On the resurgence of Keylor Navas at Real Madrid
By Alex McVey
Real Madrid are experiencing a resurgence after a disappointing start to the season. One player at the center of this resurgence is goalkeeper Keylor Navas.
Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: A Real Madrid player, starting to get on in years, puts in a few poor performances and people start wondering whether his time at Real Madrid is coming to an end. But then, said player experiences a magical turnaround, a resurgence of late season form, and suddenly their future starts looking more and more bright.
No, I’m not talking about Cristiano Ronaldo. I’m talking about one Keylor Navas. Despite winning two Champions Leagues and a La Liga trophy, there have always been question marks surrounding Navas’ time at Madrid. Navas has frequently had to deal with media speculation regarding Madrid’s enduring interest in David de Gea.
The middle of 2016-2017 saw Navas struggling to recover from an Achilles injury, going through a prolonged period of poor form. Navas was often caught out of position, and the catlike reflexes which made him such a valuable goalkeeper for so long seemed like they were on the wane. But by the end of the season, Navas was beginning to look like his former self, showing renewed confidence.
Navas was solid at the beginning of the season, but not spectacular. Madrid have been woeful in defense for much of their campaign, and it’s been taking a toll on Navas’ overall goalkeeping statistics. Navas has registered just six clean sheets in La Liga. However, Navas’ lack of clean sheets may reflect more on Madrid’s overall lack of defensive structure rather than bad keeping. Los Blancos have looked disorganized at times, and Navas has been doing a lot, despite not getting great clean sheet statistics to back it up.
Drama surrounding Kepa Arrizabalaga during the winter transfer window kept the pressure on Navas to prove his worth. But ultimately Zidane put his faith in the Costa Rican, with Navas trusted to tend the goal for the remainder of the season.
Navas’ keeping has gone from good to great in the past couple weeks. Real Madrid have found another gear in their search for a Champions League title run to try to salvage a sub-par season in La Liga, and Navas seems to be benefiting from this overall upturn in form. Alongside some great performances from Cristiano Ronaldo, Real Madrid fans have been treated to a spectacular goalkeeping side show by Keylor Navas, now rocking his own Bale-esque Samurai haircut.
Navas kept Madrid ahead in the crucial Champions League first leg against Juventus with this spectacular save. If that goal had gone in, Madrid could have been shaken, Instead, Madrid went on to score two unanswered goals and now carry a three-nil lead into the second leg.
Keylor was also instrumental in ensuring that Madrid didn’t get defeated in the Madrid Derby. Navas couldn’t be blamed for the first goal, and put up a monstrous effort to keep Madrid level after that. His save against Koke was world class. Madrid relied on Navas time and time again to save the bacon against a ferocious Atleti attempt at a comeback.
Navas’ resurgence couldn’t be coming at a better time. Real Madrid have been leaky at the back, and having Navas as safeguard will be important for Los Blancos in their hunt for a third consecutive Champions League title.
Next: Real Madrid vs Juventus - 2nd Leg Preview
Nobody’s position at Real Madrid is ever safe. There’s no telling how long Keylor will manage to maintain the starting keeper spot at Madrid. But if he keeps putting in performances like these, Perez and Zidane will have to think long and hard before shipping him off in the summer.