Something that was once the biggest strength of American soccer has somehow turned into one of its biggest question marks. For generations, the U.S. Men’s National Team had a long string of goalies like Tony Meola, Brad Friedel, Kasey Keller, and Tim Howard, ensuring the U.S. had a reliable goalkeeper to serve as the backbone of the team. However, that has changed in recent years, potentially opening the door for younger goalies like Matthew Freese of NYCFC to potentially earn a spot with the USMNT.
At the moment, Matt Turner is the undisputed no. 1 goalie for the national team heading into this summer’s Copa America tournament. Yet, he’s had something of a crossroads in his career. His move from Arsenal to Nottingham Forest last year was supposed to be his path to being a full-time starter at the club level. Yet, Turner failed to maintain his starting spot or impress his new boss after a mid-season managerial change. That leaves Turner without a guaranteed starting job for next season, potentially forcing him to seek a new club again this summer.
The situation is similar for backup Ethan Horvath. Despite a successful stint with Luton Town during the 2022-23 season, the club didn’t fancy Horvath to remain its starting goalie after getting promoted to the Premier League. Horvath was subsequently forced to move to Cardiff City, a mid-table club in the English Championship. The good news is that Horvath installed himself as Cardiff’s top-choice keeper in February. However, it’s still not a step forward for Horvath from his days in the Championship with Nottingham Forest or Luton Town, so playing at Cardiff may not get him much closer to being the no. 1 on the USMNT.
With Turner and Horvath sputtering at the club level and struggling to assert their dominance at the top of the USMNT depth chart, the door is open for a slew of MLS keepers to at least join the conversation. Sean Johnson has long been considered the no. 3 keeper behind Turner and Horvath. But at 35, his opportunity to become the starter may have passed. Meanwhile, Drake Callender has received call-ups to the national team but is yet to be capped. He was also left off the Copa America roster, indicating a somewhat tenuous position on the depth chart.
Freese, meanwhile, figures to be a goalie worth watching. After being traded to NYCFC in January 2023, he surpassed the older and more experienced Luis Barraza as the regular starter by the end of last season. Freese has continued to be the top-choice keeper for NYCFC in 2024 and the results speak for themselves. After 15 games, he’s second in MLS in saves and has the third-best save percentage of any goalie who has played at least 15 games. Behind Freese, NYCFC has conceded the fifth-fewest goals in MLS play this season.
With a strong defensive record and a promising goalkeeper, NYCFC has become a sleeper among oddsmakers to win MLS Cup in 2024. With NY sports betting becoming legal in 2022, fans of the Pigeons can bet on the club to win MLS Cup, something they couldn’t do when they won it in 2021. With nine sportsbooks currently operating in New York, they have plenty of options.
As for Freese’s national team hopes, they aren’t that far fetched if he can continue to build upon what has been a breakout season with NYCFC. For starters, the 25-year-old Freese is younger than Callender, Zack Steffen, Alex Bono, Brad Stuver, and some of the other MLS goalies who are also hoping to move up in the USMNT depth chart. A few of those goalies are arguably past their prime whereas Freese isn’t there yet. That gives him plenty of time to keep getting better and continue to prove himself as one of the top keepers in MLS.
It also doesn’t hurt Freese that he’s spent some time playing for the U.S. team at youth levels. In March 2021, he was on the Under-23 U.S. team that failed to qualify for the last Olympics. Despite being a backup on that team, his presence on the roster has helped to keep Freese on the national team’s radar.
Of course, Freese still has a lot of work to do to get to the USMNT. Becoming a part of the squad in time for the 2026 World Cup may not be realistic. However, Freese is a young and talented keeper having a breakout season for NYCFC. He’s certainly improved his rank among the best American goalkeepers since the start of the season. If he continues on this trajectory, a spot on the USMNT isn’t out of the question for Freese.