If you follow Major League Soccer, you likely heard of Charlotte FC's Kristijan Kahlina, who was just named 2024 MLS Goalkeeper of the Year. Or Hugo Lloris, the FIFA World Cup winner and former captain of Tottenham Hotspurs who is now in goal for LAFC, and was a Goalkeeper of the Year finalist. Or Zack Steffen, formerly of Manchester City and currently with Colorado Rapids, who was called up to the United States men's national team.
But a goalkeeper who consistently flies under the radar is New York City FC's very own Matt Freese. The 26-year-old from Wayne, PA, has been lights out this season in goal, and is by far NYCFC's most valuable player. He's not just one of the two or three best shot-stoppers in the league; he's one of the best Americans to play in goal anywhere in the world.
But Freese does not get the recognition he deserves. Whether it's from MLS or Mauricio Pochettino and the USMNT, Freese's stellar performances seem to only be praised by NYCFC fans, everyone else turns a blind eye to it.
His save rate of 74% is the third-most in MLS (Kahlina leads the category with 76%), and he prevented 9.8 goals in the 2024 season, second-most in the league (and well ahead of the -3.3 of Lloris and the disastrous -11.6 of Steffen). It's clear from the numbers that Freese is among the league's best goalkeepers.
But more than that, Freese wins games. He was central to New York City's upset win over FC Cincinnati in Round One of the MLS Cup Playoffs – he made countless crucial saves to keep his side alive, and then he stopped three penalty attempts in the series-deciding shootout in Game 3.
Here's a quick look back in case you forgot just how impactful Freese was:
Matt Freese | Best saves vs FC Cincinnati, Round One
More proof why Matt Freese should’ve been MLS Goalkeeper of the Year, as if his performances all season long weren’t enough. Carried #NYCFC to an upset elimination over Cincinnati. #NYCFC pic.twitter.com/fQHpNldIjy
— Matthew Mangam (@MatthewMangam) November 13, 2024
And yet Pochettino's newly named USMNT squad for the Concacaf Nations League quarterfinals left out the NYCFC goalkeeper.
The squad features Matt Turner, who is the clear-cut starter for the USMNT. And it includes Barcelona Atlètic's Diego Kochen, an 18-year-old who has yet to log a minute with Barcelona's First Team, which is fair enough: It's important to develop talent. But to pick Steffen, a 29-year-old who ranks towards the bottom in save percentage, boasts a high number in goals conceded, and has the lowest goal-prevention for any starting keeping in MLS, over Freese?
The stats tell part of the story why Freese is by far the better goalkeeper than Steffen. Recent performances tell the rest of it. Freese allowed just two goals in three Round One games while facing an xG of 5.32 for a stunning 3.32 goals prevented — he was FotMob's highest-rated player in two of those matches. Steffen allowed nine goals over two Round One games while facing an xG of 7.51, for -1.49 goals prevented — FotMob handed him a disastrous 4.6 rating for Game 1, and almost equally poor 4.8 for Game 2. There's a reason why Steffen's lower-seeded Colorado was knocked out of the playoffs by LA Galaxy with a combined score of 9-1, while Freese's lower-seeded NYCFC advanced with a combined score of 3-2.
It is unbelievable that Steffen gets another look at the USMNT while Freese has yet to receive his first call-up.
When will the rest of MLS and Pochettino wake up? Maybe it's better that Freese is staying with New York City; he won't risk injury with the national team which would likely sideline him from the remainder of the postseason.
For now, Freese remains NYCFC's secret ingredient keeping the team the playoff hunt. But if he puts up more stellar performances throughout the playoffs and into next season, surely he will earn his well-deserved USMNT call-up and MLS accolades.
