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Cody Cropper signs with MK Dons

Cody Cropper USMNT U23s 97

 

By RYAN TOLMICH

Cody Cropper has found himself a new home.

MK Dons announced Tuesday that the club has signed Cropper, the 22-year-old goalkeeper who recently appeared for the U.S. Under-23 Men’s National Team at the Toulon Tournament. Cropper’s signing was a part of a triple swoop that also saw MK Dons add Wales striker Simon Church and English winger Dale Jennings.

“I’m excited to have them on board,”said head coach Karl Robinson. “They will all bring different attributes to the group. Cody has got tremendous potential and he fits the type of the person we want around the place. He’s a good size, got a great work ethic and wants to learn.”

“It’s a great opportunity for myself and I’m very pleased to be here,” Cropper added. “I want to push on and develop as a goalkeeper.”

Prior to joining MK Dons, which features in the Championship, Cropper was a member of Southampton for three seasons, although he primarily featured for the club’s youth team.

At MK Dons, Cropper will now likely compete with the incumbent  David Martin, who has made 194 starts since joining the club in 2010.

Internationally, Cropper recently started three games at the Toulon Tournament with the U.S. U-23s, helping the team claim third place in the prestigious tournament.

The goalkeeper has previously made appearances on the Under-17 and Under-20 levels in recent years, while also earning call-ups to the full U.S. Men’s National Team for friendlies against Denmark and Switzerland earlier this year.

What do you think of Cropper’s move to MK Dons? Think it will be a good fit? See him earning playing time?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. Klinsmann has done nothing in this cycle other than exactly what he said he was going to do, which was hand out opportunities to impress to everyone he could find, including Cropper. He also has defined well the way to earn opportunities with him, namely regular PT in the best league you can hack it in. That’s deliberately a little ambiguous, but seemingly Klinsmann has navigated it pretty fairly and well, if you judge by the team’s performances, and MLS based players are well represented.
    Cropper got himself a chance to compete for a starting position in the Championship, but to imply MLS would have been a wrong choice for him is not supported by the evidence.

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  2. Great move. Goalies are a position where you can still make strides in terms of progression even if you’re not playing first team. He can play in reserves week in week out as well as train with the first team and get better. I favor this move so much more than coming to the MLS where he would most likely play fine, but will be lost forever in the eyes of the national team.

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    • Really?!?! Are Rimando and Hamid “lost forever”? Were Howard and Guzan “lost forever” when they were still in MLS when they were a few years older than Cropper is now?

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      • Rimando is 67 years old i think and has no long term future. Hamid has no long term future with the national team either. Howard and Guzan STARTED their career in MLS and moved onto a better league and better team(s).

        Thank you so much for making this the easiest argument to win. If only fighting in wars was this easy.

      • Howard and Guzan were both capped before they moved abroad. Bob Bradley was familiar with both before their moves.

        Cropper is already on JK’s radar. In spite of the popular misconception JK has shown no prejudice against MLS keepers ( see Hamid , Bill, Johnson, Sean, Rimando, Nick).

        Obviously, Cropper wants to stay on the other side of the pond but there is no reason to suspect that if Cropper moved to MLS and did well that his USMNT career would suffer.

        CC’s biggest concerns about the USMNT are named Hamid and Yarborough.

      • Cropper will never see the national team if he goes to the MLS. ryan is stupid but he should not return here when he has options overseas. plain and simple.

    • I favor this move so much more than coming to the MLS where he would most likely play fine, but will be lost forever in the eyes of the national team.

      …what on Earth are you talking about? Complete nonsense.

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      • What I was meaning to say was : I favor this move so much more than coming to the MLS where he would most likely play fine, but will be lost forever in the eyes of the national team.

        That should clear things up

      • In case you missed my response:…what on Earth are you talking about? Complete nonsense.

        That should clear things up, too.

  3. He will be here as understudy, and will need to improve and prove himself. Martin is a very good goalkeeper and will be tough to dislodge. This is a good scenario for all concerned.

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      • Very likely, plus he may be rotated into the team occasionally. Martin is very good, particularly as a shot stopper, but having a close rival will be good all-round.

        Looking at some of these comments, some people seem to unaware that the English Championship is the fourth biggest league in the world – ahead of the MSL. Playing second fiddle at MK Dons is better for Cropper than Premiership youth teams. He will get excellent coaching and have more opportunity to play against strong opposition.

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