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Thoughts and Analysis

Analysis: Tolkin to Holstein Kiel, Flach to Poland, Americans shine in KNVB Cup, & More

ASN's Brian Sciaretta breaks down the wave of Americans making transfer moves, plus a very eventful slate of midweek games in Europe. There is a lot to break down. 
BY Brian Sciaretta Posted
January 16, 2025
11:00 AM

IT’S BEEN A VERY eventful midweek in American soccer as games from Europe saw a wide range of performances from great to disappointing and everything in between. Then there is the U.S. national team camp in Florida and some big moves in the transfer window.

 

Let’s start with the transfers – which also relates to the USMNT.

 

Tolkin nears Holstein Kiel

 

John Tolkin has left the USMNT camp because he is securing a transfer to Holstein Kiel of the Bundesliga. The left back from Chatham, NJ has been a terrific servant of the New York Red Bulls where he developed into one of the league’s best left backs. While he is just 22, he has had four straight 2000+ minute seasons of just MLS games. The last three seasons he surpassed 2500+. He made the playoffs every single season and last year played extremely well in the playoffs in a run to MLS Cup. His performances put him on the U.S. Olympic team where he played well in France.

But now was the time to leave New York – on a high note.

 

The move also comes at a time when the USMNT left back position is settled at the top with Antonee Robinson but is unclear behind him. Head coach Mauricio Pochettino could move a right back (either Sergino Dest or Joe Scally) to the right. But if he wants a true left-footed left back, Tolkin has a chance to get the job. Kristoffer Lund’s season has been underwhelming with Palermo and Tolkin has surpassed other options like George Bello and Sam Vines. Tolkin had a great case to be the backup behind Robinson even without this move. But earning a transfer to a Big 5 league reinforces his value.

The question then becomes about Holstein Kiel. That’s where the move might be concerning. The club is in the top-flight, but they’re second from the bottom. Moving directly into a team in the relegation zone has mixed results. George Bello moved to Arminia Bielefeld which was promptly relegated out of the Bundesliga months after Bello’s arrival. Then the following year, it was relegated out of the 2.Bundesliga. On the other hand, Tim Ream joined Bolton from the Red Bulls and stayed with them after their relegation where he did extremely well in the Championship.

Generally, it’s a risky move. Joining a club that is quickly relegated isn’t as simple as then just playing in the second tier. Sometimes there are club upheavals with a fire sale of players and coaching changes. Holstein Kiel is not necessarily a big club even by 2.Bundesliga standards. But a key point to remember is that Tolkin's transfer is around $3 million and that is a record for Holstein Kiel by more than twice the previous highest fee paid. With that amound invested, he will play. 

But it’s good to see Tolkin try something different. After such a great run with the Red Bulls where he was fun to watch, it’s time to take his show on the road. Maybe once he gets there he can quickly put himself in the shop window again or maybe he helps Holstein improve (the club is playing better with 12 goals in its last three games). If disaster hits in Germany, he will have plenty of interest in MLS or other leagues outside the Big 5 of Europe.

 

Other transfers

 

Leon Flach has joined Jagiellonii Bia?ystok of Poland’s Ekstraklassa. The club currently sits third but is only two points off the top of the league. The defensive midfielder made 116 appearances for the Philadelphia Union after joining in 2021 from St. Pauli. While he was age-eligible (he will turn 24 next month) he struggled to break into the U.S. Olympic team.

Flach is very European. He was born in Texas to two German parents and moved back to Germany when he was a child. He interviewed with ASN several times and he always said his goal was to move back at some point. This at least gets him closer. From the U.S. national team, he is likely behind a lot of players in both Europe and in MLS. But he has a chance to qualify for the Champions League next year.

He is a very defensive player and doesn’t get involved in the attack much. But he works hard defensively and is intense.

Flach has a bit of a rock-star persona in the club introduction.



The Seattle Sounders are getting the band back together, in a way, as Jesus Ferreira and Paul Arriola have joined from FC Dallas. Seattle will get a lot of effort from these players, but what worked in MLS three-four years ago might not work anymore. We will see.

Alan Sonora is leaving Argentina after a season with Huracan where he was only playing sporadically as they finished second in Argentina’s Primera. Now he’s on his way to Paraguay to play for Club Cerro Porteño. The reason for the move is likely two-fold. There probably wasn’t much interest in MLS from a financial standpoint. Second, he gets to follow Diego Martinez who was Sonora’s first manager at Huracan and who rates Sonora.



Ross County, which sits 10th in the 12-team Scottish Premiership, has acquired Jonthan Tomkinson from Norwich on loan until the end of the season. It is also the last season of Tomkinson’s contract. The American central defender has struggled to latch on after a series of loans in the lower tier of England but maybe he is a better fit in Scotland. The pressure is on him to play well so he can secure a longer contract.

 

 

Wild week of games abroad

 

The midweek games for Americans abroad was so eventful that it is hard to know where to begin.

We’ll just start in Germany.

 

Reyna boosts his case

 

Gio Reyna bagged his second goal of the season for Borussia Dortmund, which was good for him. But it was not enough as BVB suffered a terrible 4-2 loss away to a Holstein Kiel team in the relegation zone (and awaiting John Tolkin).

Reyna came off the bench in the 59th minute and scored in the 72nd minute. He was generally sharp throughout.



For Reyna, personally, he made a case to be in the starting lineup. BVB has been bad but Reyna has been one of the few players recently to show something positive. Apparently, this is also shown in training. Maybe we will see him tomorrow against Eintracht Frankfurt. Reyna just needs some sort of consistency in his career.

Nuri Sahin seemed to point to a bigger role for Reyna in Thursday’s media call.



 

Pulisic subbed out early in Milan loss

 

Christian Pulisic was subbed out at halftime of Milan’s 2-1 win over Como on Tuesday. This was the moment where he was injured.



But there is good news: La Gazzetta dello Sport reported that there was no muscle damage and just muscle fatigue. He is questionable for this weekend’s game against Juventus. Whether he needs his minutes managed further is another question.

Yunus Musah came on to start the second half in place of Pulisic and was on the field for both of Milan’s goals. He played well and the new coaching staff should be impressed. Look for him to start against Juventus.

 

McKennie’s thrives in another role
 

Weston McKennie is not a left back and belongs centrally. Still, on Tuesday it was a partially welcome sight to see him at left wing where he could attack more. The USMNT veteran from Texas assisted on the only Juventus goal of the game in a 1-1 draw with Atalanta. It was remarkably the 13th draw of the season for Juventus.

McKennie’s assist was after a brilliant run on a counter attack.



It’s tough to assess McKennie’s season, but this was a reminder of how he can help a team in so many ways.

 

Yanks thrive in KNVB Cup

 

American players shined in the spotlight of the Round of 16 in the top cup competition in the Netherlands this week .

PSV’s 5-4 extratime thriller over Excelsior saw a tremendous American impact on the win for PSV. Richard Ledezma and Ricardo Pepi started while Malik Tillman entered in the 60th minute. PSV was lethargic until the 74th when PSV was trailing the second division club 2-0 but Tillman got them on the board when Excelsior couldn’t clear a cross.

With PSV trailing 3-1 (and Ledezma already subbed out), Ricardo Pepi pulled one back for PSV with a very crafty volley.



After a stoppage time equalizer, PSV pulled away for good with a second goal from Pepi when he was played into the box and he expertly finished.

For Pepi, he is building a strong case that he should be the team’s future and he now has 16 goals across all competitions. Luuk de Jong had three assists off the bench and played well, but Pepi has made his case to be the team’s next big forward. Yes, this was against a lower division team, but Pepi responded to pressure when his team needed. Tillman also continued his strong season and now has 11 goals in all competitions.

FC Utrecht is also through to the quarterfinal after a 2-1 away win over RKC Waalwijk and Paxten Aaronson again delivered in a win when he assisted 22 second into the second half to set up Sebastian Haller’s equalizer. On the play, he made a darting run into the box to get on the end of a short pass from the left wing. He then slid it across for Haller’s sliding finish.

Aaronson set up six scoring chances in this game and was extremely dangerous again. It’s only a matter of time before he’s a USMNT regular again.

 

Premier League: Adams & Richards impress, Jedi assists
 

A pair of Americans had good outings in the Premier League this week. Chris Richards has been doing well recently and has helped Crystal Palace have two wins in its last three games. On Wednesday, Richards played all 90 minutes in a 2-0 away win over a Leicester team that lost its sixth league game in a row. For Richards, it wasn’t flashy but he was very solid defensively. Crystal Palace is now a team safely in midtable with no threat of relegation anymore.

Meanwhile, Tyler Adams played a full 90 minutes for Bournemouth in a 2-2 away win over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. The result was ultimately good for Bournemouth but it felt like two points squandered after Chelsea equalized in stoppage time. Adams did well defensively and was effective after a tactical switch when James Hill left the game due to injury in the 22nd minute. He was later involved in the build-up Antoine Semenyo's goal in the 68th minute for a 2-1 Bournemouth lead. 



Adams is still catching up on quick decision making with the ball and getting it into dangerous positions, but he’s completely back with his way to read the game defensively and be in smart positions to make things tough for opposing midfielders.

On another note, Matai Akinmboni made his first Premier League bench after making the bench f or an FA Cup game. The U.S. U-20 defender is still awaiting his club debut after transferring from DC United.

Finally in the Premier League, West Ham defeated Fulham in a London Derby 3-2 but Antonee Robinson was credited with two assists even if it was only minimal involvement. Still, it was a good outing for Robinson who was busy and active throughout the game. It looks very likely that 2025 is going to be a very lucrative year for Robinson. American fans just need to sit back and enjoy it.

 

Other games abroad

 

Joe Scally started for Borussia Monchengladbach in a brutal 5-1 loss to Wolfsburg. Scally exited the game in the 80th minute and Wolfsburg scored two more times after he left. Scally was actually one of the better players on the day for Gladbach in what was day everyone at the club will want to forget.

Dundee FC pulled off a surprising result with a 3-3 draw against runaway leaders Celtic on Tuesday. Neither of Celtic’s American central defenders were good in this game. Auston Trusty wasn’t sharp and Cameron Carter-Vickers had an own goal.

Red hot Leyton Orient saw their form carry over to the FA Cup with a shootout win over Derby County after a 1-1 draw. Charlie Kelman scored his 8th goal of all competitions for Leyton Orien and the American forward later converted his goal in the shootout. Leyton Orient has seven wins and a draw in their last eight League One games to move all the way into seventh place. They are now through to the fourth round.

Duane Holmes and Preston North End are also through to the fourth round after a 2-1 win over Charlton Athletic on Tuesday. Holmes went 81 minutes in the win.  

Finally in the Coupe de France, Mark McKenzie went the final 27 minutes for Toulouse in a 2-1 win over Laval of Ligue 2.

 

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