.jpg) Guzan withAtlanta United in 2024 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Bradley Edwin Guzan[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1984-09-09)September 9, 1984 (age 41) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Evergreen Park, Illinois, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)[2] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Goalkeeper | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chicago Magic Soccer Club | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1999–2003 | Providence Catholic High School | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| College career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2003–2004 | South Carolina Gamecocks | 38 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2004 | Chicago Fire Reserves | 14 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2005–2008 | Chivas USA | 79 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2008–2016 | Aston Villa | 144 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2011 | →Hull City (loan) | 16 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2016–2017 | Middlesbrough | 10 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2017–2025 | Atlanta United | 225 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 488 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2008 | United States Olympic (O.P.) | 5 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2006–2021 | United States | 64 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bradley Edwin Guzan (/ɡuˈzæn/; born September 9, 1984) is an American former professionalsoccer player who played as agoalkeeper.
Acollege soccer second-teamAll-American for theSouth Carolina Gamecocks, Guzan was second overall pick in the2005 MLS SuperDraft, signing forChivas USA, with whom he was the 2007MLS Goalkeeper of the Year. In July 2008, he joinedPremier League clubAston Villa for a fee of $1 million, where he made 171 total appearances across eight seasons. After a brief spell atMiddlesbrough, he returned toMajor League Soccer withAtlanta United in January 2017, becoming the club's record appearance holder and winningMLS Cup in2018 before retiring from the sport in 2025.
Guzan made his senior debut for theUnited States national team in 2006, earning over 60 caps. He was named in their squads for twoFIFA World Cups and fourCONCACAF Gold Cups, winning the latter in2007,2017 and2021. He also featured for them at the2008 Olympics, the2007 Copa América, the2009 FIFA Confederations Cup and theCopa América Centenario.
Born inEvergreen Park,Illinois, Guzan, who is ofPolish-American ancestry, played in his youth at the Chicago Magic Soccer Club and for the varsity soccer team atProvidence Catholic High School in Illinois, from which he graduated in 2003. He went on to play two seasons inNCAA competition as a member of theSouth Carolina Gamecocks men's soccer team, where he was a second-teamAll-American in his sophomore season.[3]
After spending two years with theChicago Fire Reserves in theUSL Premier Development League, he chose to forgo the rest of his college years, signing aGeneration Adidas contract withMajor League Soccer (MLS).Chivas USA later drafted Guzan with the second overall pick of the2005 MLS SuperDraft. On November 7, 2007, Guzan was namedMLS Goalkeeper of the Year.[4] During his time at Chivas USA, Guzan was affectionately nicknamed "El Gusano."[5]
On July 11, 2008,Aston Villa agreed a transfer fee in the region of £600,000, or $1 million, with MLS and Chivas USA to sign Guzan, significantly less than the £2 million agreed to in Aston Villa's failed move for the keeper in January 2008, the difference this time being that Guzan would have been out of his contract at the end of the2008 season in November, allowing him to sign for Aston Villa during the January transfer window on a free transfer.
On August 1, 2008, Guzan was granted awork permit by theHome Office, allowing him to complete his move to Aston Villa.[6] He was due to be officially introduced by Aston Villa after competing for the United States at the2008 Summer Olympics inBeijing. Guzan was the second American goalkeeper named Brad to be signed during the summer by Aston Villa, following the capture of Premier League veteranBrad Friedel.
Guzan made his Aston Villa debut in September 2008 in theLeague Cup at home toQueens Park Rangers. He made hisEuropean soccer debut in theUEFA Cup game away atSlavia Prague on November 6, 2008. The match finished 1–0 to Aston Villa, with Guzan making several saves to keep a clean sheet. His performance led to his managerMartin O'Neill describing him as a "class goalkeeper in the making." He also started in Aston Villa's first leg againstCSKA Moscow in the round of 32 of the UEFA Cup at Villa Park on February 18, 2009, also later appearing as a substitute againstLiverpool after Friedel's red card.
Guzan played in every game that Aston Villa won during their success in the2009 Peace Cup, againstAtlante,Porto andJuventus. He then helped Aston Villa overcome the Italians in thefinal, most notably in the penalty shootout during which he saved the attempts ofVincenzo Iaquinta andAlessandro Del Piero.[7] The only game that Aston Villa did not win (in thegroup stages againstMálaga) was the one in which Guzan did not feature.
Despite having a successful pre-season period, Guzan was dropped from the first team in favor of Friedel for Aston Villa's opening game of the2009–10 season againstWigan Athletic. On October 27, 2009, Guzan saved four penalties in one match, one in normal time and three more in a penalty shoot-out win overSunderland at theStadium of Light in the last 16 of theLeague Cup. Despite these heroics, however, Friedel replaced him in goal for thefinal againstManchester United.[8]
On December 31, 2010, Guzan was loaned toFootball League Championship sideHull City on a one-month loan deal.[9] He made his debut for Hull on New Year's Day 2011, a 1–0 loss toLeicester City.[10] His second appearance for the club ended on a higher note, as his team went on to win 2–3 atPortsmouth.[11] He kept his first clean sheet for the club againstBarnsley in a 2–0 win for Hull.[12]On January 25, Guzan extended his loan until the end of February.[13] He made a total of 11 league appearances for Hull before returning to Aston Villa on February 28.[14]
On March 8, however, Hull re-signed Guzan on an emergency loan deal due to an injury to goalkeeperVito Mannone.[15] Guzan's first appearance back at the club was in a home match againstBurnley.[16] Guzan's last game for Hull City came in a 1–2 win away atWatford on April 9, 2011, after which he returned to Aston Villa.[17]
On December 3, 2011, Guzan made his second Premier League appearance for Aston Villa, coming on for the injuredShay Given against Manchester United. Given had been ruled out for a month with a torn hamstring so Guzan retained his place in the first team, giving him an extended run in Aston Villa's first team.
Guzan was released by Villa at the end of his contract in June 2012.[18] However, he was linked with a return to the club over the summer in a situation similar to that of fellow Aston Villa goalkeeperAndy Marshall in 2010. On July 16, 2012, Guzan was included in new managerPaul Lambert's 25-man squad for Aston Villa's tour of the United States and on the same day, the player confirmed viaTwitter that he had renewed his contract and rejoined the club.[19][20]
He made his return for Aston Villa againstNewcastle United putting in a Man of the Match performance in a 1–1 draw atSt James' Park.[21] He kept Villa's first clean sheet of the season in a 2–0 win againstSwansea City and performed well enough to keep his position in the starting lineup. At the end of the2012–13 Premier League season, he was voted the Aston Villa Player of the Year thanks to his large contribution to Villa's bid to avoid relegation.[22] On July 6, 2013, Guzan was rewarded for his play and signed a four-year contract extension with the Midlands club.[23]
On July 18, 2013, Guzan stated that he hoped to give Aston Villa the best years of his career and said that signing a new contract was a "no-brainer."[24]
On September 28, 2013, Guzan remarkably earned an assist on anAndreas Weimann goal in a 3–2[25] win overManchester City in which Paul Lambert praised Guzan's distribution technique for goal kicks.
During the2014–15 season, Guzan was dropped by new Aston Villa managerTim Sherwood after a high-profile error against Manchester City giftedSergio Agüero the opening goal in a 3–2 defeat on April 25, 2015, with Shay Given taking his place for the final games of the Premier League season.[26] Guzan also missed out on Aston Villa's run to the2015 FA Cup Final, with Given playing in every round.
On July 29, 2016, Guzan signed a two-year contract with newly promotedPremier League clubMiddlesbrough, joining on a free transfer, afterAston Villa were relegated to theChampionship.[27][28][29] He made his league debut for the club in a 2–1 win away atSunderland.[30]
On January 26, 2017, it was confirmed that Guzan had signed a contract with recently formedMLS teamAtlanta United on a free transfer, and would return to theUnited States following the conclusion of the2016–17 Premier League season, after nine years in English football.[31] He leftMiddlesbrough on June 10, 2017.[32] For the remainder of the2017 MLS season, Guzan wore the number 1 shirt.[33] Guzan made his Atlanta United debut on July 24, 2017, a 1–0 road victory againstOrlando City SC.[34] During the 2017 MLS season, Guzan started 14 games, posted a 6–1–7 record, and kept eight clean sheets. He led the MLS in save percentage (79.2%) and won MLS Save of the Week three times.[35] In 2018 Guzan won the MLS Cup with Atlanta United after a 2–0 victory over the Portland Timbers.[36]
Following the conclusion of the2025 regular season on October 18, Guzan officially retired from professional soccer at the age of 41.[37]
Guzan made hisUnited States national team debut on February 19, 2006, in a friendly 4–0 win overGuatemala inFrisco, Texas. He played the first 80 minutes before being replaced by fellow debutantZach Wells.[38] He was a non-playing member of the side that won the2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup.[39] He was called up for the2007 Copa América in Venezuela, where he played in a 1–0 loss toColombia for his next cap on July 5.[40]
Guzan made his World Cup qualifying debut in the second leg of asecond round qualifier againstBarbados on June 14, 2008, in an 8–0 home victory. Weeks later, he was chosen for theOlympic team for thetournament in China, where he kept a shutout in an opening 1–0 win overJapan.[41] When the United States came runners-up at the2009 FIFA Confederations Cup in South Africa, he played in a 3–0 group victory againstEgypt that put the team into the semi-finals at the expense of their opponents andItaly.[42]
Guzan was unused at the2010 FIFA World Cup[43] and played no international games between that November and May 2012, when he came on as a substitute forTim Howard near the end of a 5–1 friendly win over Scotland inJacksonville.[44] Howard took an international sabbatical after starting at the2014 FIFA World Cup, during which Guzan was first-choice.[45] At the2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup, in which the United States came fourth, Guzan andMichael Bradley were the only two Americans to start every game;[46] he won the Golden Glove.[47] Howard returned to the team for 2016'sCopa América Centenario, but Guzan kept his place in a run to the semi-finals.[48]
Guzan was in the American side that won the2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup. He played the first two group games beforeBill Hamid took his place for the third, then he andSean Johnson were replaced in the squad by Howard andJesse González.[49] He was unused as the Americans won againin 2021.[50]
Guzan is aChristian. Guzan has spoken about his faith, saying, "My personal life, my faith life and my sport life – they all come together. I think they have to. You don't have one without the others, and you have to haveJesus in your life. That is how I get through my personal life, how I get through my professional life – following Christ. ... we all need Christ in our lives. Money, fame, all those objects, they don't mean anything if you don't have Jesus in your life. All of those things can be gone in the blink of an eye. We can't get caught up in it."[51]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup[b] | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Chicago Fire Reserves | 2004 | PDL | 14 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | — | — | 16 | 0 | |||
| Chivas USA | 2005 | Major League Soccer | 24 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 26 | 0 | |||
| 2006 | Major League Soccer | 13 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 16 | 0 | |||
| 2007 | Major League Soccer | 27 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 29 | 0 | |||
| 2008 | Major League Soccer | 15 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 16 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 79 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | — | 87 | 0 | ||||
| Aston Villa | 2008–09 | Premier League | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5[c] | 0 | — | 8 | 0 | |
| 2009–10 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 2[c] | 0 | — | 10 | 0 | ||
| 2010–11 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2[c] | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2011–12 | Premier League | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 9 | 0 | |||
| 2012–13 | Premier League | 36 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 37 | 0 | |||
| 2013–14 | Premier League | 38 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 38 | 0 | |||
| 2014–15 | Premier League | 34 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 34 | 0 | |||
| 2015–16 | Premier League | 28 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 32 | 0 | |||
| Total | 144 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 9 | 0 | — | 171 | 0 | |||
| Hull City (loan) | 2010–11 | Championship | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 16 | 0 | ||
| Middlesbrough | 2016–17 | Premier League | 10 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 14 | 0 | ||
| Atlanta United | 2017 | Major League Soccer | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 15 | 0 | ||
| 2018 | Major League Soccer | 33 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | — | — | 38 | 0 | |||
| 2019 | Major League Soccer | 34 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4[d] | 0 | — | 45 | 0 | ||
| 2020 | Major League Soccer | 23[e] | 0 | — | — | 4[d] | 0 | — | 27 | 0 | ||||
| 2021 | Major League Soccer | 29 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | 3[d] | 0 | — | 33 | 0 | |||
| 2022 | Major League Soccer | 7 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 7 | 0 | |||||
| 2023 | Major League Soccer | 27 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 2[f] | 0 | 32 | 0 | ||
| 2024 | Major League Soccer | 32 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 37 | 0 | ||
| 2025 | Major League Soccer | 26 | 0 | — | — | — | 2[f] | 0 | 28 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 225 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 262 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 488 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 36 | 0 | 20 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 566 | 0 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 2006 | 1 | 0 |
| 2007 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2008 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2009 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2010 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2011 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2012 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2013 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2014 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2015 | 13 | 0 | |
| 2016 | 12 | 0 | |
| 2017 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2019 | 4 | 0 | |
| Total | 64 | 0 | |
Chicago Fire Reserves
Chivas USA
Aston Villa
Atlanta United
United States
Individual
United States squads | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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