Atlanta United announced today it has acquired defender Brooks Lennon from Real Salt Lake in exchange for $150,000 in General Allocation Money (GAM) and $150,000 in Targeted Allocation Money (TAM).
“Brooks is a versatile young player and we are pleased to add him to our club,” Atlanta United Vice President and Technical Director Carlos Bocanegra said. “In addition to his vast experience on the international level with U.S. Youth National Teams, he has proven to be a reliable starter in MLS. He can play both fullback and wing positions and we expect him to have an integral role in our long-term plans.”
Lennon, 22, started his youth career in Real Salt Lake’s residency program in Arizona. After a 31-goal campaign during the 2014-15 U.S. Soccer Development Academy (USSDA) season, Lennon signed with Liverpool of the English Premier League. He spent two years in their academy, mostly with the club’s U-23s where he scored two goals during the 2016-17 Premier League 2 campaign.
Lennon re-joined RSL prior to the 2017 season and made his MLS debut on March 18 against LA Galaxy. Primarily playing as a winger during his rookie season, he scored three goals and added four assists in 25 games. Lennon permanently signed with the club after the season and coach Mike Petke moved him to the backline ahead of 2018. He shined as the team’s right back, starting 32 games while helping the club reach the Western Conference Semifinals. This past year, Lennon showed his overall versatility, playing both fullback positions and on the wing, while making 25 appearances. Overall in three seasons with RSL, Lennon has made 86 league appearances with 63 starts. He’s scored three goals and added 10 assists.
Internationally, Lennon has yet to make his senior team debut, but has been called into camp before. On the youth level, he was a driving force behind the U-20’s first-ever Concacaf Championship in 2017, scoring four goals while being named to the tournament’s Best XI. Most recently, Lennon was called into the U-23s earlier this month for two matches at the United International Football Festival in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. He appeared in both matches during the tournament and scored twice in a 2-0 win over United Gran Canaria.
