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All-Star goalkeeper Sean Johnson has officially left the Blues for the Reds and Toronto FC is tickled pink.
After weeks of speculation, TFC announced on Friday the signing of U.S. international Johnson. The Lilburn, Ga. native has been added to the roster using Targeted Allocation Money (TAM) through 2024. Johnson joins the Reds after spending the past six seasons with New York City FC (NYCFC).
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“Sean is among the top goalkeepers in MLS, and we are thrilled he has chosen Toronto FC as his new club,” said TFC President Bill Manning. “Sean is a true leader on and off the field, and his experience, winning mentality and shot blocking ability will help us solidify our defence.”
On his Twitter account on Friday morning, Johnson wrote: ‘New journey begins! Excited to join @TorontoFC See you soon Toronto #TFCLive.’ He also released a short video, saying: “What’s up TFC fans?. Sean Johnson here. Just wanted to let you guys know how excited I am to join the club and get going and achieve something special. See you guys soon.”
TFC has now signed two of the biggest MLS free agents in the off season — first centre back Matt Hedges and now Johnson, who recently completed his 13th MLS season in 2022 for New York City FC (known as The Blues), appearing in all 34 regular season matches, keeping a career high 14 clean sheets for NYCFC and earning his first MLS All-Star selection. Johnson originally joined NYCFC in Nov. 2016 and immediately secured the starting role by the start of the 2017 MLS regular season. In his first year with the club, he notched eight clean sheets and 100 saves in 34 MLS appearances as the starting goalkeeper. In 2018, Johnson continued experiencing success with NYCFC as he recorded double-digit clean sheets (10) for the first time in his career and broke club records by going 396 consecutive minutes without conceding a goal, including four shutouts, in July 2018.
The same year, Johnson led NYCFC back to the MLS Cup Playoffs in his second year as the starting goalkeeper. His saves and performances in the following years earned him a reputation as one of MLS’s best goalkeepers.
In 2021, Johnson was named club captain, and in the same year, he helped his team reach the MLS Cup Playoffs for the fifth consecutive season. In the 2021 MLS Cup against Portland Timbers, Johnson played an important role saving two penalties in the shootout, which helped the club claim its first MLS Cup and earned him MLS Cup MVP honours.
In all, he recorded 59 clean sheets in 206 appearances across all competitions (MLS regular season, MLS Cup Playoffs, MLS is Back, U.S. Open Cup, Concacaf Champions League and Leagues Cup). Johnson leaves NYCFC as the club’s all-time leader in appearances. According to MLS stats site OptaJack, Johnson’s 23 clean sheets over the last two MLS seasons is the second most in the league, while TFC has managed just five in total during that time — the fewest in the league.
“Sean has established himself as one of the best goalkeepers in MLS, given his club and international career,” said TFC head coach and sporting director Bob Bradley. “Sean continues to demonstrate his elite shot-stopping ability, athleticism, and decision-making in important moments and the biggest games.”
Prior to his time with NYCFC, Johnson spent six seasons with Chicago Fire, where he made 194 appearances across all competitions. At the international level, Johnson has played 10 times for the U.S. National Team, recording five clean sheets and four wins. He was a member of the U.S. Team at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
After a disappointing 2022 MLS season, which saw the Reds miss the MLS Cup playoffs for the second year in a row, TFC elected not to bring back veteran keepers Alex Bono and Quentin Westberg. In November, the Reds claimed 22-year-old keeper Tomas Romero in the 2022 MLS Re-Entry Draft, re-uniting the El Salvador international with his coach at LAFC, Bradley. The combination of Johnson and Romero should bode well in goal for TFC — a club that has bled goals the past two seasons, though the problem certainly wasn’t just in goal. Toronto’s backline has also been sub-par. Hedges, the 2016 MLS Defender of the Year, and left-back Raoul Petretta, were acquired by TFC to help solidify then the backline. Other signings during the off-season include veteran midfielder Victor Vazquez, Norwegian forward Adama Diomande and the re-signing of midfielder Jonathan Osorio.
The TFC front office is certainly not done bringing in new players. More help is needed at centre back, midfield and, if the trio of Diomande, Jesus Jimenez and Ayo Akinola can’t get the job done, then also at the forward position. The Reds also can sign another Designated Player (every MLS team is allowed three DP’s) though Bradley has said it probably won’t be a expense, high-profile signing like the Italians Lorenzo Insigne and Federico Bernardeschi.
The Reds left to return to Toronto late Friday for a few days before returning to training camp in San Diego for the second phase of camp next week before the exhibition schedule begins. TFC will play four games at the Coachella Valley Invitational in Indio, Calif. The first match will be against the Vancouver Whitecaps on Feb.8. The MLS regular season begins for MLS on Feb.25 when the Reds travel to DC United. Toronto’s home opener will be March 11 against Columbus. TFC faced the San Jose Earthquakes in a ‘closed-door friendly’ on Friday before flying to Toronto and came away with a 1-0 loss.
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