Alisson, Schmeichel, Begovic and five other goalkeepers who scored goals

Sean Fisher
16 May 2022

A year on from Alisson's remarkable headed goal against West Brom, Planet Sport take a look at the other members of the goalscoring goalkeepers club.

Liverpool may be chasing the quadruple this season, but that was only made possible by Alisson's late heroics in the 2020/21 season ,with his late goal against West Brom lifting the Reds into the top four and crucially earning them Champions League qualification.

Jurgen Klopp's side have now reached the final of that very competition this season, and fans can now look back and admire the Brazilian's remarkable header one year down the line.

But Alisson isn't the only goalkeeper to abandon his post and find the opponent's net. Here, Planet Sport delves into the archives to put the spotlight on other keepers-turned-goalscorers.

Peter Schmeichel

While best known for his intimidating presence between the sticks, it wasn't just shot-stopping that the Danish goalkeeper was good at.

With ten goals to his name, Schmeichel has proven he was just as efficient when needed in the opposition's box.

After joining Danish side, Hvidovre, early in his career, Schmeichel's 78 appearances for the club resulted in an impressive six goals for the keeper.

He continued his goalscoring streak at fellow Danish side, Brondby, with two goals in 119 appearances.

Schmeichel's goalscoring form dried up after moving to Manchester United, but after enjoying eight trophy-filled years at the club, we doubt he cared too much.

After a brief move to Sporting Lisbon, Schmeichel returned to the Premier League with Aston Villa, and it was here where he scored his most recognisable goal.

In a match against Everton, Schmeichel latched on to the ball at the back post and fired a volley into the bottom corner. Unfortunately for the Dane, it proved to be just a historic consolation with Villa going on to lose the game 3-2.

It did give Schmeichel the honour of being the first keeper to score in the Premier League, a feat that has only been replicated five times since.

Brad Friedel

After featuring for Columbus Crew, Liverpool, Aston Villa, Tottenham Hotspur and the US national team during his playing days, Friedel has amounted over 550 professional appearances as a goalkeeper.

As such a veteran of the sport, Friedel has seen it all - last-gasp winners, heart-breaking losses, championship titles, and even a goal of his own.

During his time at Blackburn Rovers, where he spent the majority of his career, Friedel became just the second Premier League goalkeeper to score when a deflected shot fell to his feet in the opposition's box.

Friedel's goal levelled the game at 2-2, but he had little time to bask in the moment as Charlton went on to grab a winner just seconds later.

Asmir Begovic

Perhaps the most freakish on the list, Begovic's goal as a keeper earned him multiple awards, including a Guiness World Record.

Heading into the 2013/14 season, Begovic had finally settled down at a club following an array of loan spells and cemented his place as the No.1 at Stoke City.

He impressed between the sticks, earning numerous man-of-the-match awards in the process, but his time at Stoke is best remembered for his remarkable goal.

Just 13 seconds into a clash against Southampton, Begovic sent a long kick downfield which looped over the head of a despairing Artur Boruc. At a distance of 97.5 yards, it holds the record as the 'longest goal scored' in soccer.

It remains one of the most unusual goals in the Premier League to date, but after just 13 seconds of the game, it is also one of the fastest scored in the league.

Regarding the incident, Begovic said, "It's a cool feeling but it was a fortunate incident. I feel a bit bad for Boruc.

"It is a long ball that got caught in the wind and it took a wicked bounce. It's not nice to be on the receiving end of those things as a goalkeeper."

Whether it was intentional or not from Begovic, it'll forever hold its place in the record books as one of the sport's most outrageous goals.

Alan Fettis

While the previous entries on this list have scored their goals from the goalkeeper position, Fettis, perhaps more impressively, scored his goals when fielded as a forward.

Between 1991 and 1996, Fettis plied his trade for Hull City, and despite spending most of his time between the sticks, Fettis also offered his services as a striker.

After Hull's squad was decimated by injuries, Fettis, nursing an injured thumb, was thrust on to the bench as an outfield option by manager Terry Dolan.

He was thrown into the action with 10 minutes to play and incredibly struck the goal which wrapped up a 3-1 victory over Division Two leaders Oxford United.

It didn't end there, though. In a dead rubber in Hull's final game of the campaign at Blackpool, Fettis actually started the match up front. And, with almost the last kick of the season, the Northern Irishman again found himself in the right place at the right time to score the match-winner.

Tim Howard

As the current goalkeeper of Memphis 901 FC, Tim Howard's soccer career has now spanned 23 years, during which he has featured for Manchester United, Everton and Colorado Rapids.

Howard is the most capped goalkeeper of all time for the US national team, but despite enjoying a successful international career, it wasn't for the US that Howard scored his sole career goal.

After struggling to break into the Manchester United starting line-up, Howard was loaned out to Everton and after impressing, he signed permanently for the Toffees.

Howard's most impressive moment for Everton came when he managed to loop the ball over Bolton Wanderers goalkeeper Adam Bogdan from his own area.

Despite this extraordinary achievement, Howard refused to celebrate out of respect for his fellow goalkeeper, and described the goal as "cruel" after the ball was caught by the wind.

Bodgan was to have the last laugh, though, with Bolton going on to win the game 2-1.

Rogerio Ceni

Despite being one of the lesser known names on the list, Brazilian-born Rogerio Ceni dominates the goalscoring charts for goalkeepers.

With 131 - yes, 131 - goals during his career, Ceni has made his name not just as a talented shot-stopper, but also as a prolific goalscorer.

After spending over 20 years at the club, Ceni retired from Brazilian side Sao Paulo in 2015 and has since been recognised by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics as the highest ever scoring goalkeeper.

The majority of Ceni's goals have been a result of free-kicks or penalties, with his set piece delivery apparently too good to limit him to a role between the sticks.

Ceni also represented Brazil 18 times during his career, including involvement in both the 2002 and 2006 World Cup squads. However, he never scored a goal for his national side, with Brazil opting to hand set pieces to outfield players instead.

Paul Robinson

The former Tottenham Hotspur, Leeds United and England goalkeeper was lucky enough to score two goals during his goalkeeping career.

While many keepers on this list either scored their goal from a late corner or a freakish long ball, Robinson achieved both.

His first came for Leeds United in the League Cup. In a tie against Swindon Town, almost identical to Alisson's goal, Robinson rose highest from a last-minute corner to head home an equaliser for Leeds.

Robinson's last-minute heroics added to his already impressive season, and he went on to win Leeds United's Player of the Year award in 2003.

After six successful years at Leeds United, Robinson made the switch to Tottenham Hotspur and replicated his success, albeit in slightly different circumstances.

In a Premier League match against Watford, Robinson stepped up to take a free-kick a mere 75 yards out from the goal and an unfortunate bounce carried it over the head of Ben Foster.

Unfortunately for Blackburn Rovers fans, Robinson failed to complete a hat-trick of clubs scored at, enduring a barren seven-year spell at Ewood Park. Nevertheless, with two goals to his name, Robinson has etched his name into goalkeeping history.