As one goalkeeper left New York City FC on Friday, the club brought in another.

A little while after it was announced that former team captain Sean Johnson had signed as a free agent with Toronto FC, City acquired Philadelphia Union goalkeeper Matt Freese from the Philadelphia Freeze on Friday.

NYCFC sent the Union a guaranteed $350,000 in General Allocation Money. Broken down, Philly will receive $200,000 in 2023 GAM, $150,000 in 2024 GAM, a percentage of a future transfer fee and an additional $400,000 if certain performance conditions are met.

“We are delighted to have been able to finalize this acquisition and would like to welcome Matt to New York,” NYCFC sporting director David Lee said in a statement. “He is an extremely talented American goalkeeper who is coming into the best years of his career. He is an excellent shot stopper, and we believe is ready to take the next step in his career and we are excited to see his continued development at NYCFC.

“We knew there was a possibility that we would need to add a goalkeeper to our group this season and Matt has been our priority target and will provide excellent competition for Luis Barraza and Cody Mizell. We believe that Matt complements our strong core of keepers at the Club, while also having the talent and opportunity to compete for the starting role.”

Freese, who played for the Union Academy before playing two seasons at Harvard University, was signed by the Union as a Homegrown player in December 2018. Over the course of four seasons, Freese played in 13 matches for Philadelphia (12 starts), logging 31 saves over 1,034 minutes.

“We want to thank Matt for his hard work and contributions on and off the field with the Philadelphia Union,” Union sporting director Ernst Tanner said in a statement. “As a homegrown player, we are proud of what Matt has become and feel this is the best move for the player at this time in order for him to be able to continue to grow and have a chance to earn a starting position. As great of a player he is, he is an even better young man with a bright future ahead. We wish him all the best in this next chapter.”

Front Row Soccer editor Michael Lewis has covered 13 World Cups (eight men, five women), seven Olympics and 25 MLS Cups. He has written about New York City FC, New York Cosmos, the New York Red Bulls and both U.S. national teams for Newsday and has penned a soccer history column for the Guardian.com. Lewis, who has been honored by the Press Club of Long Island and National Soccer Coaches Association of America, is the former editor of BigAppleSoccer.com. He has written seven books about the beautiful game and has published ALIVE AND KICKING The incredible but true story of the Rochester Lancers. It is available at Amazon.com.