A “Top Top Top Keeper” called Marco Silva Bernd Leno a good three weeks ago. The Portuguese coach of Fulham FC saw his Cottagers win 2-1 against Chelsea FC. Guarantee of victory: A Leno in Gala form, who scratched everything off the line that the Blues fired at his box.
With 82 saves over the course of the season, the 30-year-old sits behind Brentford’s David Raya (86) among Premier League goalkeepers in this ranking. Logical: A smaller club like promoted Fulham, currently in a very strong seventh place in the table, gets more shots on average than one of the top clubs – more chances for Leno to excel.
The Swabian made impressive use of this for himself. Now the Premier League career should really pick up speed again after the stagnation at Arsenal. A Bundesliga return is not an issue for the time being. “People said to me: Come back to Germany. There you are again in the shop window and can play European”says Leno in an interview with the ‘kicker’, “But to be honest, for me the Premier League is still the best league in the world.”
“I just don’t tick like that”
“Here in England”explains the 1.90 man, “You play ten, twelve, fourteen times against top European teams in one season.” He does not want to switch to a smaller league for the time being. “I just don’t tick like that. You never know what will happen. But everyday life is and will always be the league, and in the Premier League you almost always have a top game week after week.”
If things continue to work out on the island as well as in the past few weeks and months, Leno could soon return to the national team. He says: “Of course I still have the topic on the screen. I am in contact with national goalkeeping coach Andreas Kronenberg. […] Now that there is a place available again, I hope that I can convince the coaching staff at the DFB with my performance.” This can be assumed as of now.
