Ethan Horvath to Red Bull New York; Good Signing?
On January 29th, the Red Bulls announced the signing of Ethan Horvath from Cardiff City, a team based in Cardiff, Wales, that plays in League One, the third tier of English football.
Horvath would not occupy an international slot as he is from Colorado.
Who is Evan Horvath? He is a goalkeeper who has played with the Stars and Stripes and is being considered as a replacement for Carlos Coronel, who is now playing for Sao Paolo in his native Brazil.
Horvath is also 30 years old and has been in Europe for the last thirteen years.
Red Bulls Motives
For the Red Bulls, the motive is pretty clear. Currently, AJ Marcucci is nursing an injury that ended his season just as he replaced Coronel. The other goalkeeper on the roster with MLS experience is John McCarthy, who is also in his thirties, but he projects more as a career backup than as a starter. The last two goalkeepers on the roster are Aiden Stokes and Tobias Szwczyk, who are 18 and 17 years old, respectively. They are both players who need more development, as they are far too young to play in the MLS and might get opportunities for loan spells in the USL Championship.
The highest level for Stokes is MLS Next Pro, a third-division league, and the jump into the first division would be far too great. Meanwhile, Szwczyk has appeared in only one game with the Baby Bulls so far and definitely needs more minutes to get his feet wet.
In a goalkeeping room with this much experience, they need someone of Horvath’s caliber, as they lack it. Moreover, if Horvath plays well, he could net the team more money if FIFA calls him up for the World Cup.
Horvath Motives
In Horvath’s case, the motive for getting a deal with the Red Bulls is pretty straightforward. The first is to get more playing time, as he has played in only 14 of a potential 29 games. Cardiff, as of writing this article, is in a promotion race to get back into the Championship. One of the fifteen games he did not appear in was due to a red card, while the rest were either because he was on the bench or he was not even called up to that game. The second is a bit more obvious, given that it is a World Cup year, especially since it is here in the United States, Mexico, and Canada.
Being of his age, this might be the last time he could get called up to the National Team, as there is a giant crop of players in the wings. Moreover, this could serve as a way to get Ponchetino’s attention, as he would be in the country, and it would be easier to be noticed as a second, third, or even starting keeper.
I have seen this kind of move in my native Costa Rica: when players feel they cannot perform in foreign leagues, they return to a team in the first division (usually Deportivo Saprissa, Liga Deportiva Alajuelense, Club Sport Herediano, or Club Sport Cartagines) as a springboard.
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