If the title of this article sounds a little bit like showing off, that was not the intention. More this is a kind of follow-up to something I referenced in an article last week, about how the perception of Łukasz Fabiański changed, certainly in England, in the past few years.
In the years Fabiański was at Arsenal, he was seen as error-prone and a liability (much like Szczęsny) but maybe halfway through his time at Swansea or when he joined West Ham, he was suddenly seen as a solid veteran goalkeeper. Perhaps this is simply the case, that Fabiański was around long enough for people to start respecting his abilities, or perhaps it is a case that he has indeed got better with age like many goalkeepers.
Last night saw West Ham travel to Anfield to face Liverpool, and Fabiański was on the wrong end of a narrow 1-0 scoreline. He had a particularly busy first half, making a series of impressive saves to keep out a lively Darwin Nunez. The goal he did concede to the Uruguayan was something he could do little about, a powerful header nodded into the floor which bounced into the top corner. Fabiański also had a number of important saves to make in the second half, the best being when he closed down Mo Salah in a one-on-one situation to force a corner.
Given that Fabiański is 37, and will be 38 by the time his contract ends next summer, this was probably the last time I will get to see him play live, something I’ve been fortunate enough to manage several times. It was nice last night hearing the West Ham fans sing his name after every save, it was nice to see him share conversation with his opposite number Alisson after the game, but the thing I enjoyed most was the conversation of two men behind me, who between themselves commented “Fabiański? He’s still playing? Good keeper.”
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