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Kasey Keller

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Kasey Keller
Personal information
Full name Kasey C. Keller
Height 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Team information
Current team
 Seattle Sounders FC
Number 18
Youth career
1988–1991 Portland Pilots
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1989 Portland Timbers
1992–1996 Millwall
1996–1999 Leicester City
1999–2001 Rayo Vallecano
2001–2005 Tottenham Hotspur
2004 → Southampton (loan)
2005–2007 Borussia Mönchengladbach
2007–2008 Fulham
2009– Seattle Sounders FC
International career‡
1990–2007  United States
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 19 March, 2009
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 19 March, 2009

Kasey Keller (born November 29, 1969 in Lacey, Washington) is an American soccer player who currently plays for Seattle Sounders FC in Major League Soccer.

He is a four time World Cup participant and was the first American goalkeeper to become a regular in the English Premier League.

Club career

Early career

Keller attended North Thurston High School and played college soccer at the University of Portland. As a freshman in 1988, he helped lead the team to the NCAA men's soccer final four. He earned first team All American as a senior and was the 1991 Adidas Goalkeeper of the Year. During the 1989 college off-season, he played for the Portland Timbers of the Western Soccer Alliance. His outstanding play led to his selection as league MVP that year. In 10 games, he allowed only four goals for a 0.38 goals-against-average and eight clean sheets.

In 1989, he split his time between the Portland Timbers and the U.S. U-20 national team which finished fourth at the 1989 FIFA U-20 World Cup. Keller once again excelled and was awarded the tournament's Silver Ball as the tournament's second best player.

Millwall

After being a member of the US National Team in the 1990 FIFA World Cup, he was signed by the English club Millwall, playing there and becoming a fan favorite between 1992 and 1996. Keller made his Millwall debut on May 2 1992 and played his last game on May 5 1996, making 202 overall appearances for The Lions. When the Millwall fans discovered that Keller wore contact lenses when keeping goal, he was nicknamed "Mister Magoo." Keller was voted Player of The Year 1992/93 by the Lions fans and also picked up the Junior Lions and Disabled Millwall Fans' awards. When Millwall was relegated to the Second Division, the team transferred Keller to Leicester City for £900,000 on August 15 1996.

Leicester City

In his first year with Leicester City, Keller played a vital part in the team's success in both a strong league position and winning the 1997 League Cup. Unfortunately, while the team reached the final again in 1999, a last minute goal lost them the match. That summer, he left the club for Spain on a free transfer.

Rayo Vallecano

Keller signed with the newly promoted Spanish club Rayo Vallecano for the 1999-2000 season and played there for two years.

Tottenham Hotspur

Keller went back to England and the Premier League in 2001, signing with Tottenham Hotspur. Relegated to backup duty for Neil Sullivan early on, he won the starting spot, and played every minute for Spurs in both the 2002–03 and the 2003–04 seasons.

In the 2004–05 Premiership season, Keller fell out of favor at Tottenham as Paul Robinson became the first choice keeper. In November 2004, Kasey was loaned out to Southampton, a Premiership club ravaged by injuries to its goalkeepers, for one month.

Borussia Mönchengladbach

On January 15 2005, Keller joined German Bundesliga side Borussia Mönchengladbach on a free transfer during the Bundesliga's winter break. He got off to a good start in the Bundesliga, keeping a clean sheet in his first appearance for Borussia. Keller played every minute in the second half of the season and kept a total of seven clean sheets in that period, playing an important role in saving the club from relegation.

Keller also lives in Haus Donk, a castle in Tönisvorst, near Mönchengladbach.[1][2] During the 2006–07 season he was one of the two Bundesliga players that are hobby-columnist for RUND, a German football magazine published once each month, reflecting his life in Germany and his Bundesliga career within those lines. He shared that role with VfB Stuttgart's shot-stopper Timo Hildebrand.

On August 10 2006 Keller was selected by his teammates to captain club side Borussia Mönchengladbach during the 2006–07 campaign. He is the second American (after Claudio Reyna) to captain a top level German club.

Fulham

In August 2007, Keller returned to the English Premier League, signing for Fulham.[3] The length of Keller's contract and financial details were not disclosed by the club. He was bought as a back-up to goalkeeper Antti Niemi, but some niggling injuries to Niemi saw him take over as principal goalkeeper at Fulham. However, the day before the Premier League match against Derby County in October, Keller injured his arm in training and was on the sidelines until late January. He returned as a substitute keeper in the 2–1 win over Aston Villa on 3 February. From then on he was only second choice until Fulham's match against Blackburn where he started the game, with Niemi on the bench. He also started the following game against Everton.

Seattle Sounders F.C.

On August 14th, 2008, returned to the United States to sign with 2009 expansion team Seattle Sounders FC.[4]. He was the starting goalkeeper for the Sounders' first-ever match, on March 19, 2009 where the team won 3 to 0 against New York.

International career

Keller got his first senior team cap against Colombia on February 4 1990 and was on the roster at Tony Meola's back up at the 1990 FIFA World Cup.

After being ignored by U.S. coach Bora Milutinovic for the 1994 FIFA World Cup, he made Steve Sampson's ill-fated squad in 1998, and played two games at the World Cup. Keller was an overage selection for the 1996 Olympics team, starting all three matches.

Kasey was named U.S. Soccer Athlete of the Year in 1997 and 1999, and again in 2005.

Perhaps his most famous clean sheet came in the historic 1998 win versus Brazil. Keller played all 90 minutes in goal and made ten saves, many from point blank range, in preserving the 1–0 shutout victory for the U.S. His performance in goal prompted Brazilian great Romario to remark “That is the best performance by a goalkeeper I have ever seen.”[5]; the performance was commemorated in the song "Kasey Keller" by synth-pop band Barcelona.

Keller was second choice to Brad Friedel in the 2002 FIFA World Cup. He has earned 100 caps for the U.S. and is the team's all-time leader in wins and keeping clean sheets (shutouts).

Keller crowned the U.S.'s run in the 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup tournament with a clean sheet in the final match against Panama and two saves in the penalty shootout to give the side the trophy. Keller started the first seven games of the final round of World Cup qualifying in 2005, recording five consecutive clean sheets and 507 consecutive goalless minutes to lead the U.S. to qualification for the 2006 FIFA World Cup Finals in Germany. He then became the first male player in U.S. history to win his third Athlete of the Year award. On May 2, 2006 Keller and teammate Claudio Reyna became the first two Americans named to four World Cup Rosters. In that World Cup, he played in all three games, being named Man of the Match in the 1–1 draw with Italy in Kaiserslautern on June 17 2006. Keller is the only U.S. player to participate in both the 1990 and 2006 World Cups.

Honours

Leicester City

Tottenham Hotspur

International

Individual

References

  1. ^ The Denver Post - Keeper of castle
  2. ^ The Official Site of U.S. Soccer - Kasey Keller Biography
  3. ^ "Fulham bring in goalkeeper Keller". BBC Sport. 2007-08-23. Retrieved 2007-08-23.
  4. ^ "Seattle signs former US goalkeeper Keller". Associated Press. 2008-08-14. Retrieved 2008-08-14.
  5. ^ Sams-Army.com


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