Aaron Long (soccer)

Aaron Ray Long (born October 12, 1992) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a center-back for the New York Red Bulls of Major League Soccer and the United States national team.

Aaron Long
Long with the United States in 2019
Personal information
Full name Aaron Ray Long[1]
Date of birth (1992-10-12) October 12, 1992
Place of birth Oak Hills, California, United States
Height 6 ft 2 in (188 cm)[2]
Position(s) Centre Back
Club information
Current team
 New York Red Bulls
Number 33
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2010–2013 UC Riverside Highlanders 71 (13)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2012–2013 FC Tucson 17 (3)
2014 Portland Timbers 0 (0)
2014 → Sacramento Republic (loan) 2 (0)
2014 → Orange County Blues (loan) 3 (0)
2014 Seattle Sounders FC 0 (0)
2015 Seattle Sounders FC 2 27 (1)
2016 New York Red Bulls II 22 (2)
2016 → New York Red Bulls (loan) 0 (0)
2017– New York Red Bulls 105 (8)
National team‡
2018– United States 19 (3)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of November 12, 2020
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of January 31, 2021

Early career

Long graduated from Serrano High School where he lettered in both football and soccer.[3] Long played four years of college soccer at UC Riverside between 2010 and 2013, recording 13 goals and 5 assists during those years.[4] While at college, Long also appeared for USL PDL club FC Tucson during their 2012 and 2013 seasons.

Professional career

Portland Timbers

Long was drafted by Portland Timbers in the second round (36th overall) of the 2014 MLS SuperDraft.[5] After signing with Portland, Long was loaned to their USL Pro affiliate Sacramento Republic, where he made his debut on March 29, 2014 in a 1–1 draw against LA Galaxy II.[6] He also played for Orange County Blues during the 2014 season on a short-term loan. Long was released by Portland on July 2, 2014.[7]

Seattle Sounders

Long went on to join Seattle Sounders FC during the 2014 season, but did not make an appearance with the first team. On March 14, 2015 Long signed with Seattle Sounders FC 2.[8] On July 12, 2015 Long scored his first goal as a professional in a 4–0 victory over Arizona United SC.[9] He was a regular starter for Sounders 2 playing as a midfielder before being converted to centerback, appearing in 28 matches and recording one goal and two assists.

New York Red Bulls
Long with the New York Red Bulls II in 2016.

Long went on trial with New York Red Bulls during the 2016 pre-season, and on March 10, 2016 signed with affiliate club New York Red Bulls II.[10] Long made his official debut for the club appearing as a starter in a 2–2 draw against Toronto FC II.[11] On June 19, 2016 Long scored his first goal for the club helping them to a 2–2 draw at Orlando City B.[12] On June 26, 2016 Long helped New York to a 4–1 victory against the Wilmington Hammerheads scoring the club's second goal of the match.[13]

On August 16, 2016, Long made his debut for the Red Bulls first team, appearing as a starter in a 1–1 draw against Alianza F.C. in the CONCACAF Champions League.[14] On October 2, 2016, Long scored two goals to help New York Red Bulls II advance to the Eastern Conference Semifinals of the 2016 USL Playoffs in a 4–0 victory over Orlando City B. [15] On October 18, 2016 Long was named to the 2016 USL All-League First Team.[16] Days later Long helped the club to a 5–1 victory over Swope Park Rangers in the 2016 USL Cup Final.[17] On November 1, 2016 Long was named as the 2016 USL Defender of the Year after leading a defense that conceded the fewest goals in the league during the regular season.[18]

On September 2, 2017, Long scored his first goal with New York Red Bulls in a 2–2 draw at FC Dallas.[19] He ended his first full season with the first team appearing in 41 matches and scoring 1 goal, establishing himself as a first choice center-back.

On March 31, 2018, Long scored his first goal of the 2018 season for the New York Red Bulls in a 4–3 loss to Orlando City SC.[20] On June 6, 2018, Long scored the second goal of the match in New York's 4–0 derby win over New York City FC in the fourth round of the 2018 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.[21] On June 23, 2018 Long scored another goal in a 3–0 victory over FC Dallas.[22] On November 7, Long was named MLS defender of the year after leading the Red Bull's defense in only conceding 33 goals all season long as the club captured the 2018 MLS Supporters' Shield.[23]

International career

On September 2, 2018, Long received his first call up to the U.S. national team. He made his first international appearance in a 1–1 draw against Peru. The following year, he captained the national team in a 3–0 friendly victory against Panama on January 27, 2019.[24] In June 2019, Long was called up to his first international tournament when Gregg Berhalter named him to the final roster for the 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup.[25] On June 22, Long scored his first two international goals in a Gold Cup victory over Trinidad and Tobago.[26]

Honors

Club

New York Red Bulls II

New York Red Bulls

Individual

Career statistics

Club
As of November 21, 2020
Club Season League Domestic Cup League Cup Continental Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
USA Open Cup Playoffs North America Total
Portland Timbers 2014 Major League Soccer0000000000
Total 0000000000
Sacramento Republic (loan) 2014 United Soccer League2000000020
Total 2000000020
Orange County Blues (loan) 2014 United Soccer League3000000030
Total 3000000030
Seattle Sounders FC 2014 Major League Soccer0000000000
Total 0000000000
Seattle Sounders FC 2 2015 United Soccer League271201000301
Total 271201000301
New York Red Bulls II 2016 United Soccer League222004200264
Total 222004200264
New York Red Bulls 2016[30] Major League Soccer 0000003030
2017 311503020411
2018 343114060454
2019 242001040292
2020 162001000172
2021 0000000000
Total 105861901501359
Career total 162118114215019914

International
As of December 10, 2020
National teamYearAppsGoals
United States 201820
2019143
202020
Total183

International goals
As of matches played November 15, 2019. United States score listed first, score column indicates score after each Long goal.
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 June 22, 2019 FirstEnergy Stadium, Cleveland, United States  Trinidad and Tobago 1–0 6–0 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup
2 6–0
3 November 15, 2019 Exploria Stadium, Orlando, United States  Canada 3–0 4–1 2019–20 CONCACAF Nations League A

References
  1. "40-Player National Team Roster: 2019 Concacaf Gold Cup: United States" (PDF). CONCACAF. p. 16. Retrieved May 21, 2019 – via Bernews.
  2. https://www.newyorkredbulls.com/players/aaron-long
  3. "MLS profile". MLS Soccer. Retrieved November 1, 2015.
  4. "The Official Athletics Site of University of California – Riverside". gohighlanders.com.
  5. Michael A Orr. "Portland Timbers Select Aaron Long with 36th Pick in the 2014 MLS SuperDraft". Stumptown Footy.
  6. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on April 6, 2014. Retrieved March 31, 2014.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. "Portland Timbers waive midfielder Aaron Long". Portland Timbers.
  8. "Sounders FC 2 sign defender Aaron Long and forward Sam Garza". soundersfc.com.
  9. "S2 Returns to Top of West, Blanks Arizona". uslsoccer.com. Archived from the original on July 13, 2015.
  10. "New York Red Bulls II Sign Aaron Long". newyorkredbulls.com.
  11. "Allen Leads Red Bulls II Rally in 2–2 Draw". USLSoccer.com.
  12. "Da Silva, OCB Fight for Draw Against NYRBII". USLSoccer.com.
  13. "MATCH RECAP: New York Red Bulls II 4, Wilmington Hammerheads 0". NewYorkRedBulls.com.
  14. "Alianza FC, 1 vs. New York Red Bulls, 1". MLSSoccer.com. Retrieved August 17, 2016.
  15. "USL Match Recap: NYRB II Advances to Conference Semifinals with Win over Orlando City B". newyorkredbulls.com. Retrieved October 2, 2016.
  16. "2016 USL All-League Teams Unveiled". uslsoccer.com. Retrieved October 18, 2016.
  17. "Allen's Hat Trick Leads Red Bulls II to USL Cup". uslsoccer.com. Retrieved October 23, 2016.
  18. "New York's Long Named USL Defender of the Year". uslsoccer.com. Retrieved November 1, 2016.
  19. "New York Earns a Draw in Dallas". newyorkredbulls.com. Retrieved September 2, 2017.
  20. "Orlando City SC 4, New York Red Bulls 3 2018 MLS Match Recap". mlssoccer.com. March 31, 2018. Retrieved March 31, 2018.
  21. "New York Red Bulls Bounce Back and Defeat New York City FC in the U.S. Open Cup". newyorkredbulls.com. June 7, 2018. Retrieved June 7, 2018.
  22. "New York Red Bulls 3, FC Dallas 0". newyorkredbulls.com. Retrieved June 23, 2018.
  23. Bogert, Tom (November 7, 2018). "New York Red Bulls' Aaron Long wins 2018 MLS Defender of the Year award". Major League Soccer. Retrieved November 7, 2018.
  24. https://www.newyorkredbulls.com/post/2019/01/27/aaron-long-captains-usmnt-against-panama
  25. "Berhalter Names 23-Player Roster For 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup". USSoccer.com.
  26. "Zardes Scores twice, US rocks Trinidad and Tobago 6–0". AP.com.
  27. Bogert, Tom (November 7, 2018). "New York Red Bulls' Aaron Long wins 2018 MLS Defender of the Year award". Major League Soccer. Retrieved November 7, 2018.
  28. "2018 MLS Best XI". MLS Soccer. November 11, 2018.
  29. "2019 Concacaf Gold Cup – Best XI". goldcup.org. July 7, 2019. Retrieved July 8, 2019.
  30. Loan
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