Morocco's Yassine Bono named world's third-best goalkeeper of 2022

Moroccan goalkeeping sensation Yassine Bounou has been named the world's third-best goalkeeper of 2022 by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS).

Bounou, who is commonly known by his nickname 'Bono', finished behind Belgium and Real Madrid star Thibaut Courtois and Argentina’s Emiliano Martinez, with 55 points.

The 31-year-old goalkeeper’s stellar performance at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar contributed to his high ranking on the revered end-of-year list.

Bono’s majestic saves against high ranking teams such as Portugal, Spain and Belgium contributed to the Atlas Lions advancing to the semi-finals of the tournament for the first time in the country’s history.

#بونو_ثالث_افضل_حارس_مرمى_بالعالم#اختير نجم المنتخب الوطني المغربي، #ياسين_بونو، كثالث أفضل حارس مرمى بالعالم، بعد تألقه سواء مع إشبيلية الإسباني، أو المنتخب الوطني في كأس العالم #قطر 2022، مساهما في إنجاز أسود الأطلس التاريخي. pic.twitter.com/xglpKA8scz

— elbahije mohamed (@melbahije1) January 8, 2023

As a result, Morocco became the first Arab and African to achieve such a feat, which earned them unanimous praise from football fans and pundits alike.

Moroccans online celebrated Bono’s achievement, and went on to praise the goalkeeper for spotlighting Moroccan football.

"#The star of the Moroccan national team, #Yassin_Bounou, was chosen as the third best goalkeeper in the world, after his brilliance, whether with Seville, Spain, or the national team in the World Cup #Qatar 2022, contributing to the achievement of the historic Atlas Lions," Twitter user Mohamed said.

Bono’s achievements with his club, Sevilla FC, also contributed to his third-place ranking. The goalkeeper led his team to finish fourth in Spain’s La Liga table during the 2021/2022 season, while his performance prompted him to win the league’s best goalkeeper award, the Ricardo Zamora Trophy.

The trophy is handed to the La Liga keeper with the lowest goals-to-games ratio, having played a minimum of 60 minutes in at least 28 matches. Montreal-born Bono became the first Arab and second African goalkeeper to earn the award in its 64-year-history.

Born in 1991, the Atlas Lions’ shot stopper began his football career at the Moroccan club Wydad Casablanca in 1999, and then moved up the ranks until he played for the club’s first team. Bono subsequently left for Spain in 2012 and has played for a number of La Liga teams, including Atletico Madrid, before settling at Sevilla in 2019.

Following Bono’s excellent performance at the World Cup, a number of European teams are reportedly interested in signing the goalkeeper, including giants Real Madrid and Manchester United.