Jayden Hibbert shines for Atlanta United ahead of first CanMNT camp - ICYMI
Days before he joined up with the CanMNT for the first time, Jayden Hibbert had a performance to remember for Atlanta United in MLS action last weekend.
Making just his fourth first-team appearance for the club, the 21-year-old goalkeeper picked up his second consecutive clean sheet, but unlike a quiet two-save appearance in a 0-0 draw against Toronto FC a week earlier, he was a lot busier in this 1-0 win vs. Nashville SC.
Despite facing off against a team pushing for the Supporters' Shield, Hibbert made six saves to help his team secure the victory, helping pick up their first road win all season.
The shining stars from Matchday 3⃣1⃣!
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) September 2, 2025
✏️: https://t.co/E8cobT5shT pic.twitter.com/UxhJsGx3Vs
He might not have faced the highest quality of chances despite the six saves he made - while Nashville generated 1.78 xG on the day, their xGOT was 1.47, which means they struggled to be as dangerous as those chances as they should’ve been.
At the same time, that shouldn’t take away from Hibbert’s performance, as he saved almost a goal and a half above expected, with Nashville left feeling like they did enough to score based on the fact that they still had chances worth 0.30, 0.35, and 0.52 xGOT.
Instead, Hibbert stood strong to those attempts, as he looks to now take over this Atlanta net on a more permanent basis going forward, having seemingly now gained the upper hand on US and MLS legend, Brad Guzan, who is about to celebrate his 41st birthday. To Guzan’s credit, he’s done quite well to keep his spot in the Atlanta net over the last few years despite his age, but Hibbert’s recent emergence does seem to indicate that he is set to grab control of this Atlanta net in the short and long term.
Stats were updated and Jayden Hibbert was given a save for the Surridge chance that hit the bar. He’s conceded 1 goal off 2.69 xGOT in 3 games which is insane! Excited to see what he can do against Crew, SD, LAFC, and Miami to end the season. pic.twitter.com/KJEtYP6CBI
— james (@atlutdjames) September 1, 2025
That’s good news for Canada, who have done well to swoop in and woo Hibbert in recent weeks, as they look to sway him to represent the team going forward.
Already capped by Jamaica in a pair of friendlies, Hibbert, who is also eligible for the United States, wasn’t even on the radar of most Canadians until this summer, as he only made his Atlanta first-team debut in July.
In just his second season with Atlanta after getting drafted out of the University of Connecticut in 2024, he’s mostly spent his time with their MLS Next Pro team over the past 18 months, making 29 appearances across 2024 and 2025, while also making four appearances in the USL on loan with the Birmingham Legion last season.
Now, though, Atlanta have allowed him to earn a bigger role on their first team amid a trying season, one where they seem unlikely to reach the playoffs despite a big offseason, and he’s making the most of that opportunity.
From a Canadian perspective, that’s huge, because while they’re pretty set in the short-term between Maxime Crépeau and Dayne St.Clair, with both of those two being 31 and 28, respectively, Canada would like some long-term options to step up to learn from and push them.
That’s where Hibbert comes in, because 21 is quite young for a goalkeeper, which is a position where players don’t often hit their prime until their mid to late 20s, as Crépeau and St.Clair have shown.
Canada do have a couple of other interesting goalkeepers in that mid-20s age range to watch - Jonathan Sirois is now 24, Tom McGill is 25, Luka Gavran is 25, and James Pantemis is 28 - but they didn’t have a lot of options under 22 that they’ll feel are close to pushing Crépeau or St.Clair, with most goalkeepers that age still yet to earn regular first-team roles with their clubs - at least not until Hibbert showed up.
Certainly, it’s too early to see if Hibbert earns the Atlanta net long-term, and he’s still looking to develop his overall game, but it makes sense to see why Marsch has given him a look, especially in the wake of the news that one of the most promising young Canadian goalkeepers, 21-year-old Crystal Palace signee Owen Goodman, doesn’t look to be eligible to join the team anytime soon due to a lack of passport.
It’s not often that a young Canadian goalkeeper will earn the net to himself in MLS the way Hibbert appears set to do - Sirois was probably the most recent player to fit that description when he became CF Montréal’s starter as a 21-year-old in 2023 - showing why it’s so important to see Hibbert step up the way he has.
Ultimately, when considering who should be his third goalkeeper on this Canadian team, Marsch will have to consider a few options - either he goes for a savvy veteran, a promising youngster, or a great locker room guy, with those three options being what we often see from National Teams globally.
With the presence of Crépeau and St.Clair, though, Marsch won’t feel he needs as much of a wily vet to pair with them, though, and appears instead set to lean on someone who he feels can still develop - it’s telling that his usual preferred third goalkeeper before this camp has been Tom McGill, whose future he is quite bullish on.
While Hibbert might not be as good yet as the likes of McGill, Gavran, Sirois and Pantemis, with his age, Marsch can make the bet that he might have a higher ceiling down the road, making him a candidate to earn more call-ups going forward - and he's seemed to hint as much when asked about his newest goalkeeper.
Jesse Marsch on recruiting dual-national GK Jayden Hibbert 🎙️
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) August 26, 2025
"He's very - and most - interested in representing Canada... his talent potential is big" 🧤#CanMNT 🇨🇦 pic.twitter.com/IKYNli8SRC
Now, of course, it’s far too early to say that will be the case. At the end of the day, this call-up was all about Marsch getting a closer look at Hibbert while offering him a look at what Canadian camp looks like (as he is not yet cap-tied and could still return to the Jamaican fold).
For Hibbert to earn more Canadian calls long-term, he’ll have to impress in training this window (he’d only see the field in an emergency with Marsch still rotating through Crépeau and St.Clair), and then continue his progress back with Atlanta United, where he'll want to continue to improve his shotstopping, be more aggressive in the box, and work with his play in possession.
No doubt, though, he appears to be a potentially interesting player for Marsch to make a future bet on, making it fitting that he had his best Atlanta game yet just days before this camp, perhaps showing that he, too, wants to push to be a long-term option on this Canadian team, knowing the opportunity that could be there for him.
