Atlanta United announced today it has signed four players to Short-Term Agreements. Erik Lopez, Phillip Goodrum, Jack Gurr and Ben Lundgaard will officially join the group for duration of the club’s participation in the upcoming Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League, scheduled for Dec. 15-22. Atlanta United resumes the tournament in the quarterfinals on Dec. 16 against Club America (8:00 p.m., FS2, TUDN).
Short-Term Agreements are four-day contracts that allow MLS clubs to sign players on loan from their USL affiliate for U.S. Open Cup, Concacaf Champions League, AMWAY Canadian Championship and exhibition matches. An MLS club may sign a player to a maximum of four short term agreements each season (maximum of 16 days). It will be the second loan this year for Goodrum and the first for each of the three other players.
Lopez signed with Atlanta United 2 on July 18, 2020. He’ll join the First Team effective Jan. 1, 2021. The 19-year-old forward had previously played his entire career with Olimpia, the most successful club in the Paraguayan Primera Division. He joined Olimpia’s youth academy when he was 13 years old and worked his way through the youth ranks and made his senior team debut on August 25, 2019 against Deportivo Santani. The Asuncion, Paraguay finished the 2019 Clausura with 12 total appearances, scoring four goals and adding two assists. Since joining Atlanta United, he’s spent his time training with the First Team.
Goodrum was selected by Atlanta with the No. 75 overall pick in the 2020 MLS SuperDraft. Although he spent the season with ATL UTD 2, he previously signed a Short-Term Agreement with the First Team on Feb. 18, 2020 ahead of Atlanta’s match against Motagua in the Round of 16. During the shortened 2020 season, Goodrum led ATL UTD 2 with four assists, while also adding two goals. The 23-year-old forward played collegiately at UNC Wilmington where he totaled 32 goals and 15 assists in 76 career appearances. He received First-Team All-Colonial Athletic Association for his junior and senior seasons where he led the Seahawks to back-to-back 12-win seasons while scoring 12 and 11 goals, respectively.
Gurr, a 25-year-old defender, signed with ATL UTD 2 on Dec. 5, 2019. He started 15 games, scored one goal, added three assists and finished sixth in the USL Championship with 36 chances created. He was a four-year starter at Georgia Gwinnett College from 2014-2017 where he was among the program’s most accomplished players. He was top-five in nearly every major category and finished as Gwinnett’s all-time leader in assists, second in shots and fifth in games played, goals and points. The Newcastle, England native led the Grizzlies to the NAIA tournament in three of his four seasons while being named to the First Team All-A.I.I. his junior and senior seasons when he led the team in assists each year.
Lundgaard, a 25-year-old goalkeeper, signed with ATL UTD 2 on Jan. 27, 2020 and started 13 games this season. He joined the club after playing for Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC in 2019 where he was on loan from Columbus Crew SC. The 6-foot-5 goalkeeper was drafted by the Crew with the 21st overall pick in the 2018 MLS SuperDraft and spent the 2018 season on loan with Indy Eleven. Originally from Wilmington, Delaware, Lundgaard played four seasons at Virginia Tech where he made 70 appearances and registered 23 shutouts, the second-most in program history. In his senior 2017 season, Lundgaard was named to the First Team All-Atlantic Coast Conference after leading the conference in saves and posting six shutouts.
PLAYER PROFILES
Name: Phillip Goodrum
Position: Forward
Number: 33
Height: 6-1
Birthdate: June 20, 1997 (age: 23)
Birthplace: Nashville, Tennessee
Citizenship: USA
College: University of North Carolina Wilmington
Transaction: Signed a four-day Short-Term Agreement with Atlanta United on Dec. 15, 2020
Name: Jack Gurr
Position: Defender
Number: 34
Height: 5-8
Birthdate: Nov. 26, 1995 (25)
Birthplace: Newcastle, England
Citizenship: England
College: Georgia Gwinnett College
Transaction: Signed a four-day Short-Term Agreement with Atlanta United on Dec. 15, 2020
Name: Erik López
Position: Forward
Number: 16
Height: 5-9
Birthdate: Nov. 27, 2001 (age: 19)
Birthplace: Asuncion, Paraguay
Citizenship: Paraguay
Transaction: Signed a four-day Short-Term Agreement with Atlanta United on Dec. 15, 2020
Name: Ben Lundgaard
Position: Goalkeeper
Number: 37
Height: 6-5
Birthdate: Sept. 25, 1995 (age: 25)
Birthplace: Wilmington, Delaware
Nationality: USA
College: Virginia Tech
Transaction: Signed a four-day Short-Term Agreement with Atlanta United on Dec. 15, 2020
