Robin Roefs has been in fine form for Sunderland so far this season

We are rapidly running out of ways to properly convey just how magnificent of a signing Robin Roefs is proving to be for Sunderland.

The Dutchman has only been on Wearside for a proverbial five minutes, and yet, it is already difficult - and fairly frightening - to consider life without him. Signed from NEC Nijmegen for a fee that looks more and more like an act of daylight robbery with every passing weekend, Roefs has, in short order, established himself as Sunderland’s number one, kept three clean sheets in seven Premier League outings, saved a crucial penalty against Brentford, received a senior international call-up for the Netherlands, been nominated for September’s divisional Player of the Month award alongside teammate Granit Xhaka, and cultivated a personal highlight reel that few - if any - can match at this fledgling stage of the campaign.

He has, to put it in simpler terms, been a revelation between the sticks, and head coach Regis Le Bris is minded to agree. Speaking in the aftermath of Roefs’ man of the match display against Crystal Palace last month, when asked if he was surprised by the 22-year-old’s eye-catching form, the Sunderland boss said: “I think we need players at that level in the Premier League, otherwise we won't exist. So for me it's not a surprise, I'm really pleased and happy with his performance, of course. But not surprised, and I'm sure he will have other performances like that.

“Thanks to the team too, because to make these saves you need defenders, you need the block, you need to make it hard for the opponent, and when you are a goalkeeper you have to make the final save. Probably because he's young he will improve many things, I hope so. He's really composed, really calm, he understands the game really well. I think his technical and physical attributes, the way he understands the game, the way he can anticipate, the way he can connect with his teammates is really impressive. So for me it's not a surprise, but I'm happy with his performance.”

But as Roefs’ heroics swiftly threaten to become the norm, and as an ever-lengthening queue of perplexed opposition fans are left in his wake questioning where on earth Sunderland unearthed him from, it is perhaps important that we contextualise just how well the young goalkeeper is playing at the present moment in time to really hammer home the extent to which the Black Cats have a gem on their hands.

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According to stats database DataMB, across the entire breadth of Europe’s top five divisions, no goalkeeper aged 24 or under boasts a higher save percentage than Roefs’ staggering 80%. Indeed, the only player who matches him is Barcelona’s Joan Garcia, a talent two years older than Roefs who is currently playing Champions League football.

Then again, perhaps this should come as no surprise. A closer look at Roefs’ stats over the last year - which encompasses the vast majority of appearances in his senior career, lest we forget - the Sunderland stopper has been in the 96th percentile for PSxG-GA [Post Shot Expected Goals minus Goals Allowed], the 96th percentile for goals conceded, the 99th percentile for penalty saves, the 97th percentile for clean sheet percentage, and the 90th percentile for crosses stopped.

He is, to put it another way, performing like one of the best goalkeepers in Europe. If he continues on his current trajectory, who’s to say that he won’t come to be regarded as exactly that soon enough?

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