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Gabriel Slonina

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Gabriel Slonina
Personal information
Full name Gabriel Pawel Slonina[1]
Date of birth (2004-05-15) May 15, 2004 (age 20)[1]
Place of birth Addison, Illinois, United States
Height 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)[1]
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Team information
Current team
 Barnsley
(on loan from Chelsea)
Number 1
Youth career
2013–2020 Chicago Fire
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2021–2022 Chicago Fire 34 (0)
2022– Chelsea 0 (0)
2022 → Chicago Fire (loan) 9 (0)
2023–2024 → Eupen (loan) 33 (0)
2024– → Barnsley (loan) 11 (0)
International career‡
2019 United States U15 3 (0)
2019–2020 United States U16 2 (0)
2019–2020 United States U17 2 (0)
2021–2023 United States U20 10 (0)
2023– United States 1 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of December 1, 2024
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 22:10, October 21, 2024 (UTC)

Gabriel Pawel "Gaga" Slonina (Polish: Słonina; born May 15, 2004) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a goalkeeper for EFL League One club Barnsley, on loan from Premier League club Chelsea, and the United States national team.[2][3][4]

In 2023, Slonina was the only goalkeeper included on Goal's NXGN list of the 50 best young players.[2]

Club career

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Chicago Fire

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Born in Addison, Illinois, Slonina joined the youth academy of Major League Soccer club Chicago Fire in 2013.[5] On March 8, 2019, Slonina signed a professional homegrown player contract with the club. At the age of 14, Slonina became the second youngest signing in Major League Soccer history and the youngest signing ever for the Chicago Fire.[5]

On August 4, 2021, Slonina made his professional debut for the Chicago Fire against New York City FC, becoming the youngest starting goalkeeper in league history at 17 years, 81 days.[6] Slonina made four saves for the Fire as the match ended in a 0–0 draw which made him the youngest goalkeeper to record a clean sheet in Major League Soccer history.[7][8]

Chelsea

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On August 2, 2022, Slonina signed for Premier League club Chelsea for a transfer fee of $10 million, potentially rising to $11 million with add-ons.[9] However, as part of the transfer, he remained with the Chicago Fire on loan to complete the remainder of the MLS season, before joining Chelsea on January 1, 2023.[9][10] Slonina made his debut in a Chelsea shirt for the under-21 team in a Professional Development League match versus Wolverhampton Wanderers Development Squad on January 13, 2023.[11]

Loan to Eupen

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On August 10, 2023, Slonina agreed to join Belgian side K.A.S. Eupen on a season-long loan.[12] On October 28, Slonina recorded his first clean sheet for Eupen in a 2–0 win over Sporting Charleroi.[13]

Loan to Barnsley

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On August 9, 2024, Slonina joined League One club Barnsley on a season-long loan deal.[14]

International career

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Born in the United States, he is of Polish descent and was eligible to represent the United States or Poland internationally.[15][16][17]

Slonina has represented the United States at the under-15, under-16, under-17, and under-20 levels.[18][19] Slonina was called into camp for the United States senior team in December 2021 but did not feature in a match.[20] On January 21, 2022, Slonina was called into a World Cup Qualifying camp with the United States senior team but again did not feature in a match.[21] On May 17, he was called up to the Polish senior team by coach Czesław Michniewicz for their upcoming Nations League fixtures against Wales, Belgium and the Netherlands.[22] Three days later, Slonina rejected the call-up and declared his wish to represent United States on international level.[23] On January 25, 2023, Slonina became the youngest-ever goalkeeper to play for the United States senior team, making several saves in a 2–1 loss to Serbia.[24]

Slonina was the starting goalkeeper for the United States at the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup and posted four consecutive clean sheets as the Americans advanced to the quarterfinals. The only two goals Slonina allowed in the tournament, including one deflected past him by a teammate, came in a 2–0 quarterfinal loss to eventual champions Uruguay.[25]

Career statistics

[edit]

Club

[edit]
As of match played December 1, 2024[26]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] League cup[b] Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Chicago Fire 2021 MLS 11 0 — — — — 11 0
2022 MLS 23 0 — — — — 23 0
Total 34 0 — — — — 34 0
Chelsea 2022–23 Premier League — — — — — —
2023–24 Premier League — — — — — —
2024–25 Premier League — — — — — —
Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Chicago Fire (loan) 2022 Major League Soccer 9 0 — — — — 9 0
Eupen (loan) 2023–24 Belgian Pro League 33 0 1 0 — — — 34 0
Barnsley (loan) 2024–25 League One 11 0 0 0 3 0 — — 14 0
Career total 87 0 1 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 91 0
  1. ^ Includes Belgian Cup
  2. ^ Includes EFL Cup

International

[edit]
As of match played January 25, 2023[27]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
United States 2023 1 0
Total 1 0

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Squad List – FIFA U-20 World Cup Argentina 2023: USA" (PDF). FIFA. May 18, 2023. p. 23. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 19, 2023. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
  2. ^ a b "NXGN 2023: The 50 best wonderkids in football | Goal.com". www.goal.com. Retrieved March 22, 2023.
  3. ^ "FIFA 23 best young goalkeepers: The top 30 GKs on Career Mode | Goal.com". www.goal.com. Retrieved March 22, 2023.
  4. ^ Ruthven, Graham (June 13, 2022). "Gaga Slonina: why the US teenager is prized by some of Europe's top clubs". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved March 22, 2023.
  5. ^ a b Mikula, Jeremy (March 8, 2019). "Fire sign 14-year-old goalie Gabriel Slonina of Addison – the youngest pro contract in MLS since Freddy Adu". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  6. ^ Sandalow, Brian (August 4, 2021). "As Fire negotiate Frankowski transfer, 17-year-old Slonina debuts in tie with NYCFC". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  7. ^ "17-year-old Slonina has 4 saves, Fire ties NYCFC 0-0". Hastings Tribune. August 4, 2021. Archived from the original on August 5, 2021. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  8. ^ "Gabriel Slonina Reflects on Becoming the Youngest Goalkeeper in MLS History to Start a Match". Chicago Fire FC. August 5, 2021. Retrieved August 5, 2021.
  9. ^ a b "Chelsea sign young goalkeeper Slonina". Chelsea F.C. Retrieved August 2, 2022.
  10. ^ "Chelsea sign Slonina from Chicago Fire". ESPN. August 2, 2022. Retrieved August 2, 2022.
  11. ^ "Chelsea U21 vs. Wolverhampton Wanderers U21 Match Report – Friday January 13, 2023". FBref.com. Retrieved January 14, 2023.
  12. ^ "Slonina seals loan switch". www.chelseafc.com. Retrieved August 10, 2023.
  13. ^ Henry Jr., Larry (October 29, 2023). "Gabriel Slonina registers first clean sheet to snap Eupen's winless run". SBI Soccer. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  14. ^ "Gabriel Slonina: Barnsley sign Chelsea goalkeeper on loan". BBC Sport. August 9, 2024. Retrieved August 9, 2024.
  15. ^ "Chicago Fire Soccer Club Signs Academy Product Gabriel Slonina". Chicago Fire FC. August 5, 2021. Retrieved March 8, 2019.
  16. ^ "Q&A | Nicholas Slonina talks homegrown contract, sibling rivalry, and Polish heritage". Chicago Fire FC. August 5, 2021. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
  17. ^ mlssoccer. "USMNT or Poland? Chicago Fire GK Gaga Slonina attracting international attention | MLSSoccer.com". mlssoccer. Retrieved May 13, 2022.
  18. ^ West, Phil (August 5, 2021). "Remember the name: Fire's Gabriel Slonina becomes youngest starting goalkeeper in MLS history". Major League Soccer. Retrieved August 28, 2021.
  19. ^ "Spain U17 2–1 United States U17". Soccerway.
  20. ^ "USMNT Newbies: Meet the First-Time Players at December Camp". ussoccer.com. Retrieved January 21, 2022.
  21. ^ "Berhalter Calls 28 Players to Columbus for January World Cup Qualifying Training Camp". ussoccer.com. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  22. ^ "Kim jest Gabriel Slonina? Rewelacyjny 18-latek dostał powołanie do reprezentacji Polski". sport.pl (in Polish). May 17, 2022. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
  23. ^ "Gabriel Slonina announces decision to represent U.S. Men's National Team on international level". Chicago Fire FC. May 20, 2022.
  24. ^ "USMNT falls to Serbia in 2023 opener". NBC Sports. January 26, 2023. Retrieved April 23, 2023.
  25. ^ "No semi for Slonina as unlucky USA exit Under-20 World Cup". chelseafc.com. Retrieved June 9, 2023.
  26. ^ Gabriel Slonina at Soccerway
  27. ^ Gabriel Slonina at National-Football-Teams.com
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