Atlanta United goalkeeper Bobby Shuttleworth retires

Bobby Shuttleworth announced today that he is retiring with immediate effect. He has decided to pursue a coaching opportunity that will be revealed specifically at a later date.

Shuttleworth had a more-than-respectable career as a player, despite how things played out for him in 2022. Coming into this season among active MLS goalkeeper, Shuttleworth ranked fourth in regular season games played (225) and regular season minutes played (19,996), just above Brad Guzan who ranks fifth in both categories with 212 games and 18,943 minutes. Shuttleworth also ranked seventh among active MLS goalkeepers with 49 career clean sheets and ranks fourth in saves with 691 since 2010.

Shuttleworth began his MLS career with the Revolution in 2009 and tallied 127 appearances and 34 clean sheets across eight seasons. Additionally, he started six playoff matches and helped lead the Revolution to the 2014 MLS Cup final and the 2016 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup final. In 2014, he set a career-high and finished second in MLS in wins (16). Shuttleworth is one of only two goalkeepers, along with Matt Reis, to play in more than 100 matches and see more than 10,000 minutes for New England.

Shuttleworth then joined Minnesota United FC ahead of its expansion season in 2017. In his first year with Minnesota, he made a career-high 33 regular season appearances, while also notching five clean sheets and a career-high 116 saves. Overall, the Tonawanda, New York, native made 58 appearances in three seasons with Minnesota before joining Sacramento Republic FC in the USL Championship on loan in August 2019. He made 15 appearances (all starts) for Sacramento in 2019. Shuttleworth signed with Chicago Fire FC in 2020 and made 40 appearances (all starts) over the past two seasons and tallied eight clean sheets.

For Atlanta, it’s a relatively insignificant roster move considering Rocco Rios Novo had supplanted him on the depth chart as well as this summer’s addition of Raul Gudiño.