The goalposts will be defended by Bono and Courtois when Sevilla FC and Real Madrid meet in Matchday 32. Not only will they aim to win this important match, but they’ll also do battle in the race for the Zamora Trophy, given out to the goalkeeper who concedes the fewest goals in each season.
Written by Alejandro Fernandez.
When Thibaut Courtois was the starting goalkeeper for Atlético de Madrid, Bono was wearing the gloves for Atlético de Madrid’s B team. Now, years later, the two goalkeepers will meet in this weekend’s match between Sevilla FC and Real Madrid. It’s not only a decisive game for the LaLiga Santander title, but also for the Zamora Trophy, since these are the two goalkeepers to have conceded the fewest goals so far this league season. The fate of their teams could be decided by their gloves, while each player also has the opportunity to make history on a personal level.
Yassine Bounou, better known as Bono, is the starting goalkeeper to have conceded the fewest goals in LaLiga Santander this season. He has let in just 16 goals in 25 games, meaning his ratio is 0.64 goals conceded per outing, which is ahead of Courtois’ 0.84 average. As soon as he plays three more matches, reaching the rulebook’s minimum appearances figure of 28, the Moroccan will move to the top of the standings for the Zamora Trophy, which is awarded each year to the goalkeeper who concedes the fewest goals over the course of the LaLiga Santander campaign.
If successful, Bono would become the first Moroccan to win the award and also the first Sevilla player to do so. His impressive season has already earned him the Mid-Season African MVP Award, presented by LaLiga to recognise the growing importance and value of African players’ contribution to the competition.
As mentioned above, Bono came through the youth academy at Atlético de Madrid, leaving for a spell with Real Zaragoza to play two seasons at La Romareda. Then, in the 2016/17 season, the Moroccan departed for Girona FC, a team with which he won promotion to LaLiga Santander and with which he made his top-flight debut a season later. His good performances at Girona FC earned him a move to Sevilla FC in 2019, where he has established himself as one of the best goalkeepers in Europe.
As a member of the Moroccan national team, Bono will also face this weekend’s opponent at the World Cup later this year, since Courtois is the undisputed number one for Belgium. Courtois is also Bono’s main challenger in the fight for this year’s Zamora Trophy. They have been impressive all year, as the Real Madrid goalkeeper has kept 13 clean sheets while the Sevilla shot-stopper has done so 12 times. They are also the two goalkeepers with the highest save percentages this season: Courtois has blocked more than 75% of the shots he has faced; Bono, on the other hand, has made more than 78% of his possible saves.
In Courtois’ case, he already knows what it’s like to win this trophy as he has done so three times with two different teams. He claimed this individual prize twice with Atlético de Madrid and also did so in the 2019/20 season with his current club, Real Madrid. Now, Sunday’s match will not only see the first-placed and third-placed teams in LaLiga Santander go up against each other, but it will be a decisive game for these two players who have, within the grasp of their gloves, the possibility of closing in on the Zamora Trophy.
