Ricardo_pepi_-_asn_top_-_psv_celebration_vs._heerenveen_-_2-22-26
Americans abroad

Cardoso's first big Atletico moment, Pepi scores in return, Tyler starts, & more

ASN's Brian Sciaretta spans the world for Americans Abroad and offers up his thoughts on the top stories, including the big return of Ricardo Pepi, the huge week for Folarin Balogun, and Tyler Adams making his first start since December
BY Brian Sciaretta Posted
February 24, 2026
6:55 PM

WE’VE FINALLY dug ourselves out from a blizzard and are ready to get back into the swing of things and there is a lot to go through. We’ll start in the world of Americans abroad where there is good news for Ricardo Pepi and Johnny Cardoso. The rest was rather mixed.

 

Let’s get right into it.

 

Pepi scores in big return

 

Ricardo Pepi’s return from a broken arm couldn’t have gone any better when he came off the bench in the 75th minute and scored the final goal in a 3-1 win over Heerenveen. Essentially, he picked right up where he left off – scoring almost at will in the Eredivisie where he has nine goals in 731 minutes (he also has three more goals in the Champions League).

This is likely going to be the last few months for Pepi at PSV as it seems likely that a deal with Fulham or another team is eventually reached. The good new for Pepi is that the remaining games are likely to be free from stress. The club is out of the Champions League and has a 14-point lead in the Eredivisie table.

As for the national team, the striker competition is tight with Folarin Balogun also scoring at an impressive rate for Monaco (against great competition), Patrick Agyemang is having a great season in the Championship.

Pepi still has a great chance of playing real minutes at the World Cup. Each of those strikers have different skillsets. Balogun can make runs behind defensive lines. Agyemang dominates in the air and in a physical game. Pepi, is far more of a hybrid option with more ways he can score.

Even beyond the World Cup, Pepi needs to find a way to stay healthy for a whole season. That has probably hurt his value a little bit.

 

Cardoso’s big Atletico moment

 

Since moving to Atletico Madrid from Real Betis, Johnny Cardoso has dealt with injuries and drifted in and out of the starting lineup with irregular minutes. He had yet to have a defining moment for the club.

That all changed in a major way on Tuesday when Cardoso scored the goal that put Atletico Madrid ahead of Club Brugge for good in the second leg of its Champions League Round of 32 matchup. Atletico ended up winning 7-4.

 



At this point, it seems likely that Cardoso will get a March call-up to the U.S. national team camp in Atalanta. Then it will be up to him to prove his value. Regardless of his club play, he needs to turn in a big performance with the U.S. team to get a spot on the World Cup team.

 

Richards starts in cleansheet win

 

Things haven’t been going well for Crystal Palace for most of the past three months. Entering the weekend, Palace had just one win in their last 15 games dating back to the middle of December. To make matters worse, head coach Oliver Glasner is practically begging to get fired with repeated outbursts due to the club selling off his best players and buying underwhelming replacements.

On Sunday, Palace defeated last-place Wolves 1-0 with a last-minute goal only after Wolves were reduced to 10 men. It wasn’t an great game from Palace.

Meanwhile, Richards played relatively well (although he wasn’t tested as much as usual against a bad Wolves team).




Richards should be considered a lock starter for the USMNT at the World Cup but don’t be surprised if he’s looking to find a more functional club this summer afterward.

 

Balogun scores in Monaco win

 

In one week, Folarin Balogun has scored three goals in two games against France’s two best teams this season. Midweek, the USMNT forward sored twice in a 3-2 loss to Paris St. Germain in the first leg of a Champions League knockout. Then on Sunday, Balogun scored in a massive 3-2 win at Lens, in a game where Lens led 2-0. That result saw PSG leapfrog Lens for the top of the table.

Balogun now has five goals in Ligue 1, five goals in the Champions League, and one goal in the Coupe de France.

He might not be the perfect fit for the U.S. national team in every game. He might get frustrated against a low-block defense. But when he has space to run behind opposing backlines, he is a terrific option for Mauricio Pochettino.

 

Agyemang gets praise

 

Derby County manager John Eustace recently was full of praise for American forward Patrick Argyemang. It spoke very well of his development.

“He understands this is a very physical league and he’s one of the top performers in the division. I don’t think he gets protected as much as he should from the referees for sure because of his size and the way he plays. I think defenders are getting away with fouling him.”

“There’s so much more hard work and more development to come, which is the most exciting thing for me. We’ve got a huge asset at the football club, and he’s got to continue progressing and developing in the way he has done.”

Unfortunately for Eustace and Agyemang, Derby fell to Watford on Saturday 2-0.

 

Tillman injured

 

Malik Tillman picked up an ankle injury on Saturday in Bayer Leverkusen’s 1-0 loss to Union Berlin. As a result, it does not look promising that he will play against Olympiacos this week in the Champions League.



It’s too early to speculate how much time, if any, he will miss.

 

Adams starts in Bournemouth draw

 

Tyler Adams played 66 minutes for AFC Bournemouth on Saturday in a 0-0 draw with West Ham United. It was his first start since December 2 when he suffered a knee injury.

As for his performance, it was solid in some aspects and limited in others. He was very defensive and effective in tackling and breaking plays up. His passing was very conservative as he did not provide much a link between defense and offense.

It was great for the USMNT to see him back on the field and he will lose the rust as he gets back into a rhythm.

More than anything, he just needs to stay heathy. He is important to Bournemouth as the club sits eighth in the Premier League. But for the World Cup, he is crucial.

 

Yanks in the Bundesliga

 

Noahkai Banks continues to impress for Augsburg this season and on Saturday he helped the club to a 3-2 win over Wolfsburg that moved the club into 10th place. With four wins in its last five games, Augsburg is no longer in a relegation battle.

For Banks, 19, he is playing well and has a chance to make a case to be part of the World Cup team. He is yet to be capped, but March could see him make his debut.


For Wolfsburg, Kevin Paredes played the final 23 minutes and didn’t do anything important to note. But the club is now out of the bottom three only on goal differential. It is clear of the automatic relegation position by one point.

James Sands only came off the bench for St. Pauli in a critical 2-1 win over Werder Bremen. The result sent Werder into the relegation hole and moved St. Pauli into the relegation playoff position. Still, not good for Sands to come off the bench as he is in an push to help St. Pauli avoid relegation and convince the club to exercise its purchase option on the loan from NYCFC. Sands has been a regular starter all season.

Kristoffer Lund is also in a push to convince his current club, FC Koln, to exercise its option to buy from his loan from Palermo, and he put forth a nice outing going all 90 minutes at his usual left back in a 2-2 draw with Hoffenheim. At 23 years old, Lund might not be in Pochettino’s plans but he is young enough to maybe benefit from a new manager with a fresh approach after the World Cup.

Joe Scally struggled for Borussia Monchengladbach in a 2-1 loss to Freiburg. M’Gladbach is now only two points clear of the bottom three. Meanwhile, Scally seems unlikely to go to the World Cup at this point. 

 

Yanks in the 2.Bundesliga

 

Santiago Castaneda, 21, went 68 minutes for Paderborn in a 5-2 win over Hertha. Castaneda played well in defensive midfield and Paderborn remained in fourth place. Castaneda is another player who is setting himself up for a big summer either in getting promoted or getting sold. He’s also another player who could feature next cycle for the USMNT.



John Tolkin almost needs a rescue at this point as his Holstein Kiel lost for the fourth time in a row after a 3-1 defeat to Karlsruher. That sent Holstein Kiel to just a point above the bottom three. 

Greuther Furth remained in last place but still helped their cause with a 2-1 win over Arminia Bielefeld last Friday. Max Dietz played the second half for Furth while Mael Corboz started and played 60 minutes for 11th-place Bielefeld.

Finally, Johan Gomez assisted on Eintracht Braunschweig's only goal of a 3-1 loss to Elversberg. Gomez played 90 minutes.

 

Yanks in Serie A

 

Overall, it was a terrible weekend for Yanks in Serie A.

Christian Pulisic returned to the starting XI for AC Milan but his team was upset at home in a 1-0 loss to Parma with Pulisic playing 62 minutes. Pulisic forced a save in the 36th minute and narrowly missed the target with another shot just before halftime. While he didn’t play poorly, Pulisic hasn’t been a difference-maker for Milan since December – dealing with injuries and uneven form since then.

Meanwhile, Benja Cremashci’s bad loan continues as he watched from the bench for Parma. The best thing would be for him to return to Miami, play a few games to regroup, and then maybe make another move.

Weston Mckennie had one of his worst games of the season when he went 90 minutes for Juventus in a 2-0 loss at home to Como. It was the third loss in a row in all competitions for Juventus has fallen to fifth place and out of the Champions League positions.

Yunus Musah is another American on a bad loan this season and he watched as his Atalanta team defeated Napoli 2-1. It seems as if he is looking at a return to AC Milan, who might not want him back either. Big decisions await for Musah and his World Cup hopes seem dim.

 

Yanks in Serie B

 

Gianluca Busio went 90 minutes for Venezia in a 3-2 win over Pescara to remain two points clear atop the table, and three points clear of the promotion line. Busio, once again, was very good in central midfield and this has been his best season in Europe. Unlike previous seasons, Busio is now a leader and a key player.

Jonathan Klinsann allowed three goals past him as Cesena lost for the third straight game to fall to eighth place, the final playoff position.

Andrija Novakovich went 90 minutes for Reggiana in a 1-1 draw with Avallino. Reggiano has fallen into a relegation battle and is only clear of the relegation playoffs on goal differential.

 

Yanks in Ligue 1

 

Tim Weah played 90 minutes as slumping Marseille dropped a 2-0 decision at home to Brest. Weah created the most chances in the game for Marseille playing right back but Marseille remained in forth place with the loss and is only three points from falling out of Champions League spots.

Lyon dropped 3-1 loss to Strasbourg and it was the first time the club failed to win a game since December 7, a span of 13 games. Tanner Tessmann played 58 games and had a rare bad game. He’s been so remarkably consistently good all season that this performance won’t change his standing.

 

Yanks in the Premier League

 

Aside from Adams and Richards (discussed above), the only other American to play in the Premier League was Brenden Aaronson who went 73 minutes for Leeds United in a 1-1 draw with Aston Villa. He left with Leeds up 1-0 but only had 33 touches and nine completed passes. He still worked very hard on the left side of the field defensively and covered a lot of ground. Leeds United maintained a six point gap over the relegation zone.

Meanwhile, Antonee Robinson did not travel for Fulham in its 3-1 win over Sunderland to move into 10th place. Robinson was out with what is listed as an ankle injury that did not seem serious. This season continues to be a rocky road for Robinson.

 

Yanks in the Championship

 

The Championship was busy over the weekend and again in the middle of this week.

George Campbell scored for West Bromwich Albion in an otherwise disappointing 1-1 draw at home with Charlton Athletic. West Brom is only a point north of the relegation zone. Meanwhile, Charlie Kelman didn’t get off the bench for Charlton and Daryl Dike didn’t play for West Brom.

Middlesbrough is struggling a bit with a 1-1 draw against Leicester on Tuesday. Aidan Morris played well over 90 minutes despite the draw and Boro has a five point cushion on promotion. But Boro only has two points from the last three games.

Despite the praise on Patrick Agyemang, he hasn’t scored in the last two games for Derby County, both of which were losses. On Tuesday, it was a 4-2 loss to Hull. That loss has sent Derby County to 11th place.

On Wednesday, Haji Wright and leaders Coventry visit Sheffield United.

 

Yanks Elsewhere

 

Auston Trusty was sent off in the 74th minute for Celtic on Sunday in a 2-1 loss to Hibernian at home. Celtic now sits third in Scotland and Hearts continues to be the surprise leaders.

In Belgium, Marlon Fossey assisted on the opening goal as his ninth-place Standard Liege defeated eighth-place Genk 3-0. Fossey played his usual right wingback and was subbed out in the 89th minute.

 

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