Matt Freese thwarts the Union again, this time with his biggest USMNT games of all on the horizon

As the Union inflicted another loss upon themselves Sunday night, Matt Freese mostly got to just stand there and watch.

The Wayne native wasn’t really challenged until the late stages of his side’s 2-1 win at Subaru Park. In his sixth game for New York City FC against the team he grew up with, Freese didn’t face an official shot on target until the 54^th minute, and the biggest save of his five didn’t come until the 80^th.

Sure, there was Indiana Vassilev’s penalty kick equalizer in the 89^th, followed by 10 minutes of stoppage time. But once Olwethu Makhanya was sent off for a second yellow card three minutes later, the field tilted back the other way, leading to Tayvon Gray’s eventual winner.

It might be a while before Freese has another day that easy, whether a Sunday or any other. In fact, many will soon be quite the opposite.

Three weeks from now, the 27-year-old goalkeeper will head to the U.S. men’s soccer team’s last training camp and games before the World Cup roster is set. Freese will arrive in Atlanta as the expected starter, a position he has done enough to keep while others have done too little to challenge him.

» READ MORE: Union’s bid to avenge playoff loss to New York City FC thwarted after 2-1 loss in extra time

Along with the internal competition, Freese will be challenged by world powers Belgium and Portugal on the 28^th and 31^st. Both games will draw big crowds to Mercedes-Benz Stadium, with a sellout expected for the latter since it could be Cristiano Ronaldo’s first game on U.S. soil in 12 years.

Of all the positional battles to come in that camp, goalkeeper won’t be the most-watched. Centerback, central midfielder, attacking midfielder, and striker will all rank higher – which is every position except outside back.

But there will still be plenty of scrutiny on the net. Critics will pounce if Freese slips up, whether or not Matt Turner, Patrick Schulte, or any other candidate steps up to challenge him. Goalkeeper has been the U.S. team’s most solid position for decades, and it remains quietly awkward that right now it isn’t.

Freese isn’t thinking about that yet. He has enough on his plate with a New York team that hopes to silence its own critics, who see a starless roster.

“I’m just thinking about taking everything day by day, game by game,” he told The Inquirer. “I’m going to play some soccer today, and I’m going to play some soccer tomorrow, and [am] just going to continue on like that. So I’m really just focused on being present and improving every day, and making sure I’m ready for anything.”

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The time is coming soon, though, and he knows it.

“It’s a big stage, but I love big stages, I love big moments,” Freese said, “And the thing with big moments is, great preparation leads to great opportunities, and so that’s what I’m focused on: the preparation part.”

As it happens, Freese’s pre-World Cup schedule with New York is stacked with storylines. He’ll face the league’s three biggest stars, starting with Lionel Messi’s Miami on March 22 — the day before he goes to U.S. camp. Not many people these days get to face Messi and Ronaldo in a span of 10 days, and even fewer get to say they’ll host one of them at Yankee Stadium.

Later in the spring, Freese will visit Thomas Müller’s Vancouver, and host Son Heung-Min’s Los Angeles FC in Queens, the heart of New York’s big Korean population. He’ll also line up across from Schulte’s Columbus Crew, though he won’t face Turner’s New England Revolution until later in the year.

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And for good measure, he’ll cross paths with Downingtown native Zack Steffen for just the second time. Steffen is out of the World Cup race at this point, but at least the duo might have some stories to swap.

“Really, again, just focused on taking everything game by game,” Freese said. “In order to be the best, you’ve got to beat the best, and obviously this league at this point has, really, some of the best players in the world. It’ll be some big moments in the next two months of the games you’re talking about, but really just more focused on preparing for Orlando now [New York’s next opponent] after relaxing tonight.”

His use of “relaxing” was timely, given how much he could relax during the game. No one knows better how much of a rivalry the Union and New York City now have, except for maybe his old teammate Andre Blake.

“I think it’s just a matchup that brings the best out of each other,” Freese said. “I think it’s interestingly conflicting soccer philosophies, and I think that creates a really interesting game where we have to find different parts of us, and they have to find different parts of themselves. I think it really results in the two teams growing interestingly.”

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This time, once again, the Union did not find different parts of themselves. After winning six of seven games against the Pigeons from 2022-24, New York has now won three of the last four, with Freese in net for all of them. And this time, he didn’t have to work too hard for it.

“It’s just part of the position, and that’s why I do so much work on staying in the present,” he said. “And just feeling the moment, and staying mentally engaged, staying vocally engaged, and physically engaged, following the game, and being ready for anything.”

He’ll have to be ready for a lot from now until the summer, and perhaps beyond.