He may not have been relied upon much at club level so far this season, but Matt Turner played a key part in helping the USMNT reach the last 16 of the World Cup.
The 28-year-old has only made four appearances for the Gunners since his arrival in the summer, all of which have come in the Europa League. After somewhat of an unconvincing start to life in north London, Turner began to find confidence with each start, making some smart saves and looking more composed with the ball at his feet.
However, that didn't stop many from questioning his decision to move to Arsenal, with former USMNT shot-stopper Brad Friedel claiming Turner is “too good of a goalkeeper to be sitting on the bench.” Friedel’s former teammate Eric Wynalda also weighed in on the matter, suggesting Turner should move clubs after the World Cup.
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Turner’s lack of game time even led to speculation that he would fall behind in the pecking order under USA boss Gregg Berhalter, thus becoming second-choice in Qatar. Thankfully for Turner - and his country - that did not turn out to be the case, and he started every game.
The USMNT progressed to the last 16 after finishing second in Group B but were unable to overcome the Netherlands, who came out comfortable 3-1 winners. That said, Turner could exit the tournament with his head held high after putting in a number of standout performances between the sticks.
In fact, German publisher Kicker has placed Turner joint-second for best goalkeeper of the World Cup. In a post on Instagram, the magazine selected three of the highest-rated players from goalkeeper, defence, midfield and attack. German grades are 1-6, with 1 being the best and 6 being the worst.
Turner was given a Kicker grade of 2.50 along with Croatia’s Dominik Livakovic, while ex-Arsenal keeper Wojciech Szczesny came first with a score of 2.13. As for the ultimate top spot, Kylian Mbappe just edged Lionel Messi to receive the highest grade of 1.75 for forwards.
Whilst it’s safe to say Turner had a strong tournament, his score has understandably left many conflicted due to the absence of Argentina’s Emiliano Martinez and Morocco’s Yassine Bounou. Nevertheless, it’s great to see Turner prove the critics wrong and it will no doubt boost his confidence ahead of the Premier League's resumption on Boxing Day.
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