What Matt Turner Hopes To Accomplish With Revolution Before Departing For Arsenal
FOXBORO (CBS) -- It was a pretty interesting offseason for Matt Turner. Fresh off winning MLS Goalkeeper of the Year, he had some more Team USA keeping duties to fulfill. Along the way, the 27-year-old was transferred to Arsenal and is now set to bring his talents overseas this summer.
But first, he'll get another half-season with the New England Revolution. That was part of the agreement between the Revs and Arsenal, and Turner is happy that his New England days aren't over just yet. But a chance to play overseas for a club like Arsenal was something that Turner could not pass up.
"I've been playing well for a long time and these windows are few and far between, so any opportunity you get to sort of make that jump, get your foot in the door, and then sort of see what happens, you kind of have to take that chance," Turner told reporters after New England's training session on Thursday. "Especially when it comes to a club like Arsenal."
Turner has had loads of success since taking over as New England's starting keeper in 2018, but he knows that the Premier League is a whole different animal. The move will post all new challenges at the highest level for the keeper, but Turner's goal has always been to keep pushing himself at every stop.
"That's always been my goal as a soccer player -- I just want to keep going and challenge myself at the highest level that I can possibly get to, and then I'll rest on my laurels after that and see if I'm happy with what I was able to accomplish," he said. "This is a dream move, a dream come true, and no hesitation. Seriously, no hesitation."
While there was no hesitation to join Arsenal, the process wasn't without its emotions. Turner's transfer was one of the worst kept secrets in soccer for two months, with Arsenal's interest first reported back in January. But there were bumps along the way and there were even times when Turner didn't think it would happen. The transfer finally became official last week, with most of the wheeling and dealing happening while Turner was busy with Team USA.
"It was emotional, it was up and down. Sometimes it was more dead than ever, sometimes it was more alive than ever," explained Turner. "But that's the first time I've ever been through something like that, so to have it all come through and then come out and put in a good performance [against El Salvador] and get three points for the national team, it was a very sort of euphoric day for me in my life and my career."
The move marks another career milestone for a New Jersey kid that didn't play soccer until he was in 14. After the undrafted Turner turned himself into one of the best keepers in Major League Soccer, he's now ready for that next step.
But again, he has some unfinished business to tend to in New England. He won't fulfill his ultimate goal of winning an MLS Cup with the team, but Turner can still have a massive impact on the Revs before departing for London.
"My goal when I got here was to leave New England, leave the organization, a better place than it was when I first got here. I think we're well on the way to those things," said Turner. "My early goals are to progress as far as we can in Champions League, good performances, and then start the season strong like we did last year. It sort of sets the tone for the rest of the season.
"Help new guys like Jozy [Altidore] and Seba [Lletget] get acclimated to New England and understand what it means to be a Revolution player, and just enjoy my time in MLS, enjoy my time with the fans all around the league," he added. "It's not really like a farewell tour, it's probably more like a 'See You In 10 Years -- hopefully -- Tour' where I can come back and sort of remember the memories and the way this league is growing so fast."
