Time does fly doesn't it?
When I was a young(er) lad, there once was a goalkeeper going by the name of Jose Luis Chilavert.
That name might not mean much to younger generations but just over a decade since he hung up his gloves, the former Paraguay international was one of the most compelling goalkeepers of his time.
While he was one of the best shot-stoppers around in the 1990s, there was something else that caught the eye and as he turns 50, let's kick off with Chilavert in a look at some of the more eccentric goalies the game of football has ever seen.
Jose Luis Chilavert
The ex-Real Zaragoza player appeared at the 1998 and 2002 World Cups in which he was one of the cornerstones of a side that reached the knockout stages on each occasion.
But it was more than his goalscoring prowess which really made him standout. A free-kick and penalty expert, he remains the only keeper to score a professional hat-trick:
You've come this far, so you deserve to see one of his free-kick attempts. Here is the first direct free-kick attempted by a goalkeeper in a World Cup match and given the quality of execution, it would have been nice to see the ball nestle in the top corner:
However, the eccentricity came with a dark side. Possessing a short temper, he had his fair share of run-ins with outfielders, and also spat at former Real Madrid and Brazil wing-back Roberto Carlos:
Rene Higuita
We live in an era when Germany and Bayern Munich's Manuel Neuer is an influence beyond his penalty box. Former Colombia goalkeeper Rene Higuita was one of the pioneers of that style of goalkeeping, although it went horribly wrong at Italia 90 against Cameroon:
However, Higuita did leave us with this famous moment from a 1995 friendly against England at Wembley:
It probably makes perfect sense that he was given the nickname 'El Loco' which translates directly as 'The Madman'.
Bruce Grobbelaar
Liverpool's former goalkeeper was a unique character in an ultra-successful side and being unconventional did have have its benefits in the penalty shootout win over Roma in 1984 European Cup final:
He also had a fiery side as his former Reds team-mate Steve McManaman can attest:
Download the brand new OffTheBall App in the Play Store & App Store right now! We've got you covered!
Subscribe to OffTheBall's YouTube channel for more videos, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for the latest sporting news and content.
