GOOD MORNING and happy weekend to all ASN readers. There is a lot to talk about this morning with the transfer window opening, January camp approaching, the MLS offseason nearing its sudden end, and European games this weekend.

Let’s start with the transfer window.

Sands Loaned to St. Pauli

New York City FC extended the contract for James Sands through 2028 and loaned him to St. Pauli through the end of the Bundesliga season with an option to extend him through the 2025/26 season. This marks his second loan from NYCFC to a European team after he was loan to Rangers at the start of 2022 through March 2023 when it was terminated.

This loan now sees him off to a team in a completely different situation. Unlike Rangers which is normally always in the top two of Scotland, St. Pauli is in a relegation battle. That being said, St. Pauli isn’t in a bad situation at the moment despite being newly promoted. The Hannover-based club sits in 14^th place and is four points clear of Heidenheim, which sits in 16^th place (the relegation playoff position). St. Pauli also has a six-point cushion on 17^th-place Holstein Kiel (the first automatic relegation position).

 What is good about Sands is that he can help teams either as a defensive midfielder or a central defender. It probably has him in a better position to succeed than at Rangers because his defense is going to be needed more at St. Pauli.

"In James we're getting an intelligent player who has a very good understanding of the game and finds constructive solutions under pressure thanks to his sound technique," said head coach Alexander Blessin. "His defensive anticipation helps him to make lots of interceptions and quickly exert pressure on opponents. He has demonstrated these qualities both in the US and during his spell in Scotland."

Director of Sport Andreas Bornemann echoed similar thoughts:

"James Sands offers an exciting mix of athleticism and footballing ability," said Bornemann. "Another positive aspect is that he can be deployed both in central holding midfield and central defence. As he has already played at a higher level in Europe, we believe he can quickly acclimatise to the club and the Bundesliga."

From a U.S. national team perspective, it obviously helps Sands to build a case with Bundesliga success. But scrapping by in the lower levels of that league doesn’t guarantee anything. He must play well. There are plenty of players in “Big 5 or Big 6” leagues who aren’t on the U.S. national team (Lennard Maloney, Emmanuel Sabbi, Richard Ledezma, Taylor Booth, etc).

Sands has plenty of competition these days for the national team. In addition to stalwarts like Tyler Adams, Weston McKennie, and Yunus Musah – Sands must now compete with Aidan Morris, Johnny Cardoso, Tanner Tessmann, Gianluca Busio, Luca de la Torre, Maloney, and domestic options such as Jack McGlynn, Brian Gutierrez, and Benja Cremaschi).

But even beyond the national team, this is a chance for Sands to do something different. He has been a terrific servant for NYCFC for many years and helped them win MLS Cup. Now with the club in transition and a coaching change on the way, it is a chance for him expand his horizons again as a player.

Akinmboni to Bournemouth

As was widely reported, Matai Akinmboni has been transferred to AFC Bournemouth of the Premier League. The U.S. U-20 central defender showed glimpses of a high ceiling at DC United despite never nailing down the starting job.

There are already reports that a loan is in the works for Akinmboni but the pathway to regular Premier League minutes is long. Given his lack of first team experience (just eight career MLS starts), it is hard to gauge exactly how far away he is. Also, if the path takes several loans, it will require a bit of luck as well as an ability of Akinmboni to adjust quickly to new managers, new styles of play, new teammates, and likely new leagues.

Meanwhile, Akinmboni is in the plans for the United States U-20 team as it builds towards the 2025 World Cup later in the year. Obtaining his release will be tricky because no one knows yet where he will be playing. But if head coach Marko Mitrovic has his say, he will likely make up a central defense tandem that includes Josh Wynder and Noahkai Banks.

Bajraktarevic to PSV

The New England Revolution transferred Esmir Bajraktarevic, 19, to PSV Eindhoven to give the club five American players (along with Ricardo Pepi, Sergino Dest, Malik Tillman, and Richard Ledezma). Even though Bajraktarevic has decided to play internationally for Bosnia (after representing the USA at youth levels and once with the full USMNT), he is a representative of American player development as he has only ever lived in the United States. Born in Wisconsin, Bajraktarevic eventually moved to the Revolution where he broke into the club’s first team.

Despite the terrible season from the Revolution last year, Bajraktarevic played well, showed a ton of potential, and made his way onto the full Bosnian national team.

He would have been eligible for the United States U-20 team had he remained with that program and unfortunately, he is now part of a growing list of players from that player pool who have defected to play for other countries. In addition to Bajraktarevic, Noel Buck plays for England’s youth teams, Obed Vargas plays for Mexico, and Tyler Bindon represents New Zealand.

This move will be interesting to follow for American fans as his development will help in the part of valuation of domestic players (particularly young, homegrown players). 

January camp approaching

The USMNT January camp will open next week and it will conclude with friendlies against Venezuela on January 18 (in Ft. Lauderdale) and Costa Rica on January 22 (in Orlando). There is expected to be a U-20 camp in Florida at the same time.

There is a lot at stake for the players to impress Mauricio Pochettino and the key for them is to show passion and intensity. Pochettino once said that it might be preferable to have a slightly less talented roster if the intensity is extremely high. Pochettino is still new and has not had a lot of time to sift through the playing pool.

The roster will be mostly MLS, but not exclusively either. There should be multiple foreign players involved – but that likely comes from players who are in leagues that are on break.

Here are some players who I think could be involved.

Goalkeepers: Patrick Schulte, Drake Callender, Zack Steffen

Fullbacks: John Tolkin, Max Arfsten, DeJuan Jones, DeAndre Yedlin

Central Defenders: Tim Ream, Miles Robinson, Walker Zimmerman, Jackson Ragen

Central Midfielders: Jack McGlynn, Timothy Tillman, Benja Cremaschi

Attacking midfielders/wingers: Cole Bassett, Rokas Pukstas, Diego Luna, Djordje Mihailovic, Brian Guitierrez

Center forwards: Patrick Agyemang, Brian White

In terms of the abroad options, Rokas Pukstas makes sense unless a transfer is imminent. Hajduk Split wants to sell him and this will only help his value after an average start to the season. Another pick could be Luca de la Torre who doesn’t appear to be in the plans at Celta Vigo.

There was a report in Argentina at that Matko Miljevic is under consideration. Maybe that’s the case after Pochettino was in the stands watching him at Newell’s Old Boys. But behavior problems are a serious issue with him. It apparently affected his exit at Newell’s Old Boys and his time at Montreal was infamously ended with an embarrassing moment when he was upset over playing time, registered with an amateur Quebec league under an assumed name, and was caught after he punched an opponent in the face. He has some talent but calling him up is a huge risk and potentially a bad look. Also in Argentina, Alan Sonora saw only very infrequent minutes for Huracan.

In terms of players in leagues on break, George Bello at LASK in Austria could be in consideration. Players in Scandinavian leagues (Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland), Austria, and Switzerland could also be in the mix but aside from Bello, no one is knocking on the door in those leagues.

Weekend Abroad: Pulisic returns

The Italian Super Cup on Friday features Juventus taking on AC Milan. While Weston McKennie might feature for Juventus, Christian Pulisic likely will for AC Milan (per SempreMilan) and this will be his debut for new head coach Sérgio Conceição who replaces fellow Portuguese manager Paolo Fonseca.

Pulisic is no stranger to managerial changes, but he has played so well this season that things should be fine for him. When Yunus Musah returns, things could be tricky. Tim Weah is also expected to remain out injured.

Also this weekend, on Saturday Gianluca Busio and Venezia will look to climb out of the relegation zone with a winnable home game against Empoli.

In the Championship, leaders Leeds United will look to build on their three-point cushion when they host lowly Hull Cty. Brenden Aaronson continues to shine in the promotion race.

In the Premier League, Tyler Adams will hopefully be back for Bournemouth when they host relegation battling Everton on Saturday. On Sunday, Antonee Robinson might be the best American player at the moment, and the USMNT left back will lead Fulham on Sunday in a winnable game against Ipswich.

Ligue 1 resumes this weekend in France with Tanner Tessmann and fifth-place Lyon hosting last-place Montpellier. Relegation battling Le Havre (with American winger Emmanuel Sabbi) has a tough trip to Marseille. Mark McKenzie and ninth-place Toulouse visit seventh-place Lens and McKenzie will look to build upon his successful start to the season. Caleb Wiley will hope to return for Strasbourg as they host Auxerre on Sunday. Folarin Balogun is out for Monaco as they visit leaders Paris St. Germain.