71414_isi_hyndmanemerson_bpi_mze_59_chelsea_v_fulham.2735303 Michael Zemanek/isiphotos.com
Americans Abroad

8 Young Americans Scored In Europe This Weekend

Terrence Boyd tallied for his new club, Emerson Hyndman notched an assist for Fulham, and Rubio Rubin bagged a brace for Utrecht's reserve team over the weekend. ASN's Brian Sciaretta has all the details.
BY Brian Sciaretta Posted
July 14, 2014
10:46 AM
WHILE MOST OF THE PLANET watched Germany claim another World Cup title, it was a fantastic weekend for American players in Europe—mostly in preseason games.

While the majority of these games are meaningless in the standings, they do offer signs of encouragement that this will be a productive start to the season for Americans in Europe. And strong showings in the preseason can lead to more opportunities when the games start to count. With that said, here is a long list of some of the achievements by Americans playing overseas.

Terrence Boyd

In his first preseason game for RB Leipzig after leaving Rapid Vienna on Saturday, Terrence Boyd showed his class. Coming on as a substitute Boyd scored a very difficult goal in what would turn out to be a 3-2 loss to Sonnenhof Großaspach. RB Leipzig is an ambitious club in the 2.Bundesliga and it is likely Boyd will be asked to contribute a lot.

Emerson Hyndman

At the start of preseason, Emerson Hyndman is the safe bet to be the next young American earning first-team minutes with his European club. The U.S. U-20 central midfielder is already playing well for Fulham’s first team in preseason, and on Saturday he notched an assist in the second goal of a 2-0 win over Scotland’s Motherwell.

Fulham were relegated last season but have invested heavily in youth development in recent years, and now have a very talented group of young players ready to push into the senior squad and lead it back to the Premier League. Hyndman is part of this group and first-team minutes seems likely for the youngster who debuted in the ASN 100 today.

Andrew Wooten

Fresh off signing a multiyear contract with Sandhausen of the 2.Bundesliga, Wooten impressed in a 4-2 preseason win over Bundesliga side Augsburg. The German-American forward has at times struggled to earn consistent minutes in his career at Kaiserslautern, but he has often impressed during his loan spells.

Will this be the season Wooten finally breaks through as a consistent scorer in the 2.Bundesliga?

Rubio Rubin

Rubio Rubin is one of the young players that should give hope to American fans. The talented forward is perhaps the most talented player on the U.S. U-20 national team and he is highly rated by his Dutch club Utrecht. The Oregon native has been with Utrecht since last season but he is now able to play for the club since he is 18 years of age.

On Saturday, Rubin started and scored two goals for Utrecht’s reserve team in a 4-0 win in the club’s first preseason game. It was an encouraging start for the youngster and it is entirely possible—and even likely—that he makes his Eredivisie debut this season as an 18-year-old.

Kyle Scott

Kyle Scott of Chelsea U-18s and his brother Kris of Swansea’s U-21s are two players trying to climb their way up the youth national team ladder in the United States. While both are eligible for England as well as Ireland (with Kyle having played for all three) they seem inclined to represent the United States for the time being.

On Saturday, Kyle Scott became one of many Americans to have a productive weekend when he scored for Chelsea’s U-18 team in a 4-1 win over Bournemouth.

Devante Parker

The German-American pipeline remains strong with Devante Parker, 18, and his older brother Shawn Parker, 21, looking promising in the Bundesliga. Shawn (who recently transferred to Augsburg) is more of a well-known product these days but his younger brother Devante at Mainz might be even more talented and he has begun the preseason in fine fashion.

Both Parkers have played for German youth national teams and would need to file one-time switches to play for the United States. Klinsmann is aware of the duo and after watching Devante Parker’s two goals (at 3:21 and 4:45 of the video below) on Saturday in Mainz’s 4-1 win over Zurich, it's easy to see why he could be a major addition to the U.S. program.

Danny Barbir

Danny Barbir is perhaps that most talented and highest-rated prospect on the U.S. U-17 national team. The fact that the central defender has already signed a pro contract for West Brom at the age of 16 is encouraging. On Saturday, Barbir made his debut for West Brom’s U-18 team and scored off a header in a 3-0 win.

Jordan Seabrook

In Finland, VPS is making a push to return to Europa League qualifying and its win over Honka on Sunday helped its cause to move into fourth place. In the game, Indianapolis native Jordan Seabrook scored in the 66th minute for his third goal of the season.

Chris Tsonis

In the Icelandic Premier League, Dartmouth, Mass., native Chris Tsonis scored two goals for Fjolnir in a 4-2 loss to IBV on the road. For the former Southern New Hampshire University forward has scored five goals so far this season in 12 games across all competitions.

Which of these players are you most excited about? Give us your take in the Comments section below.

Brian Sciaretta is an American Soccer Now columnist and an ASN 100 panelist. Follow him on Twitter.

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