WASHINGTON — Brad Guzan has heard Bill Hamid's assessment of the two goalkeepers' relative talent levels, and he's not amused.
Speaking following Atlanta United’s 2-0 loss to D.C. United on Sunday evening, Guzan made clear his distaste for Hamid's public comments, made on MLS media day in January, that he believed he was the better goalkeeper.
“When you hear things like that, being a goalkeeper in this league or across the world, there’s something about being a part of the goalkeepers union,” Guzan said. “Having respect for your colleagues. Having respect for the position. Carrying yourself in a professional way. Some of us maybe lack in some of those areas.”
Guzan has been a regular for roughly a decade in the US men's national team setup, one Hamid has had difficulty penetrating with any regularity.
Hamid’s media day appearance came while he was left out of US coach Gregg Berhalter’s first January camp, in favor of Alex Bono, Sean Johnson, Tyler Miller and Zack Steffen. Hamid told reporters at the event he believed he was better than all the goalkeepers Berhalter had brought in, and then in a sit-down with MLSsoccer.com also mentioned Guzan specifically during questions about D.C.'s Week 1 opener against Atlanta.
Guzan acknowledged Sunday that Hamid certainly should be on the US shortlist, which is partly why the comments bothered him.
“It’s disappointing when you see fellow colleagues that are ultimately possibly going to be on the same team at some point,” Guzan said. “For me, you’re part of the goalkeepers’ union and have respect for your colleagues. You have an understanding of what the position is about. I’ll leave it at that.”
Sunday was not Guzan’s best performance. While he did make four saves, he was somewhat badly fooled on D.C.’s second goal. On a soggy surface, Luciano Acosta’s ferocious knuckling strike tailed off to the right, and Guzan was rooted to the ground as he tried to change direction.
“It moved away from me,” Guzan said. “And at that point I was almost handcuffed and couldn’t react. So I’ll take that one. Those things happen unfortunately. I won’t let it define me. It’s a long season. Hopefully I’ve got more saves than mistakes in the back.”
