saves, keeping a clean sheet from an absurd 2.3 expected goals on-target.

Kelleher again reiterated his desire to play consistent football when speaking after the game, saying “This season I’ve played a lot of games now and definitely seen a marked improvement. Playing week in week out is helping a lot.”

The Irish shot-stopper’s performances are beginning to pose a problem for Liverpool. Since Alisson’s injury against Crystal Palace in early October, Kelleher has been one of Liverpool’s best players.

He’s made a total of 14 saves, conceding only four goals from 5.8 expected goals against. For the more convoluted ‘post-shot expected goals minus goals allowed per 90’, a statistic that tracks a keeper’s ability to keep out shots they’re not expected to, Kelleher ranks fourth in the entire Premier League. He’s only behind Andre Onana, Nick Pope and, ironically, Alisson.