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.
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
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