Earlier this month, when explaining his decision to sign the former Manchester United youngster in an £8 million deal last summer, there was one word that leapt to mind for the 23-year-old’s new head coach.
The word ‘complete’. The Manchester United academy graduate – who was plying his trade for Burton Albion in a 0-0 draw with Accrington Stanley in England’s third tier this time two years ago – is not just a shot-stopper.
Matej Kovar is one of those goalkeepers who epitomises just how much the role has changed in the modern era, as comfortable passing out from the back as he is stopping shots from hitting the net.
“He’s complete,” Xabi Alonso told Kicker of Kovar. “He’s intelligent, he’s good with his feet, even better in goal. We have to help him develop for the future.”
Former Manchester United man labelled ‘amazing’
Kovar, Leverkusen’s ‘cup keeper’, showcased both sides of his game during Thursday’s 1-1 draw with West Ham United at the London Stadium.
A result which – thanks to a late leveller from the United-linked Jeremie Frimpong – extends Leverkusen’s unbeaten run to 44 games, and puts the newly-crowned Bundesliga champions just four games away from a historic treble.
Having already bamboozled James Ward-Prowse with a soft-shoe shuffle with just a few minutes on the clock – twisting and turning his way out of danger up against a West Ham high press – Kovar then pulled off a couple of impressive reaction saves to keep that first-leg advantage, and the club’s Invincibles status, intact.
“I think we felt it (how tough the game would be) in the first-half,” Granit Xhaka, the former Arsenal captain, tells TNT Sports. “For me, a typical English crowd. They were pushing West Ham. Unbelievable, 60,000 (fans) pushing at their back.
“We were lucky in the first half. (We had) an amazing goalkeeper. He saved us two or three (times). Good chances for them.”
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Four games away from the treble at Bayer Leverkusen
Kovar, who spent five years at Man United without ever making a first-team appearance, has now played 14 times for Leverkusen. In his ‘cup keeper’ role, Kovar will start ahead of Lukas Hradecky against Marseille in the Europa semis and against Kaiserslautern in the DFB Pokal.
If Leverkusen do win the treble – Alonso’s side emulating Sir Alex Ferguson’s iconic team in 1999 and winning three trophies in one season, albeit with the Europa League in place of the Champions League – then Kovar will have played a major role.
Man United, interestingly, had the nous to include a buy-back clause in Kovar’s contract.
“It’s a dream come true for me,” Kovar told Czech publication Sport last week. “I am very happy to be here. The fact that I play at such a level…”