Inside USA Goalkeepers' Healthy Competition To Be The World Cup Starter

ATLANTA — Matt Turner envisions the scene on a daily basis.

On June 12, when the U.S. men’s national team steps onto the pitch for its opening World Cup match against Paraguay at Los Angeles Stadium, Turner will take it all in. The roar of 70,000-plus fans. The teams emerging from the tunnel in their new kits. The national anthems reverberating throughout the stadium as supporters belt out every word. 

"There’s a million different pictures that go on in my head. I think about it a lot," Turner told me and a group of reporters sitting around a table at the National Training Center in Fayetteville, Georgia, during the squad’s pre-tournament camp. "I’ll probably cry when the national anthem goes. It’s just such a huge honor — overwhelming honor — to be granted that responsibility to be on this team to do our best in those roles and ultimately, change soccer here forever."

What Turner might not be imagining totally accurately, though, is where he’ll physically be standing. He’s hoping to be on the field as a member of Mauricio Pochettino’s starting lineup. 

More realistically, he could be on the bench.

Turner, 31, was one of three goalkeepers announced as part of the USA’s 26-man World Cup roster. He was the Americans’ starter four years ago in Qatar and firmly held onto that role. Then he was unseated by Matt Freese, who made his national team debut last June. Freese gained valuable experience and clout with Pochettino through solid performances at the 2025 Gold Cup, which included saving three penalties in the quarterfinal shootout against Costa Rica. 

Freese has started 13 of the last 14 matches and established himself as the frontrunner to start for the U.S. at a home World Cup.

While Freese didn’t play in the team's recent 3-2 tune-up win over Senegal, there’s not much to glean because that lineup was not necessarily indicative of how things will look at the World Cup. Turner started and played 45 minutes, while 22-year-old Chris Brady of the Chicago Fire earned his first U.S. cap in the second half. It was important to Pochettino for Brady to play so that his inaugural appearance with the national team wasn’t potentially at a World Cup.

Turner understands the optics. But as a super competitive incumbent, he’s not going down without a fight.

"I’m just going to train like I have a chance," said Turner, who joined the New England Revolution on loan from French club Olympique Lyonnais ahead of the 2026 MLS season.

"That’s how I’ve gotten to where I am in this current day and age, so I don’t know why I’d ever change that. For me, I’m always going to work as hard as I can, and when the coach makes his final decision, he makes his final decision, and I’ll be at peace knowing that I put everything I had behind it."

Turner arrived at camp in good form. He’s third in MLS with a save percentage of 78.2%, while Freese, who plays for New York City FC, is sixth at 73.9%. Asked if he feels like that could give him some kind of advantage, Turner was realistic.

"I mean, you obviously wish you had the body of work with the national team in the last year to also rely on," Turner said frankly. "But yeah, I think form at the club level is really, really important. And in the end, after evaluating training and recent performances, I think the coaches are going to put together the best connection of guys and the ones that can make the biggest difference in the game."

It’s still somewhat unclear how tight Freese’s grip is on the job. During the March window, for example, Turner started a 5-2 loss to Belgium, and Freese got the nod in a 2-0 defeat to Portugal. Turner and Brady split minutes against Senegal, and Freese is expected to start Saturday’s World Cup sendoff match against Germany.

Does Freese feel unsettled when teammates’ names get called over his?

"Immediately when that happens, you’re thinking, ‘OK, well, how can I help the team?’" Freese, 27, told me and other reporters at a roundtable. "And then, you know, proving yourself in training and setting yourself up for a good match the next time you get in there."

That’s exactly the kind of advice Brad Guzan would give any backup goalkeeper. That’s because he can empathize. Guzan — who played all 38 Premier League games for Aston Villa in the 2013-14 season and didn’t sniff the field at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil — spent much of his national team career backing up Tim Howard, including at two World Cups.

"There’s very few cases where you can rest on your laurels and be like, ‘I deserve this because I did this and this in the past,’" Guzan told us. "That’s the exception. And as an American soccer player in Europe, you are not afforded that luxury. [Getting benched] has happened to everyone.

"As a No. 2 or No. 3, you need to find a way to help contribute to the group, whether that’s in the training session the day after a game or preparation for the game itself,’" Guzan continued. "You need to figure out, ‘How can you be best utilized if you’re not actually going to be on the field?’ That can be your energy, your information, your support and guidance — it could be all of it."

Freese has shown he can do that. Last Sunday before kickoff, he dapped up all 11 starters before finding his seat on the bench. He gave Turner a huge embrace. 

Then at halftime, when Brady was preparing to take the field for the first time, a small problem emerged: Nobody could find his jersey. Brady stood on the sideline searching for it, while Freese sprinted around trying to track it down. It was a bit of a rookie moment.

If Turner sits on the bench all summer, he’ll be bummed, no doubt. But he’s a professional and will take it in stride. Plus, he and Freese have a good relationship even if the dynamic may seem awkward from the outside. 

"I think there’s a healthy mutual respect between us," Turner said. "We both want to play, we both have played and we both will respect whatever the final decision is from the coaches. And then from there, our roles will change to be supportive of each other.

"What he's done the last couple of years has been great, and it’s been great competition. So yeah, we’ll see how it goes."