After Liverpool‘s last-gasp 2-1 defeat to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge before the international break, goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili made his intentions clear.
The Georgia international had impressed on his Premier League debut against Enzo Maresca’s side, having been drafted in to deputize for the injured Alisson Becker. Taking to social media following the game, he shared lyrics from the song “Lose Yourself” by Eminem: “Success is my only m—–f—–g option. Failure’s not.”
Such a tenacious mentality has propelled Mamardashvili from the small Georgian village of Khoni to the heady heights of the Premier League, where he’s staking his claim for Liverpool’s No.1 shirt. While the view inside Anfield is that Alisson remains an elite talent, there is also an acknowledgement that succession planning needs to begin for life after the club’s greatest goalkeeper of modern times.
It was with that thought in mind that Liverpool signed Mamardashvili from Valencia in the summer of 2024 for an initial £25 million plus £4 million in add-ons, following a breakout tournament with Georgia at Euro 2024. The 25-year-old remained on loan with the LaLiga side last season before starting life at Anfield in earnest this summer, making his competitive debut in the Carabao Cup against Southampton in September.
“We knew we were bringing in a very good goalkeeper, but when he plays his first game, that’s always the best way of seeing that he’s adjusted well or not,” head coach Arne Slot said earlier this month. “I think we saw in that game [Southampton] that he’s adjusted really well to our club, which is not a surprise because he’s a quality goalkeeper. Now he can do what Caoimhin [Kelleher] had to do so many times in the past, replacing Alisson — hopefully like Caoimhin did so many times before.”
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The departure of Kelleher in an £18m move to Brentford in June means it is now the 6-foot-6 Mamardashvili who holds the title of Liverpool’s No. 2. With Alisson hurt and the eyes of the world trained on Merseyside this Sunday — the Reds host bitter rivals Manchester United in the Premier League — he will get the opportunity to show why he is regarded as the club’s long-term first choice between the posts.
“Mentally, he has always been super strong”
Goalkeeping is in Mamardashvili’s blood, with his father, Davit, having played in goal professionally for a number of clubs in his native Georgia. Mamardashvili trained at home with his father as a child and now wears his shirt, No. 25, for both Liverpool and the national team. He joined the academy of Georgia’s most successful club, Dinamo Tbilisi, at the age of nine, but a lack of first-team opportunities forced him to leave on loan, first to FC Rustavi and then Locomotive Tbilisi — where he quickly made an impression on technical director Giorgi Kipani.
“We were trying to select players from the Georgian league, and the sporting director offered to bring in a goalie who was fourth choice at Dinamo,” Kipani — who is now president of Locomotive — told ESPN. “Dinamo wanted to send Giorgi somewhere to get experience as he was only 18 at the time. But after he arrived, the coronavirus pandemic started, and the championship was postponed. When we returned, the new coach [Samson Pruidze] asked us to select another goalkeeper.”
Pruidze’s tenure, however, would prove shortlived. The experienced Georgian coach lasted just two games before he was replaced by Giorgi Chiabrishvili — a decision Kipani believes altered the course of Mamardashvili’s career.
“Chiabrishvili came in [to Dinamo] and said ‘We’re going to play with Mamardashvili and we’re going to trust him.’ Not long after that, we played Granada in the Europa League,” said Kipani. “We lost 2-0, but I remember Giorgi made 10 saves or something like that. It was just like ‘Wow.’ We lost the game, but he was the highlight for us.”
His performance against Granada helped Mamardashvili catch the eye of Spanish scouts, and in the summer of 2021, he secured a one-year loan move to Valencia. Though he was initially registered to feature for the reserves in Spain’s fifth tier, his form in preseason made such an impression on manager Jose Bordalas that he was immediately promoted to the first team.
“After just a few training sessions he was already the talk of the coaching staff,” Bordalas told AS in 2024. “When I put him on in the first matchday, they called me crazy. I saw him in training and I saw that he made stops, that he made the difference. I saw it clearly, I had no doubt. He was growing, but with the work we did we saw how he was improving daily.”
Of course, the transition to Spain’s LaLiga was never likely to be easy and Mamardashvili was given his first taste of the scrutiny that comes with playing in one of Europe’s top leagues when he made a costly error in Valencia’s 3-1 defeat to Sevilla in September 2021. The subsequent return to fitness of No. 1 Jasper Cillessen meant the Georgia international had to wait more than four months for an opportunity to atone, but when the chance finally came, he grabbed it with both hands, making a string of fine saves to keep a clean sheet against Real Sociedad.
Rather than let his error define him, Mamardashvili used it as fuel to truly launch his career at Valencia; that sense of determination is often cited as one of his most impressive qualities by those who have worked closely with him.
“Mentally, he has always been super strong,” Kipani said. “With us, he was confident, he was a hard worker, very professional. I remember one game for Locomotive; we lost 4-1 and the first goal Giorgi conceded was a terrible mistake. Everyone was worried that would affect him but he continued to play like a beast.
“He has unbelievable skills and always looked like he could become a special player, but his mentality is the most important thing. He trusts himself and the players in front of him have faith in him too.”
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How ‘Mr. Aura’ became Slot’s first signing
While Mamardashvili quickly earned a reputation in Spain as one of LaLiga’s most promising young goalkeepers, it wasn’t until Euro 2024 that he rose to global prominence. He was part of a Georgia team making their first-ever appearance at a major tournament, having saved a penalty in the shootout against Greece to help his country triumph in the playoff final.
His eye-catching form continued into the tournament itself, with Georgia defying expectations to reach the knockout stages before losing to eventual winners Spain in the round of 16. Despite being the lowest-ranked team at the tournament, Georgia captured the imagination of the watching world and Mamardashvili — who, according to Optus Sport, ended the group stage having made 20 saves, seven more than any of his peers — marked himself out as a star on the rise.
“In Georgia, Giorgi is known by the nickname ‘Mr. Aura,'” Saba Sapanadze, owner of YouTube channel ‘Geo Team,’ told ESPN. “We Georgians feel calm whenever we see him. He’s one of the most beloved players among Georgian fans — for many, the absolute favorite. He’s a man who doesn’t like to talk too much; instead, he lets his actions speak for him.
“What makes him a special footballer is his character. It’s incredibly hard to get him off balance. At the same time, he has an amazing mentality. Even back when he played in the Georgian league, if he made a mistake, he would immediately show great mental strength and then pull off incredible saves. He always bounces back with dignity, even in the toughest moments.”
When the chance to bring Mamardashvili to Anfield materialized last summer, Liverpool didn’t hesitate. He became the first signing of the Slot era, with the expectation being he will have an important role to play for the Reds in years to come.
“Mamardashvili is, I think, one of the examples where this club did in the past very good that they look also at the future, long-term future of the club,” Slot said after the transfer was confirmed. “That’s why we signed him.”
Alisson’s guidance key to success
With Alisson under contract at Liverpool until 2027, Mamardashvili was always aware he would have to bide his time on Merseyside. That said, the Brazil international’s troubling injury record always made the prospect of first-team opportunities for his deputy likely this season, having missed 14% of Liverpool’s Premier League games since signing from AS Roma in 2018.
In recent times, Alisson has been particularly blighted by hamstring injuries, with five individual cases over the past three years. The latest of those arrived last month against Galatasaray, when the goalkeeper was forced to run back toward his own goal after a stray pass from defender Ibrahima Konaté.
For those of a Liverpool persuasion, frustration surrounding Alisson’s continued injury woes is outweighed by a belief that when fit, the 33-year-old remains one of the best goalkeepers in the world. Still, having an excellent No. 2 is a necessity, and there is also a sense that Mamardashvili will benefit from his time working alongside his Brazilian counterpart.
“Ali helped me a lot to improve,” the 25-year-old told club media last month. “When I was a child, it was like a dream to meet players like Alisson, Virgil [van Dijk] and Mo [Salah]. Now I’m with them and I’m so happy. There are a lot of quality players. I knew it before but what I saw is crazy, it’s really crazy.”
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While following in the footsteps of one of the best goalkeepers in Premier League history would be daunting for many, those who have watched Mamardashvili’s rise believe it is a challenge he will relish.
“To the question of whether he can handle the pressure of competing with Alisson, I can say 101% yes, he absolutely can!” Sapanadze said. “I’m sure Giorgi will use his time alongside Alisson to learn from him and absorb his very best qualities.
“To be honest, he’s still very young for a goalkeeper. I can’t yet see where his ceiling is. I believe that if he continues to work on his few weaknesses — and I’m sure he will — he has the potential to become the best goalkeeper of the year in any award ceremony.”
Despite his Premier League debut ending in defeat, Mamardashvili offered glimpses of his quality against Chelsea, saving brilliantly to deny Jamie Gittens and Estêvão before the latter netted the winner in the 95th minute. It was a disappointing end to a promising afternoon for the Georgia international, though there is perhaps no better way to announce yourself as a Liverpool player than with a strong performance against Manchester United at Anfield.
There is, of course, enormous pressure that comes with taking a starring role in one of the most watched global fixtures in the football calendar. But, as far as Mamardashvili is wired, failure is not an option.
