Real Betis are set to face Sporting Braga in the quarter-finals of the Europa League, where they will come up against one of the tournament’s most formidable defences. At the heart of the Portuguese side’s resilience is Czech goalkeeper Lukas Hornicek, who currently boasts the most clean sheets in the entire competition.
The 23-year-old shot-stopper has been ever-present, featuring in all 10 of his team’s matches and racking up seven clean sheets along the way. He wasted no time in establishing this record, securing consecutive shutouts against Feyenoord (1-0), Celtic (0-2), and Red Star Belgrade (2-0) in his opening three encounters.
Hornicek finally saw his goal breached in a chaotic affair against Genk, where he ultimately shipped four as the Belgian side claimed a 3-4 victory. The Czech custodian was beaten again in the following fixture—a 1-1 draw against Rangers—before rediscovering his form with another clean sheet against Nice (0-1).
Across his last four continental outings, Hornicek has conceded only in the 2-0 defeat against Ferencvaros during the first leg of the round of 16. His 2026 European campaign began spectacularly by saving a penalty against Nottingham Forest in a 1-0 win, followed by a shutout in a goalless stalemate with Go Ahead Eagles. After the setback in Hungary, Braga produced a dominant second-leg comeback to progress, with their keeper securing another shutout in a 4-0 rout.
Hornicek currently sets the pace in the Europa League clean sheet rankings, holding a two-match cushion over his nearest rivals. Elias Olafsson (Midtjylland) and Matheus (Red Star Belgrade) share second place, while Skorupski (Bologna), Atubolu (Freiburg), and Ozer (Lille) each have four, placing them ahead of players such as Alvaro Valles, who has three.