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Andrew Thomas (footballer, born 1998)

Andrew Thomas
Personal information
Full name Andrew Delmos Thomas
Date of birth (1998-09-01) September 1, 1998 (age 26)
Place of birth Moscow, Russia
Height 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Team information
Current team
 Seattle Sounders FC
Number 26
Youth career
2008–2017 Watford
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2017–2020 Stanford Cardinal 55 (0)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2016–2017 Watford 0 (0)
2016 → Wealdstone (loan) 1 (0)
2019 San Francisco City 2 (0)
2021– Seattle Sounders FC 2 (0)
2021–2023 → Tacoma Defiance (loan) 34 (0)
2023 → New Mexico United (loan) 8 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of March 2, 2024

Andrew Delmos Thomas (born September 1, 1998) is a Russian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Major League Soccer club Seattle Sounders FC.

Early life

Thomas was born in Moscow, Russia, to an American father and a Russian mother, but his family moved to London at a young age; as such, he holds citizenship for Russia, the United States, and the United Kingdom.[1] Thomas attended the Merchant Taylors' School, Northwood.[2]

Alongside football, Thomas was a keen cricketer, who played for the Middlesex County Cricket Club youth team from 10 years old, as well as representing the England cricket team at under-17s level.[2]

Career

Youth

In 2008, Thomas joined the Watford academy aged 9 years old, going on to help their under-18's to the Professional Development League South Championship in 2016, keeping nine consecutive clean sheets.[2] On 21 October 2016, Thomas moved on a short-term emergency loan to Wealdstone, making a single appearance for the National League South club.[3] Thomas opted to leave the club following this season to move to the United States.

College and amateur

In 2017, Thomas moved to the United States to study and play college soccer at Stanford University. He redshirted his freshman season, but went on to make 55 appearances for the Cardinal over three seasons, helping the team become Pac-12 Champions in 2018 and 2020. During his time at Stanford, Thomas also earned accolades including three-time United Soccer Coaches All-Far West Region, three-time All-Pac-12 First Team, Pac-12 All-Academic First Team in 2018, United Soccer Coaches All-America Third Team in 2019, and the NCAA Elite 90 Award in 2019.[2]

During his 2019 season, Thomas also appeared for USL League Two side San Francisco City, making two appearances for the club.[4]

Professional

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic affecting the college soccer season, Thomas wasn't eligible for the 2021 MLS SuperDraft in January 2021. However, on 20 May 2021 it was announced that Thomas, Jacob Montes and Spencer Glass would all be made available to MLS clubs via the waiver process.[5] The following day, Seattle Sounders FC acquired the top spot in the waivers process from Chicago Fire in exchange for $50,000 in General Allocation Money, and subsequently selected Thomas.[6]

In June 2021, Thomas joined Seattle's USL Championship affiliate side Tacoma Defiance on loan, starting for the club during a 2–0 win over LA Galaxy II.[7] He had three shutouts in his first seven matches, but was unable to finish the season after the discovery of a fractured vertebra. Thomas played 12 matches with the Defiance during the 2022 season before he underwent surgery to address another back injury.[8] He made his full return on March 26, 2023, and played 15 matches for Tacoma in MLS Next Pro.[8][9]

Thomas was loaned to New Mexico United of the USL Championship on September 1, 2023, for the remainder of the USL season.[10] He played eight matches for New Mexico United as they qualified for the playoffs.[8] Thomas returned to the Sounders for the 2024 season and made his MLS debut in the first match of the regular season against Los Angeles FC. He made four saves in the 2–1 loss; he had been a replacement for Stefan Frei, who missed the match with an injury.[11] Thomas earned his first MLS shutout on March 2 at home against Austin FC in a scoreless draw.[12]

International

Thomas is eligible to represent England, Russia and the United States at the international level. In 2019, he was twice called up to United States under-23 training camp but never appeared for the team.[13][14]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played March 2, 2024[15]
Appearances and goals by club, season, and competition
Club Season League National cup Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Wealdstone (loan) 2015–16 Football Conference 1 0 — — — 1 0
Seattle Sounders FC 2021 MLS 0 0 — — 0 0 0 0
Tacoma Defiance (loan) 2021 USL Championship 7 0 — — 0 0 7 0
Seattle Sounders FC 2022 MLS 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 0 0
Tacoma Defiance (loan) 2022 MLS Next Pro 12 0 — — 0 0 12 0
Seattle Sounders FC 2023 MLS 0 0 0 0 — 0 0 0 0
Tacoma Defiance (loan) 2023 MLS Next Pro 15 0 — — 0 0 15 0
New Mexico United 2023 USL Championship 8 0 0 0 0 0 1[a] 0 9 0
Seattle Sounders FC 2024 MLS 2 0 — — 0 0 2 0
Career total 45 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 46 0
  1. ^ Includes appearance in USL Championship playoffs.

References

  1. ^ "Thomas Signs With Seattle". Stanford University Athletics. May 24, 2021. Retrieved September 8, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d "Andrew Thomas - Men's Soccer". Stanford University Athletics.
  3. ^ Barrett, Matt (October 21, 2016). "Stones bring in keeper from Watford". West London Sport. Retrieved March 10, 2024.
  4. ^ "San Francisco City FC | uslleaguetwo.com". www.uslleaguetwo.com.
  5. ^ "MLS to conduct Waivers for 3 players following conclusion of NCAA season". MLSsoccer.com. May 20, 2021. Retrieved March 10, 2024.
  6. ^ "Sounders FC selects Stanford goalkeeper Andrew Thomas off waivers following conclusion of NCAA season" (Press release). Seattle Sounders FC. May 21, 2021. Retrieved March 10, 2024.
  7. ^ "Serrano brace leads way for Tacoma in 2-0 home win over LA Galaxy II". Tacoma Defiance. June 28, 2021. Archived from the original on November 29, 2021. Retrieved March 10, 2024.
  8. ^ a b c Oshan, Jeremiah (February 28, 2024). "Andrew Thomas will get second start after 'surreal' debut". Sounder at Heart. Retrieved March 10, 2024.
  9. ^ Mondello, Joseph (March 28, 2023). "Andrew Thomas marks return from injury with stellar performance in Tacoma Defiance opener". SoundersFC.com. Retrieved March 10, 2024.
  10. ^ "Sounders FC Loans Goalkeeper Andrew Thomas to New Mexico United" (Press release). Seattle Sounders FC. September 1, 2023. Retrieved September 1, 2023.
  11. ^ Evans, Jayda (February 24, 2024). "Short-handed Sounders fall on road to LAFC in MLS season opener". The Seattle Times. Retrieved February 25, 2024.
  12. ^ Lazo, Jessica (March 6, 2024). "Andrew Thomas turns dreams into reality with first shutout at Lumen Field". SoundersFC.com. Retrieved March 10, 2024.
  13. ^ "Andrew Thomas' next pset: Stanford goalie discusses life on and off the field". The Stanford Daily. October 25, 2019.
  14. ^ "Thomas Called Again by U.S. Soccer". Stanford University Athletics.
  15. ^ Andrew Thomas at Soccerway. Retrieved March 10, 2024.
Quelle: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_Thomas_(footballer,_born_1998)