Howard Adds to Chelsea's misery

Believe it or not, reigning English Premier League champion Chelsea has earned just four points through the first five games of the season. It has conceded 12 goals and managed just one victory in that span. The latest heartache for Jose Mourinho's team came on Saturday in a 3-1 loss to Everton at Goodison Park.

Tim Howard might be the backup right now on the U.S. national team, but right now he is outplaying all American goalkeepers—in MLS or abroad. The New Jersey native only had to make one save for Everton against Chelsea but the win moved the Liverpool-based club into sixth place. Howard has conceded just five goals so far this season.

Painful collapse for Aston Villa

Aston Villa held a 2-0 lead late in the second half against Leicester City on Sunday but then everything began to unravel. The home team stepped up the pressure and scored goals in the 72nd, 82nd, and 89th minutes to complete the comeback victory 3-2.

Guzan had little chance on the first two goals but was at fault on Leicester City's winner when poor positioning allowed five-foot-four winger Nathan Dyer to head home the looping cross from distance. Villa sits in 15th place with just four points through five games.

Spector, Birmingham City stay unbeaten

Jonathan Spector, 29, has only been part of the national team on an irregular basis under Jurgen Klinsmann but he is a player to keep an eye on. The Illinois native has featured in all five of Birmingham City's games so far this year and the club has yet to lose.

In Saturday's 4-2 win over Bristol, Birmingham City moved into fourth place in the Championship despite having a game in hand against all the teams it is chasing. Spector, who can play anywhere along the back line, has featured mostly in central defense this season.

Wood scores a terrific goal

On Saturday Bobby Wood earned the start for Union Berlin in a road match against Karlsruhe. In the 49th minute the Honolulu native scored this terrific goal after a long run into the box. He initially fell to the ground but got up quickly to hit the shot. The tally gives the 22-year-old two goals in six matches so far this campaign

Wooten converts Penalty Kick

Despite not seeing any action for the U.S. men’s team during his first international call-up this month, Andrew Wooten continues to produce for 2.Bundesliga side Sandhausen where he started in Friday's 2.Bundesliga match against Bochum.

Down 1-0 to Bochum Friday night, Sandhausen earned a penalty and Wooten stepped up, took his chance, and buried it with ease. Wooten now has six league goals, tying him for the league lead with Freiburg's Nils Petersen.

Enochs Gets Gig at Osnabruck 

Joe Enochs has a long and storied history with Osnabruck in Germany's 3.Liga. The California native made 359 league appearances with the club and following his retirement in 2008 he took a job as the club’s academy coach while he pursued his UEFA coaching licenses. After a brief interim coaching gig in 2011 when it was relegated out of the 2.Bundesliga, Enochs remained with the club's front office while it was in the 3.Liga.

After a poor start to the 2015-16 season, Osnabruck made another coaching change and gave Enochs the job again on an interim basis. He won his first two matches and was then given the full-time job. On Saturday Osnabruck won its first game with Enochs as full-time coach, romping over Wehen Wiesbaden, 4-0, to lift the club to seventh place.

Stabaek drops a heartbreaker

Bob Bradley has done a fantastic job with Stabaek this year, leading his team to second place for the majority of the campaign. On Sunday the squad visited league-leading Rosenborg and conceded a 90th-minute goal in a 1-0 loss. While Stabaek remain in second place, the team's lead over third place Viking is now just one point.

Ream proving value to Fulham

Tim Ream left Bolton in the summer transfer window and joined up with fellow Championship club Fulham. The St. Louis native has proven to be a quality acquisition for the Cottagers, making three starts—his first was in the League Cup and the last two were in the Championship. Fulham has won all three matches.

On Sunday, Fulham defeated Blackburn 2-1 at London's Craven Cottage and the three points lifted it into 11th place.

Cameron and Stoke still struggling

It has been an awful start to the season for Stoke City and after Saturday's 2-0 loss to Arsenal in London, the club fell into a tie with Sunderland for last place in the Premier League. Still winless through five games, the Potters have just two points.

The game against Arsenal was tough to watch for Stoke fans. Arsenal was credited with 68% of the possession and registered 29 shots, with 12 on frame.

Cameron was the least of Stoke's problems where he was forced to make a lot of key clearances out of the back. He struggled with his passing out of the back but that was more reflective of Stoke's problems in the midfield. After the rough outing for the national team against Brazil followed by an onslaught from Arsenal, it has been a week to forget for the Massachusetts native.

Johnsen, Litex atop Bulgarian league

In Bulgaria's top flight, Litex Lovech remained in a first place tie thanks to a 2-0 win over Botev. American forward Bjorn Johnsen scored the second goal in the 81st minute after he was in the right place to knock home a rebound after a teammate's shot hit the post (at 2:47 of this clip).

Expected to be one of the top scorers in the league this season, this was Johnsen's first goal of 2015-16 season. That said, he has been a regular starter and has played well despite the lack of tallies.

Mukwelle Akale scores wonder goal

U.S. U-18 midfielder Mukwelle Akale is one of the top teenage American prospects in the game. Just watch his goal on Sunday for Villarreal's U-19 team and you'll understand why. This is one of the nicest goals scored by an American this year.

Check out my latest goal for Juvenil A #allin #bicyclekick #chilena pic.twitter.com/zgiVG0DMWV

— qTip (@mukwelle_akale) September 13, 2015

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