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Morning update

News and Notes: Pepi injured, Sargent in limbo, McKennie great, Paredes returns, & more

ASN's Brian Sciaretta runs through the news with some thoughts - ranging from the good (McKennie), to the bad (Pepi), and everything in between (Sargent). 
BY Brian Sciaretta Posted
January 14, 2026
7:05 AM

HAPPY WEDNESDAY TO all ASN readers. We took a sick day on Monday and spent Tuesday catchup with thoughts on the news in American soccer. There is a lot to talk about with the murky club situations for Josh Sargent and Weston McKennie along with an injury to Ricardo Pepi. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

For now, we will start off with the good news in Italy.

 

McKennie magnificent vs. Cremonese

 

Weston McKennie turned in one of his best outings of the season on Monday for Juventus in a 5-0 rout over 13th place Cremonese. The win moved Juventus into fourth place. He scored the team’s final goal but also was the most responsible for forcing an own goal for the team’s fourth goal.

McKennie is in the final year of his contract and can now free to negotiate and sign for any club. At an impasse with Juventus, McKennie is raising the stakes and the legacy he has at the club is fascinating. He drifts in and out of being in favor and this is the fourth time it has seemed like he is exiting the club. Maybe Juventus and McKennie get back into a room to negotiate a new deal, but maybe not.

 

But eventually he will leave and his legacy will be interesting to follow. He is underappreciated on one hand, but perhaps him constantly being on the edge of being in favor or being out of the plans is what motivates him to be at his best.

Either way, if McKennie leaves soon, Juventus will likely miss him more and more over time.

As for the national team, this is all great news. He’s playing his best soccer heading into the World Cup and no other American central midfielder can do what he does when he’s at the top of his game.

 

Pepi scores, gets injured

 

Ricardo Pepi underwent surgery on Sunday for a broken arm – which he suffered while scoring the second goal of a 5-1 win over Excelsior. He is expected to miss two months.

This injury is a setback for Pepi in that it takes him out of rhythm in what has been a great season where he finally earned the trust of manager Peter Bosz to claim the starting job at the No. 9 position.

 

Still, this injury hurts PSV more than the USMNT. Pepi might be back in time for the March friendlies. If not, he will be back well in time for the World Cup. For the U.S. team, it’s simply important that Pepi get back in time to find his rhythm again. If everything goes according to play, that shouldn’t be an issue.

For PSV, Pepi will miss Champions League knockout games and important Eredivisie games as PSV looks to comfortably win the league.

Another setback for this injury is whether it cools the transfer interest in Pepi as Fulham was in hot pursuit of him in the weeks before the injury.

 

Sargent’s mess in Norwich

 

Despite being in the middle of a rough season, Josh Sargent was expected to be the subject of transfer rumors this January, but not like this. Fabrizio Romano reported last week that Toronto FC submitted a $19 million bid for Sargent.

But apparently, Sargent took himself out of the lineup for Norwich’s FA Cup win over Walsall on Sunday. Norwich head coach Philippe Clement talked about the situation has unfolded in an ugly manor.

"Josh sent me a message [Saturday] evening saying he would not be available because of transfer things in his head," said Clement.

"This is obviously not something we want and will have consequences. It is something we need to speak about inside the club, but the club has made it really clear to Josh and his agent that he will not be leaving during this transfer window."

How exactly this situation ends is not clear? But how will Sargent play again for Norwich after he refused to play? Will Norwich sit him and watch his value crumble?

Sargent is unlikely to go to the World Cup if Pepi and Folarin Balogun are healthy and playing but one injury could put him back in the mix.

But this will be fascinating how this unfolds. Following a hot start to the season in August, things have been miserable for Sargent after an unsuccessful international window in September. He’s been injured for stretches and when he’s been healthy, he hasn’t played well.

As for Toronto, Sargent could be a huge addition.

 

Yow to New England

 

Griffin Yow is in the final season of his contract with Westerlo and the 2024 U.S. Olympic team winger and starting in January, he was free to sign with any team. In the end, he was able to secure a move to return stateside and join the New England Revolution.

At one point, Gent in Belgium was interested – and it is easy to see why. Gent is managed by Rik De Mil, who previously managed Westerlo when Yow enjoyed his breakout season in 2023/24. That season is when Yow forced his way onto the 2024 Olympic team from out of nowhere.

But the New England Revolution are managed by Marko Mitrovic, who previously managed the Olympic team where Yow became a starter in Paris.

Yow is a very direct player and it is best for him to go to a club where the manager knows exactly what to expect from him. He might not be a fit for every manager.

When looking at leagues, midtable Belgium or midtable MLS isn't a debate over a lot. But going from a situation when he's not playing much for a bottom-half Belgian team to a situation where he could be playing a lot for New England is a significant step up.

Yow will turn 24 this MLS season. There are financial considerations at play for him and he needs to put himself in the best position to play and maximize his earnings. New England won out.

 

Downs debuts for HSV

 

It’s good news for Damion Downs, 21, that he was able to get out of Southampton after what was ultimately a bad transfer last summer from Koln. He was always a good fit in Germany and he bounced from Koln after having a great season in the 2.Bundesliga where he helped the club to promotion. Six months later, he’s back to where he should be – the lower half of the Bundesliga. This time it is with a Hamburg team that has scored only 16 goals all season in 15 games prior to this weekend.

 

Downs walked immediately into the team’s starting XI for a matchup against Freiburg.

Ultimately it did not go well as Downs didn’t do much in his 78 minutes on the field (Hamburg were reduced to 10-men in the 51st minute). Downs was routinely beaten on nearly all of his duels and he managed just one shot.

Downs is still a good prospect for the U.S. national team and it will take him some time to get back into the rhythm of playing every game. But right now, the USMNT should not be close to his main concern. He needs to justify to HSV that he can be their starting forward and that the club does not need to look for a high-caliber No. 9 this summer. Everything else follows that.

 

Scally stars for M’Gladbach

 

Borussia Monchengladbach easily defeated Augsburg 4-0 over the weekend in what was a rare game inside or Europe’s top five leagues that featured three American players.

From an American perspective, Joe Scally was the star of the game and he scored the opening goal. He was also solid in every other aspect.

For the U.S. national team, this was important for Scally as he is behind both Sergino Dest and Alex Freeman in the pecking order. He might have an opening, however, if Mauricio Pochettino views Dest as a winger more than a right back. By any perspective, he is on the bubble. But games like this help. It is all about doing enough to earn a call-up for March and then impressing there.

Gio Reyna was on the bench and only made a cameo in the 85th minute once the game was out of reach. In other words, he wasn’t missed. As another player who is on the bubble, it was not a welcome development that he could not start in coming back from the winter break. He is on the radar after his strong November camp, but he needs to step up for his club– soon.

Noahkai Banks, 19, wasn’t at fault for any of the goals but as a central defender, it wasn’t good for him to be part of a blowout loss. He remains one of the top young American prospects and he plays a position of need, but his value would be severely impacted if Augsburg are relegated. Right now, they’re two points clear of the relegation zone.

Banks remains in the hunt for a World Cup roster spot and the central defense position is wide open.

 

Paredes is back

 

Kevin Paredes made his return to the field after yet another long-term injury. He played the final 13 minutes for Wolfsburg in an otherwise terrible 8-1 loss to Bayern Munich (it was 7-1 when the former 2024 U.S. Olympic team winger entered).

Overall, it’s great to see him back and hopefully he can stay healthy for a long stretch. He needs that. He will turn 23 at the end of the season and injuries have really been the dominant story since he joined Wolfsburg. He was considered very durable during his days in DC.

He is certainly one for next cycle if he get back on track, but another injury could see Wolfsburg lose confidence in him. He’s at a pivotal period in his career. He must stay healthy the rest of season.

 

Cardoso starts in Copa del Rey win

 

Johnny Cardoso played the full 90 for Atletico Madrid on Monday in a 1-0 away win over Deportivo La Coruna (currently fifth in the second tier La Liga 2). The winning goal was from a free kick by Antonio Griezmann in the 61st minute. The free kick was given after Cardoso was fouled outside the box.

It was great to see Cardoso get playing time and he certainly played well. But was it enough to get him more minutes in La Liga games? That remains to be seen.

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