“My earliest soccer memory,” Howard recalled last month.
Howard went on to follow Meola in a line of outstanding American goalkeepers, and on Saturday he will join Meola,
“Obviously, it is the honor of my life,” Howard said.
Now 45, Howard started at the 2010 and 2014 World Cups and made 121 international appearances from 2002-17, most among American goalkeepers. His 16 saves in a 2-1, second-round extra time loss to
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He played with Major League Soccer’s
No top successor has emerged at the national team.
“We had it locked. We had this goalkeeping thing figured out for a long time, didn’t we? Going all the way back. And, yeah, it just seems like we’ve had a little bit of a rut,” Howard said.
“The game has continued to evolve, and I don’t know if our young goalkeepers are getting pushed as hard as they need to, to that breaking point,” he continued. “One of the things that
“I like Zack, and I like Matt. I do like Matt’s wherewithal, fortitude and mental toughness," Howard added. “Zack’s talent is unmatched and I’ve always said about Zack he could be the greatest
In his fourth season as an analyst for
“The goalkeeping coaching has dropped a level, as well, if I’m being brutally honest,” he said, “because when you look at some of these top goalkeepers that we’ve produced through the years, they’ve always had high-level goalkeeping coaches. And I can say that because I’ve seen the worst of the worst, and I’ve seen the best of the best in my career. And I think high-level goalkeeping coaching is down.”
Howard was open early in his career that he had Tourette syndrome, a neurological disorder causing involuntary, repetitive movements. He became an advocate and fundraiser for those afflicted.
“I just wanted to kind of get ahead of it and put it out there before anybody could really scrutinize and criticize me for it, knowing that I was climbing that ladder and going to be in the spotlight had I become a starter,” he said. “I appreciate the sensitivity with which people have covered my journey with Tourette syndrome throughout the course of my career because, quite frankly, I’m being brutally honest with you, I can handle it. There’s nothing anyone can throw at me that I can’t handle.”
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