Clarets keeper Heaton wins 2014/15 Premier League ‘super saver’ award

Tom Heaton, the Burnley goalkeeper who played a crucial role in the club’s promotion to the Premier League and subsequent struggle to stay in the top flight last season, has scooped the ‘Scottish Friendly Super Saver Award’, for being the goalkeeper who offered the best financial value for his club in the 2014/15 Premier League season.
By The Newsroom
Published 30th Jul 2015, 14:39 BST

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Super saver: Tom HeatonSuper saver: Tom Heaton
Super saver: Tom Heaton

With the new football season almost upon us and last minute transfer deals being negotiated, the award celebrates the skill and cost effectiveness offered by goalkeepers in the last Barclays Premier League season.

Heaton came top of the charts having made a save for Burnley on average every 26 minutes of game time last season and costing his club just £6,000 per save – 93 per cent cheaper than the going rate for a Premier League goalkeeper.

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By contrast, Premier League goalkeepers made a save once every 32 minutes, at an average cost of £87,407 a save to their clubs.

Running a close second and third for the award were West Ham’s Adrián and Sunderland’s Costel Pantilimon, who cost their clubs £8,000 and £10,446 per save respectively. The full rundown of all Premier League goalkeepers can be found here: www.scottishfriendly.co.uk/community/super-saver-cup-with-bob-friendly.

Calum Bennie, investment expert at Scottish Friendly said: “Signing Heaton two years ago was a canny move by Burnley, both financially and as a way of boosting the club’s overall performance. Equally, despite Burnley being relegated, it’s not surprising that Roy Hodgson was keen on making him part of the England squad, as he walked away with 10 clean sheets this season.

“It’s interesting to see that the most valued players are not necessarily providing the best value for money for their clubs. Heaton’s performance is a win-win situation not only for the fans who got to watch some fantastic performances, but for the club, where Heaton has vindicated its selection and transfer policies.”

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While Crystal Palace’s Julián Speroni showed his consistency by being the only keeper to stay in the top five two seasons in a row, last year’s award winner Vito Mannone of Sunderland dropped to 17th place, putting him in mid-table obscurity in this year’s ranking.

In comparison, the goalkeeper who cost his club the most last season was Willy Caballero of Manchester City, who offered a return on investment of a whopping £390,000 per save. Caballero was closely followed by Liverpool’s Brad Jones and Petr Cech of Chelsea, who both cost their clubs £325,000 per save. With Cech’s long-awaited transfer to rivals Arsenal completed, Chelsea may have made a savvy business move in letting the Czech Republic star leave the club.

Related topics:Tom HeatonPremier LeagueClaretsRoy Hodgson