Spain conceded one goal across eight World Cup games. One. And in the final against Argentina, Unai Simon didn't make a single save — because Argentina didn't register a single shot on target. That's not a defensive performance. That's a strangling.
Simon took home the Golden Glove as the tournament's best goalkeeper, and it's hard to argue with the math. His run of six consecutive clean sheets broke a record that had stood for 36 years. For context: that record predates Simon himself, who was born in 1996.
Six clean sheets and a legacy cemented
The 29-year-old has now won Euro 2024, the 2023 UEFA Nations League, and the 2026 World Cup with Spain — all as the undisputed number one. Add in the 2023-24 Zamora Trophy for the best goalkeeper in La Liga and you've got a player who is, right now, operating at the top of his position globally.
What makes Simon's story unusual in modern football is his club career: he has played his entire senior career at Athletic Club in Bilbao, coming through their academy and never leaving. No Bernabéu, no Camp Nou, no Premier League money. Just Bilbao — and somehow, the best goalkeeper in the world.
Any market that had Simon's save percentage or clean sheet numbers going into the knockout rounds would have paid well. Spain's defensive structure was already among the most organized in the tournament, and Simon's positioning and command behind a high line gave opponents almost no margin to exploit.
What's next for Spain's wall
Spain will carry serious weight into every competition they enter from here. A goalkeeper who just broke a 36-year World Cup record, in his prime at 29, anchoring one of the most tactically cohesive international sides in Europe — that combination makes Spain short-priced favorites for whatever comes next, and rightly so.
Simon's record: eight games, one goal conceded, one Golden Glove. Argentina had nothing for him in the final. That's the story.
