Clásico battle between the sticks

El Clásico on Sunday at Spotify Camp Nou is getting closer. And of the many fascinating duels that this fixture always throws us, we mustn't forget the goalkeepers. And in Ter Stegen and Thibaut Courtois, we are talking about two of the best in the world.

Ter Stegen's sparklingly clean sheets

Barça's German stopper has been phenomenal in the league this season. He has only conceded eight goals, twice as few as Courtois, whose goals against tally of 16 is not be sniffed at either. That said, the Belgian has played six games fewer due to an injury earlier in the campaign. Ter Stegen can also boast a quite astounding 19 clean sheers compared to just six for Courtois.

Goals per game

Given the different numbers of games played, it might be fairer to compare the two in terms of goals conceded per game. Ter Stegen has been beaten an average of 0.32 times a game, while Courtois has picked the ball out of the back of the net 0.84 times a game. Quiet a difference. That's a goal every 281.25 minutes for the German and every 106.88 minutes for the Belgian.

But in shots stopped, the story is different. Ter Stegen has made 51 saves, just two more than the 49 stopped by Courtois in six fewer games. In other words, the Real Madrid keeper has had a lot more work to do. Strangely, Barça have received more shots than Madrid this season (212 as opposed to 204), but a far greater proportion of the shots against Barça have been off target.

Statistics can sometimes reveal some curious things! What that ultimately means is that Ter Stegen concedes a goal every 26.5 shots, while Courtois is beaten once every 12.75 attempts.

Pass master

Barça have always liked goalkeepers who play the ball into defence. Ter Stegen is a master of the art and has made 847 passes this season, almost 300 more than Courtois, who generally prefers to go for the long ball up the field.