The debate has been settled for now, as France Football have named Manuel Neuer as the Best Goalkeeper in the world.
A panel of experts that included Lionel Letizi, Santiago Cañizares, Francesco Toldo, Sepp Maier and Mark Schwarzer voted Neuer as the best shot-stopper, leaving goalies such as Gianluigi Buffon, Thibaut Courtois, Hugo Lloris and Jan Oblak completing the top five spots.
Manchester United's David De Gea, often named among experts as one of the best, managed to end the ballot in seventh place, with Costa Rican GK Keylor Navas grabbing the 7th spot.
The points system used was the same as in the Ballon d'Or: six points for first place, four points for second place, three points for third place, two points for fourth place and one point for fifth place. Here's how each member of the panel voted.
Santiago Cañizares: 1. Manuel Neuer 2. Keylor Navas 3. Thibaut Courtois 4. Jan Oblak 5. David De Gea.
Francesco Toldo: 1. Manuel Neuer 2. Gianluigi Buffon 3. David De Gea 4. Samir Handanovic 5. Keylor Navas.
Sepp Maier: 1. Manuel Neuer 2. Gianluigi Buffon 3. Jan Oblak 4. Thibaut Courtois 5. Marc-André Ter Stegen.
Lionel Letizi: 1. Manuel Neuer 2. Gianluigi Buffon 3. Hugo Lloris 4. Marc-André Ter Stegen 5. Thibaut Courtois.
Mark Schwarzer: 1. Manuel Neuer 2. Hugo Lloris 3. Thibaut Courtois 4. Jan Oblak 5. Gianluigi Buffon
Final ranking
1. Manuel Neuer - 30 pts
2. Gianluigi Buffon - 13 pts
3. Thibaut Courtois - 9 pts
4. Hugo Lloris - 7 pts
4. Jan Oblak - 7 pts
6. Keylor Navas - 5 pts
7. David De Gea - 4 pts
8. Marc-André Ter Stegen - 3 Pts
9. Samir Handanovic - 2 pts
