Christopher James Durkin (born February 8, 2000) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a defensive midfielder for Major League Soccer club St. Louis City.

Chris Durkin
Durkin with the United States U20 in 2019
Personal information
Full name Christopher James Durkin[1]
Date of birth (2000-02-08) February 8, 2000 (age 24)
Place of birth Hampton, Virginia, United States
Height 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)[2]
Position(s) Defensive midfielder
Team information
Current team
St. Louis City
Number 8
Youth career
2008–2013 Richmond Kickers
2013–2016 D.C. United
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2015 Richmond Kickers 1 (0)
2016–2020 D.C. United 36 (1)
2016–2017Richmond Kickers (loan) 14 (0)
2019–2020Sint-Truiden (loan) 13 (1)
2020–2022 Sint-Truiden 55 (1)
2022–2023 D.C. United 60 (4)
2024– St. Louis City 28 (1)
International career
2015–2017 United States U17 14 (2)
2018–2019 United States U20 7 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of October 6, 2024

Professional

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Richmond Kickers

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After spending time with the youth sides of Richmond Kickers and D.C. United, Durkin signed with United Soccer League side Richmond Kickers on March 27, 2015. He made his professional debut in a friendly match against English Premier League club West Bromwich Albion F.C.[3]

D.C. United

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Durkin (right) competing for the ball in a 2017 Richmond Kickers match against FC Cincinnati

On June 14, 2016, D.C. United signed Durkin, making him the sixth homegrown player in D.C. United history[4] and the fifth-youngest homegrown signing in the history of the league (16 years, 127 days).[5] Durkin debuted for D.C. United on June 15, 2016, during a Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup fourth round tournament fixture, going 86 minutes against the Fort Lauderdale Strikers.[6]

On March 3, 2018, Durkin made his Major League Soccer debut against Orlando City, coming on in the 73rd minute for Yamil Asad. Just a few weeks later on March 24, 2018, Durkin made his first professional start for United, going the entire 90 minutes in a 3–1 loss against Columbus Crew.

He was ranked #14 in MLSsoccer.com's 2018 22-Under-22 Rankings which identifies the league's top young talents.[7]

On April 13, 2019, Durkin scored his first MLS goal in a start against the Colorado Rapids.[8]

Sint-Truiden

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On August 30, 2019, Durkin officially joined Belgian First Division A side Sint-Truiden on a loan that lasts until June 2020.[9] Durkin debuted for Sint-Truiden in a 2–0 win against Oud-Heverlee Leuven in the Belgian Cup on September 25, 2019.[10]

Durkin earned his first Belgian Pro League start for Sint-Truiden in a 2–1 loss against Club Brugge KV on December 7, 2019.[11] Durkin scored his first goal for Sint-Truiden on February 8, 2020, in a 5–2 win over KAS Eupen.[12] On May 7, 2020, Durkin's move to Sint-Truiden was made permanent[13] for a reported transfer fee of $1.1 million.[14]

Return to D.C. United

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On March 24, 2022, Durkin returned to D.C. United. Houston Dynamo selected his rights with the second spot in the Allocation Order and traded those rights to United in exchange for $325,000 in General Allocation Money as well as the number ten allocation slot.[15] United also paid a reported fee of $600,000 to bring him back to the United States.[16]

After scoring a late equalizer in the club's 2023 week three match against Orlando, Durkin was named to the league's Team of the Matchday.[17]

St. Louis City SC

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On December 12, 2023, St. Louis City SC announced that they trade 2 players for Chris Durkin.[18]

International

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Durkin played for the U.S. Under-17 team at the 2017 CONCACAF U-17 Championship and the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup. Prior to the World Cup, Durkin wore the captain's armband for a number of friendly matches as well as in the group stage match against El Salvador in the CONCACAF Championship. Durkin scored his first goal for the U.S. Under-17 team in a group stage match against Jamaica, and again in the U-17 World Cup against the host country of India.[19]

Durkin was named to the roster of the U.S. men's national Under-20 soccer team during the first-ever U.S. Soccer Men's YNT Summit Camp in Lakewood Ranch, Florida from January 2–11, 2018. Born in 2000, Durkin was among five players called up to the U-20 roster (birth year 1999) who were playing one year above their natural age group (U-19).[20]

After being selected for the USMNT U-20 roster for the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup, Durkin started and played in the first two group stage matches.

Statistics

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Club

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As of October 6, 2024[21]

Club Season League National cup[a] Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Richmond Kickers 2015 USL 1 0 1 0
D.C. United 2016 MLS 0 0 1 0 1 0
2017 0 0 1 0 1 0
2018 23 0 2 0 25 0
2019 13 1 1 0 14 1
Total 36 1 5 0 41 1
Richmond Kickers (loan) 2016 USL 3 0 3 0
2017 11 0 11 0
Total 14 0 14 0
Sint-Truiden (loan) 2019–20 Belgian Pro League 13 1 2 0 15 1
Sint-Truiden 2020–21 28 1 2 0 30 1
2021–22 27 0 27 0
Total 55 1 2 0 57 1
D.C. United 2022 MLS 29 1 1 0 30 1
2023 31 3 2 0 3[b] 0 36 3
Total 60 4 3 0 3 0 66 4
St. Louis City 2024 MLS 28 1 2[c] 0 30 1
Career total 207 8 12 0 2 0 3 0 224 8
  1. ^ Includes U.S. Open Cup and Belgian Cup
  2. ^ Appearances in Leagues Cup
  3. ^ Appearances in CONCACAF Champions Cup

References

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  1. ^ "FIFA U-20 World Cup Poland 2019: List of Players: USA" (PDF). FIFA. June 13, 2019. p. 24. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 6, 2020.
  2. ^ "Chris Durkin". D.C. United. Retrieved August 20, 2022.
  3. ^ Admin (July 20, 2015). "Richmond 1, West Brom 2". Richmond Kickers. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
  4. ^ "Richmond United players Chris Durkin, Drew Romig added to Richmond Kickers pro roster". Soccer Wire. Archived from the original on December 23, 2016. Retrieved May 3, 2017.
  5. ^ "D.C. United sign homegrown talent Chris Durkin". DC United Website. Retrieved May 3, 2017.
  6. ^ "Post-Match Facts: United v. Ft. Lauderdale Strikers". D.C. United. June 15, 2016. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
  7. ^ MLSsoccer Staff (October 3, 2018). "22 Under 22". MLSsoccer.com.
  8. ^ "Chris Durkin scores his first MLS goal in Denver". dcunited.com. April 16, 2019. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  9. ^ "D.C. United loan Chris Durkin to Sint-Truidense V.V. in Belgium". DC United. August 30, 2019. Retrieved August 30, 2019.
  10. ^ "DC United loanee Chris Durkin makes Sint-Truiden debut in Belgian Cup win". Retrieved September 27, 2019.
  11. ^ Henry Jr., Larry (December 7, 2019). "Chris Durkin makes first league start for Sint-Truiden". Retrieved December 12, 2019.
  12. ^ Sigal, Jonathan (February 8, 2020). "On-loan DC United midfielder Chris Durkin scores first goal for Sint-Truidense". MLSsoccer.com. Retrieved February 10, 2020.
  13. ^ "Chris Durkin puts D.C. United in past with transfer to Belgium's Sint-Truiden done". Washington Post.
  14. ^ Look at MLS outgoing transfers, MLSsoccer.com
  15. ^ "Official: DC United re-acquire midfielder Chris Durkin (via Houston Dynamo) | MLSSoccer.com". mlssoccer.
  16. ^ "Chris Durkin returns to D.C. United". The Washington Post. March 24, 2022. Retrieved June 11, 2022.
  17. ^ Sigal, Jonathan (March 13, 2023). "Team of the Matchday: Atlanta United, LAFC & St. Louis CITY own the moment". Major League Soccer. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  18. ^ "St. Louis CITY SC Acquires USYNT Midfielder Chris Durkin From D.C. United Via Trade". St. Louis City SC. December 12, 2023. Retrieved December 12, 2023.
  19. ^ FIFA.com. "USA cruise to comfortable win over hosts India". FIFA.com. Archived from the original on October 6, 2017. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
  20. ^ "First Ever U.S. Soccer Men's YNT Summit Brings 153 Players Together in Single Camp". www.ussoccer.com. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
  21. ^ "Chris Durkin". Soccerway. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
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