cover photo belongs to Jim Shorin / isiphotos.com
January marks the gearing up for a number of prestigious youth tournaments, most notably the 2020 Olympics, the women’s 2020 U20 World Cup, and the men’s 2021 U20 World Cup qualifying. With so many goalkeepers vying for roster spots, Everybody Soccer dives into the best goalkeepers in each age bracket.
Goalkeepers are ranked on their current ability to best help a youth national team, based on goal prevention, distribution, and club or school situation. Some of the teams (U22s, for example) aren’t real USYNT teams but they’re included to display the depth at each year. If a player is included in a higher age bracket, they aren’t repeated for the younger ones as well, even if they would normally qualify. Finally, goalkeepers’ ages are marked at the end of 2019 for consistency, although some January birthdays have already passed.
# - recently graduated
^ - could not confirm birth year
Women’s U23s
1997 or younger
1. Samantha Leshnak, 22 - North Carolina FC
2. Mandy McGlynn, 21 - Sky Blue FC
3. Jalen Tompkins, 22 - Colorado#
4. Brittany Wilson, 22 - Denver#
5. Mikayla Krzeczowski, 21 - South Carolina#
One to watch: Jalen Tompkins. While I’m interested in what both Leshnak and McGlynn have to offer in 2020, both goalkeepers are likely to have a quiet 2020 given their team situations. As for Tompkins, she’s been vocal about wanting to play at the next level and with McGlynn being the only goalkeeper selected in the 2020 NWSL draft, Tompkins has to start weighing her options overseas. To make matters more complex, Tompkins is a goalkeeper in desperate need of an environment that provides consistency and oversight, something most European clubs don’t offer. It’s the wild, wild west with most clubs when it comes to goalkeeper development and Tompkins could be the only person overseeing her own development, depending on the situation.
Men’s U23s
1997 or younger
Goalkeepers 22 years old or younger are eligible for the 2020 Olympics
1. Carlos dos Santos, 19 - Benfica (Portugal)
2. Jonathan Klinsmann, 22 - FC St. Gallen (Switzerland)
3. Justin vom Steeg, 22 - Los Angeles Galaxy
4. JT Marcinkowski, 22 - San Jose Earthquakes
5. Bogomil Tsintsarski, 22 - FK Vereya (Bulgaria)
One to watch: Carlos dos Santos. While the U23 youth camps haven’t featured Dos Santos, and likely won’t at this point, it’s the Philadelphia-native that Benfica signed a five year deal with, not another American goalkeeper. Dos Santos is featured in a highly competitive environment, sandwiched between Portuguese and Japanese international talent. While he may not be as accessible for American viewers as others on this list, not many goalkeepers get the opportunity to follow prestigious Benfica products like Jan Oblak and Ederson.
Women’s U22s
1998 or younger
1.Brooke Heinsohn, 21 - Duke
2. Kaylie Collins, 21 - USC
3. Hillary Beall, 20 - Michigan
4. Kaitlin Maxwell, 21 - Missouri State
5. Aubrei Corder, 21 - Medyk Konin (Poland)
One to watch: Take your pick. Each goalkeeper here has their pros and cons but none have had a convincing campaign to this point. Heinsohn and Beall both make the hard plays look easy and vice versa. Collins never found her rhythm in her junior year, although she was battling injuries. Maxwell will likely not pass the “eye test” for most scouts but she’s easily the most consistent goalkeeper in the bunch. And Corder’s jump to Poland - following Emily Dolan as the second American goalkeeper at Medyk Konin in the past few years - is exciting but she exits a stable landscape by going off the radar almost completely. There are several question marks moving forward but they’re all capable of reaching the next level, if they can get the pieces in order.
Men’s U22s
1998 or younger
1. Andrew Thomas, 21 - Stanford
2. Eric Lopez, 20 - Los Angeles Galaxy
3. Will Pulisic, 21 - Duke
4. Kevin Silva, 21 - Toronto FC II
5. Matthew Rosenberg, 21 - Xavier
One to watch: Kevin Silva. After an unsuccessful tenure in Scotland with Heart of Midlothian - zero league appearances in eighteen months - Silva’s professional career has taken a slow start. Fortunately, Toronto FC has taken an interest in the former USYNT goalkeeper, giving him eight starts last fall. Silva has left Hearts for TFC2 for 2020 and his career has taken a breath of fresh air. Toronto split games with their second team last year so don’t expect a heavy workload in terms of appearances, but the fair battle for the number spot should help Silva gain some much-needed traction.
Women’s U21s
1999 or younger
1. Emma Roccaforte, 20 - McNeese State
2. Jessica Berlin, 20 - NC State
3. Bridgette Skiba, 19 - Oregon State^
4. Laurel Ivory, 20 - Virginia
5. Lauren Kozal, 19 - Michigan State^
One to watch: Emma Roccaforte. Emma who? Roccaforte doesn’t carry USYNT prestige and her collegiate career hasn’t accumulated as many awards as her peers, so her unknown status shouldn’t be surprising. But for those who have watched her, they know she has the fundamentals down cold and can cover the goal with ease. Roccaforte had struggled to stay healthy in her three years and if she’s looking to play after her senior year, she’ll need a big splash to get the attention of scouts.
Men’s U21s
1999 or younger
1. Brady Scott, 20 - FC Köln (Germany)
2. Elian Haddock, 20 - Yale^
3. Carlos Avilez, 20 - North Texas SC
4. Philip Ejimadu, 20 - Nacional (Brazil)
4. Quantrell Jones, 20 - UMBC^
One to watch: Philip Ejimadu. Ejimadu has bounced in an out of US leagues, spending time with FC Tucson and LAFC. He’s currently in camp with LAFC, which isn’t a surprise after his parent club, Nacional, were relegated from Brazil’s second division. Ejimadu is a relatively unknown figure in the USYNT hierarchy but he checks a lot of boxes that could skyrocket him sooner than later. Depending on how his tenure with LAFC plays out, Ejimadu could quickly become a top USL goalkeeper, which would open some doors for the young Brazilian-American.
Women’s U20s
2000 or younger
Goalkeepers 19 years old or younger are eligible for the 2020 U20 World Cup
1. Claudia Dickey, 19 - North Carolina
2. Katie Meyer, 19 - Stanford
3. Mackenzie Wood, 19 - Northwestern^
4. Mattison Interian, 19 - Notre Dame
5. Meagan McClelland, 19 - Rutgers
One to watch: Katie Meyer. We all saw the media attention from the penalty shootout but Meyer’s success going forward likely won’t be tied to her penalty saving abilities. Her play can be a bit wild at times, often opting for aggression over a percentage play. Meyer’s hands aren’t what you expect from a 15-1-0 (W-T-L) goalkeeper and can struggle with detailed movement, often displaying cumbersome footwork. On the other hand, Meyer is brave when she needs to be and possesses a mentality most programs would be envious of when looking at their roster. Nearing the end of her amateur status, it’ll be the finer details that will determine how far Meyer’s career goes past Stanford.
Men’s U20s
2000 or younger
1. Luca Lewis, 18 - Torino (Italy.1)
2. Martin Sanchez, 19 - Northern Illinois^
3. Alex Budnik, 19 - Dartmouth
4. David Ochoa, 18 - Real Salt Lake
5. John Pulskamp, 18 - Sporting Kansas City II
One to watch: Luca Lewis. There’s nothing shabby about getting playing time in the youth system of the 62nd best club in Europe. While there’s not a ton accessibility for fans at the moment - watch this 0-0 draw against Inter U19s to see a couple saves from Lewis - Torino wouldn’t be wasting their time with Lewis if he didn’t have something special about him. Depending on how the chips fall, don’t be shocked to see Lewis included with the qualifying process for the 2021 U20 World Cup, which starts this summer.
Women’s U19s
2001 or younger
1. Angelina Anderson, 18 - California
2. Alisa Crooks, 18 - Alabama
3. Lindsey Romig, 18 - Tennessee
4. Julia Dohle, 18 - Penn State
5. Tatum Sutherland, 18 - SMU^
One to watch: Angelina Anderson. Stepping into any division 1 program your first year is very difficult and Anderson did it with ease at a Pac-12 school. The question now is if she’ll be able to hold onto the U20 starting spot. Anderson was the number one on the 2018 U17 squad but she has some added competition with Dickey, Meyer, and company. It’s hard to say where Anderson’s ceiling is but she’s handled her freshman year better than most goalkeepers her age so don’t expect her to back down from the upperclassmen.
Men’s U19s
2001 or younger
Goalkeepers 18 years old or younger are eligible for the 2021 U20 World Cup
1. Kris Shakes, 18 - Penn State
2. Chituru Odunze, 17 - Leicester City (England)
3. Nicolas Defreitas-Hansen, 18 - Everton (England)
4. Patrick Schulte, 18 - Saint Louis
5. Ethan Wady, 17 - Chelsea (England)
One to watch: Chituru Odunze. Over the past six months, life for Odunze has moved quickly. In August he left to join Leicester City’s U18s and in the succeeding months he was getting playtime at the 2019 U17 World Cup. While the scoreline wasn’t favorable, the 4-0 loss showed glimpses at Odunze’s ability. If Odunze can make the most of his time overseas, the U19 age group will have an extremely competitive battle for the number one position.