EPL Golden Glove Odds, Favorites, and Predictions for 2025-26

David Raya, Arsenal (+125)

• 2024-25 Clean Sheets: 13

David Raya has everything required to win the Golden Glove once again in the upcoming season. He’s one of the best goalkeepers in the world and just got nominated for the Yashin Award. The Spaniard also plays for the best defense in the league.

On top of that, Raya is very durable and the clear number one at his club. Arsenal did acquire Kepa as a back-up, but I don’t expect him to challenge Raya.

The big question here is whether Arsenal can produce another strong season defensively, helping their keeper win the award. The simple answer to this one is yes.

The Gunners had the best defense last season and should be even better this season. Arsenal have Raya between the sticks, with the best EPL pair of center backs in front of him, exceptional full-backs, and a midfield designed to help the defense.

Furthermore, Arsenal’s depth at the back is astonishing. Gabriel and Saliba might be the obvious first choices at the heart of the defense, but Kiwior and Mosquera are more than capable backups.

The likes of Calafiori and Timber can play there, too, but they are also in contention for a starting spot in the full-back positions with Myles-Skelly and Ben White.

Overall, I believe Arsenal will once again have the best defense in the league, by a bit of a margin. If Raya is fit and starts most of the season, he is certainly in prime position to win the Golden Glove again.

In fact, getting him at plus odds is better than I expected, so I’m more than happy to back the main favorite. Still, let’s discuss the other options.

Ederson, Manchester City (+250)

• 2024-25 Clean Sheets: 10

Ederson achieved a respectable number last year with 10 clean sheets in a down season for Manchester City. Pep Guardiola’s team looked uncharacteristically poor at the back, especially without the ball.

Rodri’s injury was part of the problem, but it was more than that. The overall injury crisis and the aging lineup didn’t help. Man City brought a lot of new players in the last two windows in an attempt to improve the team, but I’m still not convinced.

Even if you assume that City will be much better in 2025-26, there’s a another strong argument against backing Ederson. The Brazilian will begin the season as the Guardiola’s number one choice for the position, but the pressure will be on from the first game.

James Trafford returned to Man City after leaving his boyhood club early in his career. The youngster had an amazing season with Burnley, helping the team to return to the Premier League.

His performances gave City enough of a reason to trigger a buy-back clause they had after selling Trafford back in 2023. The English goalie is now seen as the club’s future and will be pushing Ederson for the starting spot.

That’s the reason you will see Trafford’s name so high in the odds, at fourth, even though he’s not even expected to start at the beginning of the season.

Overall, the competition between the two goalies should be great for City but detrimental to their chances of winning the Golden Glove.

Alisson, Liverpool (+250)

• 2024-25 Clean Sheets: 9

Alisson might be the best goalkeeper in the world right now, but I don’t trust Liverpool’s defense enough to back him in the Golden Glove race. The Reds allowed 7 more goals than Arsenal last season and looked vulnerable at the back way too often.

While their potent attack was more than capable of making up in the title race, the Golden Glove is won based on clean sheets.

I still have my doubts about Liverpool’s defense, like I shared in my EPL title preview. Virgil Van Dijk is not getting any younger, and the newly-bought full-backs Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong are mostly known for their offensive contributions. They are decent players defensively, but it’s not their primary attribute.

We saw a glimpse of Liverpool’s defensive issues in the FA Community Shield defeat against Crystal Palace.

One glorified friendly is not enough to write off Liverpool’s defense, but Arsenal’s backline looks much stronger.

The other problem I have with Alisson is his injury record. The Brazilian played only 28 Premier League games in each of his last two season. He’s injury-prone for a goalkeeper and will be 33 in October, so I won’t be shocked if he misses games in 2025-26 as well.

EPL Golden Glove Sleepers – Can Someone Else Win?

Last year’s Golden Glove race proves that goalies from weaker teams shouldn’t be underestimated. Matz Sels tied David Raya for the top spot with 13 clean sheets, while Jordan Pickford (12) and Dean Henderson (11) weren’t far off.

However, it should be mentioned that Arsenal took it easy in the late stages of the season because they were too far behind Liverpool in the EPL but still competing in the Champions League.

If the team didn’t prioritize the UCL in the last 10 Premier League games or so, Raya would’ve probably had at least a few extra clean sheets. The Spaniard kept 16 of them the season before, when the Gunners were busy until the last second.

That’s more in line with what I expect this season, so I don’t believe any of the sleepers can realistically catch him.

However, I prefer backing a longshot instead of the other favorites if I had to pick someone outside Raya.

Jordan Pickford would be my top choice. The Everton goalie had 12 clean sheets last season and 13 the year before. I expect a similar number playing under an old-school manager like David Moyes, so getting +3300 for Pickford is the best bet outside of Raya.

Last year’s joint-winner Matz Sels is not a bad option at +4000 either, but I expect a decline from Nottingham Forest now the club will play in the Europa League.

Matching last year’s heroics would be close to impossible with so many extra games, so Pickford is the best sleeper.