WATCH: Premier League star American goalkeeper claims the USA can win the 2026 FIFA World Cup

Matt Turner believes the USMNT can be World Champions.

WATCH: Premier League star American goalkeeper claims the USA can win the 2026 FIFA World Cup

Matt Turner and the USMNT walk on to the pitch (Image via Washington Post)

Matt Turner is one of the few American players who have managed to make their name in England. Joining Arsenal in 2022, he left just after a year to join Nottingham Forest, where he is the first-choice keeper. 

Turner is also the first-choice keeper for the USMNT, which currently rank 12th in the FIFA Men’s ranking. The United States is also the host of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, co-hosting with Canada and Mexico. Turner is quite excited to be participating in the World Cup once again but believes it’s more special because the tournament is at home. 

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Talking to ESPN, the goalkeeper believed the US could be World Champions in 2026 because the fans deserve it. He said the team is quite young and already has World Cup experience, so becoming World Cup champions is possible as well. 

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The final. I feel like people...... And if we make the final it's winning it. You know, I think the fans, we have a really strong team. We have really strong players and, you know, tournaments aren't always perfect but i think the fans have a level of expectations that's been growing over the years and I think it's coming to its boiling point when the World Cup is here in '26 and, you know, we have a young team that won't be so young the next time around with World Cup experience under our belt. So yeah, we're looking forward to that for sure but we still have two tournaments to go before we get to that point. So a few trophies up for grabs that we want to be able to lift for our home fans.
Matt Turner on USA’s expectations in the 2026 World Cup

As of now, the two keepers used by the US are Matt Turner and Zak Steffan. In the 2022 World Cup, Turner was the first choice and started all four games. He managed two clean sheets, becoming the first American to keep multiple clean sheets in an edition of the World Cup. 

Matt Turner heroics get Nottingham Forest to the 5th round of the FA Cup

Matt Turner is under fire for below-par performances in the league, where he has conceded 28 goals in 17 appearances. He has had three errors leading to goals according to the Premier League, which has meant his time as the first-choice keeper could be coming to an end. But he has redeemed himself as his vital save in the FA Cup gets them in the next round. 

Matt Turner
Matt Turner celebrates his match-winning save. (Image via Goal)

Drawing the match against Bristol City, the two met for a replay in the City Ground. The 90 minutes ended as a draw, with strikes from DIvock Origi and  Jason Knight keeping the score 1-1. The extra 30 minutes gave the same result and the match went to penalties. 

With Forest 2-1 up on the penalties, Turner had to ensure he could save one shot, which he did during City’s 2nd shot. Sam Bell shot to his right, but Turner made a great dive and stopped it. The penalty shootout ended with the scoreline 5-3, with Turner’s save being the difference. 

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