This story originally appeared on VICE Sports UK.If Heurelho Gomes' kids were to type their dad's name into YouTube, the first video returned would not fill them with joy about their famous father's achievements. Titled 'The Worst Of Heurelho Gomes', it is a two-minute showreel of the Brazilian's goalkeeping howlers at Tottenham Hotspur: Gomes letting tame shots slip through his hands; Gomes attempting to turn a striker only to lose possession and then give away a penalty; Gomes literally dropping a cross into the back of the net, leaving the Brazilian ashen faced and the Spurs fans behind the goal with heads in hands. It's peak schadenfreude viewing.
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I don't feel especially good about our society when a compilation of a man's errors are deemed necessary viewing for in excess of 180,000 people, dwarfing the number who want to watch his best moments. Gomes' kids should be able to search for their dad's achievements and see the incredible performances he put in to help Spurs qualify for the Champions League. They probably don't need to hear the song Spurs fans sang about him, but that too shows the depth of love he inspired at White Hart Lane.Admittedly, Gomes does have a propensity for the shit-headed and bizarre, but for the most part he's an extremely good goalkeeper who has spent the past decade playing at a very high level. He demonstrated that this weekend with a starring performance in Watford's 1-0 win over Sunderland, which sent the Hornets to a giddying seventh in the Premier League table. Gomes was heroic both sides of half-time, with a number of spectacular and vital saves ensuring his side the three points. Crucially, he did not drop the ball into the net once. That's the trick, Heurelho; that's the trick.
Gomes' reputation as a part-time clown during his six-year spell at Spurs largely deserved. There were catastrophic errors (there's the aforementioned YouTube video to prove that) and he did leave fans totally uncertain as to whether they could hold on to the points. The contrast between him and current number one Hugo Lloris is stark.READ MORE: Do British Managers Have A Future In The Premier League?
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Things became so desperate that he slipped to third choice at the North London club, behind the outstanding Lloris and outstandingly old Brad Friedel. It seemed he was happy to cash a cheque and play in the reserves.But Gomes is back in the big time following Watford's promotion. There were gaffes in their run to runner-up spot in the Championship, of course – you just don't hear so much about it when he's dropping the ball at the feet of a Huddersfield striker – but there was also a season of largely excellent goalkeeping.His return – now sporting an 'I'm taking this shit seriously' beard – has passed largely unnoticed. However Watford fans may well be aware that Saturday saw the Brazilian keep his seventh clean sheet of the season. That puts him joint top among his fellow Premier League keepers, among Petr Cech, Joe Hart, and Jack Butland.And Gomes' current side now sit just one point behind his past employers. That is perhaps a misleading stat, as Watford's next few matches are Liverpool, Chelsea, Spurs, and Manchester City, but confidence is sufficiently high at Vicarage Road that they will feel anyone can be beaten. Especially Chelsea.
For now, it's probably worth the club enjoying their seventh spot and Gomes basking in the glow of being among the division's best keeper, before he inevitably drops a Christian Eriksen cross against his former side.Because the guy deserves it. He does not make high-profile errors for a laugh; he's not engaged in a decade-long performance art piece meant to highlight the horrors of public humiliation. He's a professional footballer with weaknesses in his game, a brilliant shot stopper who's prone to the odd lapse in concentration and occasionally struggles with handling.And if you've a shred of sanity left in your football-supporting brain, you can forgive him that. It's not like the captain of the Titanic saying, "Overall I'm extremely good at my job of navigating a ship, baring my tendency to sail into icebergs."There's no fairytale about Watford's success –- they're not even owned by Elton John anymore – but there is something redemptive about Gomes' return to prominence. So, for services to bouncing back and sticking two fingers up to schadenfreude, Heurelho Gomes is our Player of the Weekend.READ MORE: Should Diving Be Considered An Artform?
