Who is Aston Villa's greatest ever goalkeeper?

[dave shelley]

I've disliked Brazil ever since they went into a World Cup (can't remember which one) when they were beating all before them and I drew them in the sweep at work.  They never made the knockout stages...bastards.

[Skipper_The_Eyechild]

I loved watching Ronaldinho play so I can't jump on that slander. Not good looking enough for us though so I'm glad we never tried to sign him, phew*.

*Doug may have tried a cheeky fiver bid to make it look like he was trying.

[olaftab]

Jimmy Rimmer.

[olaftab]

By the way why isn't Gábor Király in the poll?

[walsall villain]

Martinez for me followed by Rinmer. Special mention for John Dunn who played for us around 1970, he was average at best but he used to smoke during the game and leave his ciggie in the net when he was called into action. I remember standing behind his goal one game when he mishit a goal kick straight to the opposition who somehow missed. He turned to the fans and said “ain’t I a c**t”…. We all agreed!

[PeterWithesShin]

Ronaldinho was ridiculously talented, and despite all he did achieve it should have been more but he had an aversion to training and being professional. Great to watch.

[Monty]

Ronaldinho was ridiculously talented, and despite all he did achieve it should have been more but he had an aversion to training and being professional. Great to watch.

I will never understand why this isn't universally seen as a reason to love him even more.

[Skipper_The_Eyechild]

Ronaldinho was ridiculously talented, and despite all he did achieve it should have been more but he had an aversion to training and being professional. Great to watch.

I will never understand why this isn't universally seen as a reason to love him even more.

Absolutely.

[nigel]

I went with Rimmer. His positional sense was second to none, as someone else mentioned, he rarely looked like conceding.

Martinez then Spink.
I should have gone for Nigel Sims as I was named after him.

[Sexual Ealing]

Ronaldinho was ridiculously talented, and despite all he did achieve it should have been more but he had an aversion to training and being professional. Great to watch.

I will never understand why this isn't universally seen as a reason to love him even more.

Exactly this. No doubt Lukas Podolski was a 'top professional' and, well, no thanks.

[RamboandBruno]

Emi Martinez

Brazil in Spain 82..,i was 8 and they were magic, i think I might of got home from school when Italy beat them and I may have cried.
Socrates, Zico, Alamo, Junior…flawed football Gods

[algy]

Voted Sam Hardy ... it's either him (for the reasons Percy has said) or Martinez.

As someone else mentioned though, it's very very difficult to compare 2 goalkeepers from such different eras.  But Martinez is the best in my lifetime, definitely.

[Cliftonville Villlain]

Jimmy Rimmer, like Emi, had been knocking around for years before he came to us. A ridiculously good keeper and up until Emi's arrival he was streets ahead of the rest. Martinez shades it. Just.

[Louzie0]

I’ve voted, to save cd’s blood pressure.

I went for Emi, of course, the World’s Number One; although I always liked Nigel Spink for being super sub in the 1982 Final v Bayern, Big Jim Cumbes because he was the first Villa keeper I noticed as being reliable and Bosnich for being Bosnich.

I’ve generally liked our goalkeepers; Friedel and Guzan worked hard, David James was glamorous as well, Jimmy Rimmer was an impressively safe presence and even Enkelman had his moments.

[Hookeysmith]

Martinez by a mile. The pressure on modern goalkeeping is incredible since the removal of the back pass and the speed of the modern press, oh and add to that predator boots and flighty balls that swerve all over the place.

Obviously the game overall was a lot rougher and tougher, where as most old keepers had faces like a welders bench,bt te modern keeper is a complete all rounder.