Sergino_dest_-_asn_top_-_psv_injury_-_march_2026
Americans abroad

Cardoso's spotlight, Flo tremendous, Dest injured, Yanks struggling in Germany, much more

ASN's Brian Sciaretta walks you through all the news stories for Americans abroad - with an injury to Dest and lots of performances, both good and bad
BY Brian Sciaretta Posted
March 10, 2026
6:05 AM

WITH THE HIGH NUMBER of Americans in the top leagues in Europe, every weekend is going have ups and downs in terms of performances. That is normal. But with this being a World Cup year and the tournament now less than 100 days away, any injury news is significant. Unfortunately, this weekend saw Sergino Dest suffer an injury while Antonee Robinson’s playing time continues to be uneven. That now puts question marks on the two top fullbacks.

Elsewhere, it was more of the same – a great performances from Folarin Balogun, big performance from Aidan Morris and Haji Wright in the Championship promotion race, and other news that is both good and bad.  

Let’s start with the injury to Dest.

 

Dest injured

 

PSV hosted AZ Alkmaar on Sunday in the Eredivisie with PSV coasting to yet another title. This game was not newsworthy until the 55th minute when Sergino Dest went down and need to be helped off the field seemingly with a hamstring injury.

This won’t affect PSV as they will win the title with or without him. The big story is the U.S. national team and the World Cup. Dest is now obviously out for the March friendlies in Atlanta. But will he be back in time for the World Cup?



Dest went to his Instagram account to spread an optimistic message.

“l'm out for a little while to do what I love the most! But one thing for sure this is NOT the end of the season! I'll do everything in my power to make sure that i'm coming back asap on the right timing! Thanks for the messages won't let you guys down!”

Normally, a hamstring injury should be able to heal by May, but will Dest regain his form and explosiveness? It’s all just guesswork now.

Meanwhile, Mauricio Pochettino will likely rely on Alex Freeman (who isn’t playing much at Villarreal), Tim Weah, and Joe Scally.

 

Pepi’s winner

 

Staying with that PSV-AZ game, PSV won 2-1 with Ricardo Pepi scoring a late winner. It was a nice, skillful goal and he continues to put up excellent numbers with a solid scoring rate. If he can stay healthy, Pochettino has two very good options at the No. 9.



The question then becomes whether it is necessary to bring Patrick Agyemang? Haji Wright at least can play wing, but is a third No. 9 needed?

Pepi vs. Balogun is an interesting debate as both are playing well. But Pepi seems to have more tools in the way he can score whereas Balogun is one of the best at getting behind opposing backlines.

Beyond the USMNT, this very much looks like it will be the last season for Dest in the Netherlands.

 

Balogun’s big game

 

On Friday, Folarin Balogun kicked off the weekend with a fantastic performances where he scored and assisted for Monaco in a big 3-1 away win over reigning Champions League winners Paris St. Germain at Parc de Princes.

Balogun only had 20 touches across 81 minutes, but he was dangerous throughout and helped open the game up for Monaco.



Balogun is red hot right now with five goals in his last five games. Four of those goals have come against top French teams in PSG or Lens.

Both Pepi and Balogun are playing well and they both give Mauricio Pochettino options in the No. 9.

 

Promotion races! Haji, Morris, Busio, Castaneda

 

Inside of Europe’s top second divisions, four players are in the hunt for automatic promotion (as opposed to the playoffs) and all four continue to play big roles with their clubs.

Haji Wright scored his 16th goal of the season for Coventry in a 2-0 away win over Bristol City to maintain a five point lead on second place Middlesbrough and a nine point lead on automatic promotion. Wright now has six goals in his last five games to put the team in a great position for promotion. He is now second in the league in goals, and this is despite a terrible stretch from October until mid-January.

Wright just scores goals and it likely will put him on the World Cup team again. The question will now be how he does in the Premier League?

 

Aidan Morris had a very busy day for second Middlesbrough which pounded Queens Park Rangers 4-0 away in London. The former Columbus Crew midfielder had 117 touches and was 101/105 in his passing as he helped Boro comfortably control the midfield. Boro now has a four point lead on Millwall for an automatic promotion spot. Morris has not contributed much in terms of chance creation, but he has been a perfect player for Boro helping it almost always have an advantage over opponents in the midfield.

Will Morris make the World Cup team? It is going to be very close, but Morris has given himself every chance.

Gianluca Busio, 23, continues to have his best season since moving to Europe in 2021. He has been very active in the team’s attack and has scored seven goals. He didn’t score in Saturday’s 2-0 win over Reggiana but he did play very well again over 90 minutes. This World Cup is too soon, but Busio is certainly a player who should more of a chance next cycle, but the question will be helping Venezia stay in Serie A. Right now, they have a three-point lead on second place Monza and a five-point lead for automatic promotion.

Santiago Castaneda, 21, played 81 minutes for Paderborn which could only muster a 1-1 draw with relegation battling Eintracht Braunschweig on Saturday – despite playing up a man from the 67th minute. Despite that, Castaneda played well in his typical defensive-midfield role.

 

Relegation danger!

 

Unfortunately, there are a lot of American players involved in relegation battles right now

Brenden Aaronson played 61 minutes for Leeds but couldn’t get anything going in a 1-0 loss to Sunderland. Despite that, Leeds still has a three-point cushion on the relegation line but results like this, at home in winnable game, could complicate things.

George Campbell and Daryl Dike were able to squeeze West Bromwich Albion out of the Championship relegation by a single point after a 1-1 draw with Sheffield United. It was an interesting day for Campbell, a defender, who scored both goals – an own goal and a golazo – in this game. Dike, meanwhile, continues to not produce for West Brom while Campbell has been both up and down. It’s a huge stretch run for them.



In Germany, six Americans are mired in the relegation battle of the Bundesliga.

Kevin Paredes is injured again for Wolfsburg and his time on the sidelines is surely frustrating for both him and the club. Wolfsburg’s 2-1 loss to Hamburg sent the club four points deep into the relegation zone. If the club goes down, will it look to offload players? Paredes might be a target given his inability to stay healthy.

Kristoffer Lund started on Saturday for Koln in a 2-1 loss to Borussia Dortmund. That loss was expected, but with Koln now only having one point from six games, it is just a point clear of the relegation playoff position. Lund has played decently at times this season, but he is running the risk of not convincing the club to exercise its purchase option on his loan from Palermo.

Lennard Maloney did not get off the bench for Mainz in a 2-2 draw with Stuttgart. That point left them a point clear of the relegation playoff position.

Joe Scally had a rough outing for Borussia Monchengladbach in a 4-1 loss to Bayern Munich. Scally went the full 90 minutes but failed to take advantage of the opportunity. With Sergino Dest injured and Alex Freeman not playing, Scally needs to be decent to take advantage of the opening to get back into the USMNT picture. Borussia Monchengladbach are also only a point clear of the relegation playoff position.

Gio Reyna, meanwhile, did not get off the bench for M’Gladbach as his move there continues to disappoint.

James Sands started for St. Pauli but limped off in the 81st minute in a 0-0 draw with Eintracht Frankfurt. St. Pauli still occupies the relegation playoff position but they are playing better than many of the teams they are chasing. As for Sands, it seems unlikely he will go to the World Cup, but stranger things have happened.

In the 2.Bundesliga there are just as many Americans in the relegation battle.

John Tolkin played all 90 minutes for Holstein Kiel in a 2-0 loss to Darmstadt on Saturday. Most the result can be explained by Holstein Kiel suffering a 25th minute red card. Tolkin did what he could but Holstein Kiel fell into the automatic relegation position.

Max Dietz played 90 minutes for Greuther Furth which defeated Hannover 2-1 for its seventh point in three games to move from last and into the relegation playoff position. Julian Green remains sidelined for Furth due to injury.

Johann Gomez played 69 minutes and picked up an assist for Eintracht Braunschweig in the aforementioned 1-1 draw with Paderborn to remain ahead of Greuther Furth only by goal differential.

 Mael Corboz started for Arminia Bielefeld in a 1-0 loss to Schalke that was the club’s third straight defeat and they’re just one point ahead of the relegation playoff position. Arminia Bielefeld’s other American, Isaiah Young, did not feature.

In case you lost track, that is 12 Americans in relegation battles in Germany’s Bundesliga and 2.Bundesliga.

 

Pukstas scores in Eternal Derby

 

Rokas Pukstas, 21, is finally making himself an attractive asset to sell for Hajduk Split. The club has been wanting to sell him for years but injuries, form, and falling out of Gennaro Gattuso’s plans (the previous manager) made it difficult.

In the always intense Eternal Derby in Croatia between Hajduk Split and Dinamo Zagreb Pukstas scored in the 29th minute to pull Hajduk within one. On the play, Pukstas got a little lucky with a ball off the post falling right to him for a rebound. He now has seven goals, four of which have come since the start of February.



Hajduk Split lost 3-1 and fell 10 points behind leaders Dinamo Zagreb. While Hajduk will likely sell Pukstas after this season, it was a good place for him to start his career.

 

McKennie sharp in rebound

 

Fresh on the heels of a new contract, Weston McKennie played 90 minutes for Juventus in a convincing 4-0 win over Pisa.

It was a very good performance from McKennie who was listed as the team’s right wingback but he covered a lot of the field and cut centrally many times. For McKennie it is refreshing to see his motivation continue after signing such a deal.

But this was very welcome news for Juventus which ended a four-game winless skid. This win kept them in sixth place but they are just a point out of fourth for a Champions League spot.

McKennie is one of the most interesting players to watch in the coming March camp given his season and his versatility. This will be the strongest he has entered a USMNT camp in years.

 

Cremaschi makes first Serie A start

 

Benja Cremaschi made his first Serie A start for Parma when he got the nod on Sunday in a visit to relegation battling Fiorentina. The U.S. Olympic hopeful played all 90 minutes on the right side of the midfield in what turned out to be a 0-0 draw.

Overall, it wasn’t a performance that should sway the manager either way for more minutes and Parma is in a safe position right now with no threat or relegation and no chance at qualifying for Europe. Over the course of the game, Cremaschi was quiet in a game that was a grind. It was a good chance to evaluate Cremaschi.

 

Cremaschi, 20, is at Parma on loan from Inter Miami and there is a purchase option with the loan. Until Cremaschi starts delivering promising performances, it seems unlikely that Parma will exercise that option. But you never know how they have evaluated Cremaschi in training. Perhaps Parma sees long-term promise in him.

 

Yunus struggles

 

After a huge week where Yunus Musah scored two goals for Atlanta – both times he came off the bench and scored late – the first time was a goal to pull one back in a 2-1 loss to Sassuolo and the second was a late equalizer against Lazio in the Coppa Italia.

On Saturday, Musah was given a rare start for Atalanta away at Udinese and it did not go well as Musah was pulled at halftime with Atalanta trailing 1-0 (it ended a 2-2) draw.

It was a missed opportunity for Musah to change the narrative on his season and perhaps convince Atalanta to exercise its purchase option on its loan from AC Milan. As for his World Cup chances, they aren’t solid but he still has the experience of playing in the tournament before.

We will see what happens with Musah on Tuesday when Atalanta hosts Bayern Munich in the Champions League.

 

Pulisic decent in Milan loss

 

AC Milan remained in the hunt for the Scudetto after a huge 1-0 win over city rivals and league leaders Inter Milan. The chances are slim for AC Milan, but there is a pulse.

Christian Pulisic was decent in the game when he went 83 minutes and he nearly had an assist on a second half goal. But Pulisic has not scored or assisted for AC Milan in 2026 and it would be nice for Milan and the U.S. national team if he got back into better form with scoring in the final months of the season heading into the World Cup. But Milan head coach Massimiliano Allegri likely has no complaints as Pulisic fits well into his tactical plans.

If Pulisic plays as he did in this game, it should not be much of a concern for the U.S. national team. It was probably the best game he has played since the start of January.

 

Cardoso’s big chance on Tuesday

 

Mauricio Pochettino is expected to attend Tuesday’s Champions League game between Tottenham and Atletico Madrid in the Spanish capital. Johnny Cardoso has not made much of a footprint on the U.S. national team during the first years of his career, but this is his golden chance to impress the boss.

Cardoso is starting to find his form in recent weeks for Atletico and he had a productive shift off the bench in a 3-2 win over Real Sociedad on Saturday.

Central midfield is the most competitive area of the field for the U.S. national team, and Cardoso needs a March call-up to finally have the opportunity to put forth a big outing for the U.S. team. The spotlight will be on him on Tuesday with important people watching.

 

Yanks Elsewhere

 

Auston Trusty and Celtic are into the Scottish Cup semifinal after an Old Firm win over Rangers. The game finished 0-0 after 120 minutes but Celtic advanced on penalties 4-2 with Trusty converting an attempt. It has been an up and down season for both clubs but an Old Firm win is always good and Trusty played well.

Charlie Kelman scored the winning goal for Charlton Athletic in a 1-0 victory over Birmingham City in the Championship. It was the fifth goal of the season for Kelman, a former U.S. youth international. With the win, Charlton sits 18th.



Marseille defeated Toulouse 1-0 in a Ligue 1 matchup. Tim Weah went 90 minutes at right back for Toulouse while Mark McKenzie played on the right side of Toulouse’s three-man backline. Both turned in decent outings. McKenzie is having a good season but Toulouse has scored only two goals in its last five Ligue 1 games.

It was a tough game for Tanner Tessmann who went 64 minutes for Lyon in a 1-1 draw with Paris FC. While Tessmann has had a very good season, L’Equipe noted after the game Tessmann “was substituted to whistles.”

Malik Tillman played 25 minutes for Bayer Leverkusen in a wild 3-3 draw at Freiburg. The USMNT playmaker was quiet as all three of Leverkusen’s goals were scored after he came into the game.

The tough season for Damion Downs continued as he went 14 minutes for Hamburg in a 2-1 win over Wolfsburg but did not do anything of note. He has yet to score a goal this season for either Southampton or now HSV.

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