UPDATE
July 2, 2016
When news broke in March that Tim Howard had signed with the Colorado Rapids, our own Nicholas Rosano put together a list of the top 10 moments from the US legend’s career.
With Howard set to make his Colorado debut on Monday against Portland (9 pm ET; Watch free on MLS LIVE), we decided to run his piece again. Check it out below:
Original Text
Tim Howard’s move to the Colorado Rapids has made waves in the American soccer community, and understandably so – over the last 18 years, he has established himself as a US national team legend and a trailblazer for US players abroad.
In light of that, here are the top 10 moments of Tim Howard’s career:
10. THE LATE SHOW: One of the USMNT’s most memorable victories over Mexico came in the 2007 Gold Cup final, courtesy of a stunning strike from Benny Feilhaber. But equally important were Howard’s late heroics on the other end – a stunning two-handed save in the 89th minute to keep the US ahead.
“I’m still in shock you know,” Howard said after the match. “It’s just one of those things where you practice all the time, and sometimes it comes off for you. I saw the ball break through and I tried my best and today it was good enough. It's one I'll remember forever. Sometimes the team needs you to come up with a big save, and you know you can make a difference. I was elated."
9. ALL-STAR ACCOLADES: Tim Howard returned to play for his club on US shores when Everton visited for the 2009 MLS All-Star Game. The occasion was a celebration of sorts for one of the league’s most successful exports and Howard marked it in a big way, saving three penalties in Everton’s shootout win and taking home MVP honors.
8. WORLD BEATER: Howard’s performance in 2014 against Belgium is the stuff of legend, but his magnum opus might have been the 2010 World Cup. He stood on his head as the US earned a 1-1 draw in their opener against England, then put in a solid showing in the group stage finale against Algeria before capping it off with the outlet pass that led to Landon Donovan’s iconic game-winner.
7. JERSEY BOY: Howard’s final game for his hometown team – the New York/New Jersey MetroStars (now the Red Bulls) – also stood as one of his best in MLS. He made an MLS career-high 11 saves over 100 minutes in a 3-3 draw at New England before leaving for Manchester United in the middle of the 2003 MLS season. The performance hearkened back to his very first MLS game, when he made five saves in a 4-1 win over Colorado on Aug. 18, 1998.
6. FIRST IMPRESSIONS: Howard made a great first impression upon his arrival at Manchester United, getting the start in the Red Devils’ season-opening Community Shield match against Arsenal and saved the decisive penalty in a 4-3 shootout victory. That Arsenal team would go on to become just the second team in English history to go unbeaten in an entire league campaign.
5. GOAL-GETTER: Tim Howard has obviously saved plenty of goals, but on one windy night in Liverpool he got himself on a different part of the stats sheet: the goalscorers column. His long punt up the field got some air under it and took a heavy bounce up and over the Bolton ‘keeper and into the net. Howard refused to celebrate, though, cognizant of the fact that it was not a pretty moment for his fellow goalkeeper.
4. NOBODY EXPECTED IT: There are many great Tim Howard moments to choose from in his body of work with the US, but perhaps the most surprising was in the 2009 Confederations Cup semifinal against Spain. The Furia Roja carried a world-record 35-match unbeaten streak with them into the game, but Howard had the answer for every effort from Spain’s soon-to-be world champion attack, making eight saves in an unforgettable 2-0 win.
3. SCORE TO SETTLE: Manchester United would eventually move on from Howard in 2006 after a drop in form, and it was with Everton that he found consistency. He had the chance to face his former team on a huge occasion in 2009, when the two met at Wembley in a semifinal match of the 2009 FA Cup. Howard kept a clean sheet in the game, then stopped two penalties in the subsequent shootout to send Everton through to the final and get a measure of revenge against his former employers.
2. WALK OUT A WINNER: Howard had an up-and-down first season in Manchester, losing his spot in the starting lineup after a critical error in the Champions League against Porto, only to regain his spot in time to start the 2004 FA Cup final. He would go on to record a clean sheet in a 3-0 win over Millwall and become the first American player in the modern era to collect an FA Cup winners’ medal.
1. SIGNATURE MOMENT: The lasting memory of Howard on the international stage will unquestionably be his out-of-this-world performance for the United States in their Round of 16 matchup with Belgium in the 2014 World Cup. The US No. 1 recorded a World Cup-record 16 saves in a performance that broke the Internet – even if the US fell short in a 2-1 overtime loss.
