Matt Turner proved one of the more unsuccessful Nottingham Forest signings from the summer of 2023.
Steve Cooper had failed to sign Dean Henderson on a permanent deal and with days to go until the start of 2023/24, Forest still didn’t have a senior goalkeeper.
Keylor Navas had departed the club after a successful loan and Forest turned to Turner who was the number two at Arsenal.
The USMNT star was a late bloomer in terms of being a professional footballer and he was handed the chance to be a number one in England with Forest.
Turner started in pretty solid fashion but the errors soon crippled his and Forest’s progress.
With Odysseas Vlachodimos failing to grasp his chance when handed the number one spot, Forest had a decision to make in January.
Nuno Espirito Santo opted to sign Matz Sels and the Belgian remains the number one after helping Forest stay in the Premier League.
After Carlos Miguel was signed in the summer, Turner joined Crystal Palace on loan and once again he’s a number two goalkeeper.
Matt Turner did something for USMNT that he never did for Nottingham Forest
Turner kept his place in the USMNT for the CONCACAF Nations League game against Jamaica as a big 1-0 victory was claimed.
The goalkeeper has seen off plenty of rivals for the gloves on the international stage and heading off to play for his country gives him a chance to get minutes.
Friday’s game could have gone very differently, however, with Turner enjoying a major low and followed it up with a euphoric high.
Turner gave away a penalty but responded by saving it to ensure that the USA claimed a big victory over Jamaica.
A penalty save was something that Turner never managed at Forest – certainly not during an actual game anyway.
He did save one during a penalty shootout win over Bristol City in the FA Cup but that was as good as it got for Turner with penalties at Forest.
What the national media said about Matt Turner’s performance
It was a pretty steady showing for Turner as the USMNT claimed a good victory against Jamaica.
NBC Sports gave Turner a 7/10 and wrote: ‘Gave up a poor penalty, then saved the penalty. Six of one? Also made a good recovery to deny Olimpico.’
Goal went a step further and gave him a score of 8/10, saying: ‘Gave away a penalty, then swatted it away. That penalty-kick save was a huge moment for a player who certainly could use one given his lack of minutes on the club level. His second-half save on an Olimpico attempt was very good, too.’
Forest did well to get Turner out of the club during the summer and he looks to have played his final City Ground game.
Although the player plugged a gap for a little while last season, it was always obvious that the club would look for a better option in the long run. #
Turner is a good person to have around a club and inside a dressing room.
However, when it comes to keeping goal, a club looking to push on like Forest are definitely need a better custodian.
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