WHEN LOOKING AHEAD to the January transfer window, it’s tough to get a read on exactly how many American players will be on the move. The problem is that there are two types of transfers – players pushing upward after an impressive fall and players trying to get out of bad situations at clubs where they’re not particularly rated. Unfortunately, too many players are in the latter category and that makes it harder to predict.

From a USMNT perspective, things are stable as many of the biggest questions resolved themselves in 2024. Weston McKennie resettled at Juventus. Brenden Aaronson returned to Leeds and is doing well. While injured, Sergino Dest is at PSV on a permanent deal. Malik Tillman is also doing well with PSV on a permanent deal. Mark McKenzie made a nice move up from Belgium to Toulouse.

Among those looking to break into the team, Tanner Tessmann, Auston Trusty, and Aidan Morris were both successful in moving in the summer and are stable, for the time being. Paxten Aaronson has hit a home run with his loan to Utrecht.

When looking at the more established USMNT player pool, most players are in a stable spot. Folarin Balogun, Josh Sargent, Christian Pulisic, Tim Weah, Weston McKennie, Yunus Musah, Tyler Adams, Cameron Carter-Vickers, Chris Richards, Joe Scally, Sergino Dest, and Tim Ream are all in stable club situations.

Of those USMNT regulars in good club situations who could be looking to make a move up, Antonee Robinson, Malik Tillman, Johnny Cardoso, and Ricardo Pepi are most likely.44

The list of those in the regular USMNT pool is not big. Gio Reyna, Luca de la Torre, Matt Turner, and Ethan Horvath would all fit that description. Kristoffer Lund is a borderline call.

Most of the transfer activity, however, will likely involve players who are on the  outer edge of the USMNT pool and might need to make a move to put their career back on an upward trajectory. Good examples of this would be Taylor Booth, Rokas Pukstas, Bryan Reynolds, Gaga Slonina, etc.

Here are my thoughts on the most likely targets.

Potential January Transfers

Antonee Robinson: With Pulisic locked in at Milan, Robinson is the most high-profile American player who could move in 2025. There is an excellent case that he is the top left back in the Premier League through the first five months of 2024/25 and is now captaining Fulham. He fits what most teams want in a modern fullback. He’s likely going to land at Champions League club in 2025. The most likely bet, for me, is that he finishes the season at Fulham and moves in the summer. But it’s not out of the realm of possibilities that someone makes the Cottagers an offer they can’t refuse.

Lennard Maloney: Per a Sky News report, Maloney declined to sign a new contract with FC Heidenheim this fall. That makes it very likely that Bundesliga club will look to move the defensive midfielder as soon as an acceptable offer is made. Maloney did well in 2023/24 and helped keep the small club comfortably away from relegation. But 2024/25 has seen reality hit hard, and a relegation battle awaits. Maloney likely believes that he has done all he can with Heidenheim and earning a Conference League spot was probably the club’s maximum potential.

Maloney is interesting because he’s not for every club. He does a lot of the dirty work that small clubs need to compete above their weight. He’s not going to find much of a need at big-budget clubs. Some coaches would love a Maloney-type player, others won’t. Maloney needs to find a club that has a coach who is in a stable position and who have a system where the defensive midfielder isn’t required to be heavily involved in offense, transition, or complicated possession. The market might not be big for him, but it exists. It’s hard to see a lot of minutes available for him at a club that is significantly better than Heidenheim.

He's a rare situation where he’s neither trying to get out of a bad club situation nor has he outgrown Heidenheim. He probably just wants to see what else is out there while he still can.

As for the USMNT, it’s too early to see if Maloney is a player that Mauricio Pochettino wants.

Luca de la Torre: De la Torre is a player who needs a move for a lot of reasons. It would be extremely surprising if he is still at Celta Vigo come February. The warning signs were there in August when it was reported that new manager Claudio Giráldez González did not rate de la Torre and the club was hoping to move him. Then in the fall, de la Torre battled an injury. He’s healthy now, but minutes are still few are far between.

This has come at a bad time for him with the USMNT as other midfielders like Aidan Morris and Tanner Tessmann have emerged and likely moved past de la Torre.

De la Torre, 26, has to move, but where? His club career is still pretty spotty – he never stuck with Fulham, he was relegated in the Eredivisie with Heracles, and he’s been in two relegation battles in La Liga (with the team improving only after he fell out of favor). There is a market for him in Europe,  but probably not a very high level as a starter. Meanwhile, the new San Diego FC team in his hometown is set for its inaugural season. Money will be a factor.



Gio Reyna: The Borussia Dortmund playmaker is tough to read due to him missing most of the first half of the season with an injury. He's since returned (even scoring a goal) but minutes aren't regular yet. Is that due to the club not rating him, or are they manaing his minutes? Dortmund would likely sell Reyna if the money was there, and it's hard to see big offers for him given his injury troubles and his poor loan last season to Nottingham Forest. A move this January is possible, but is certainly not a sure thing. It might make sense after the season, once he is able to play more. But Reyna is now 22 and needs to find a place where he can play regularly. 

Ricardo Pepi: There were reports of PSV being interested in selling Ricardo Pepi in the fall, but that has since quieted. There is good reason for that as Pepi has played extremely well and Luuk de Jong has quieted a little bit. Pepi is now also playing more and is continuing to score. PSV can't rely as much on de Jong as they have and more and more, Pepi looks to be ready to be a key contributor. He's still one to watch this month, but a move would be surprising. 

Rokas Pukstas: The Hajduk Split attacking midfielder seemed all set to be transferred in the summer with the club’s sporting director even going on record saying that the Oklahoma native was going to be sold. The rumored target was newly promoted Parma in Serie A, but the Italian club’s offer wasn’t enough. The problem heading into this winter is that for Pukstas, 20, his numbers and impact haven’t been as good as last season. He still can make Hajduk money, but the issue is whether the Croatian club is willing to come down in its asking price. It’s hard to see a deal happening if they don’t. If they do, Pukstas can still make a nice move upward – possibly into a top league given his youth. It might take him some time to adjust, but he has an upside.

Taylor Booth: The recent Olympic team winger/attacking midfielder finds himself in a tough spot where he’s likely on his way out at Utrecht as the club has acquired Miliano Jonathans in his position.

Dutch report indicates they think Taylor Booth is on his way out at Utrecht this winter due to the club's signing of Miliano Jonathans from Vitesse.

"With the arrival of Jonathans, FC Utrecht has a surplus of wingers, which seems to put an end to Taylor Booth's stay at the… pic.twitter.com/EtyliPZmcl

— Brian Sciaretta (@BrianSciaretta) December 17, 2024

Booth, 23, has had success in the Eredivisie and this means he could have suitors within the league. The fact he has an EU passport increases his options in Europe and in the Eredivisie. The problem is that he has struggled with injuries in recent seasons. Right now, his best options are likely elsewhere in the Eredivisie, Belgium, top second divisions, or MLS.

Johnny Cardoso: The New Jersey-born central midfielder, 23, reportedly has an agreement that allows him to move to Tottenham for a set price. He’s doing well at Real Betis and has been on a steady progression upward. It’s easy to see him making another move up sooner than later, but after the season seems more likely.

Bryan Reynolds: The former FC Dallas fullback can use a change of scenery as he has stagnated a little bit at Westerlo. The reports (which ASN can verify are accurate) that he will likely move – the likely target is Sparta Prague but teams in the Championship are also in pursuit. The Belgian Pro League is better than the Czech Liga, but Sparta has more potential to win and play in Europe.

John Tolkin: The New Jersey left back had yet another good season with the New York Red Bulls. We thought he would be sold after last season, but he returned to RBNY and played even better – leading the Red Bulls to MLS Cup while also solidifying a starting spot on the U.S. Olympic team. RBNY won’t stand in his way if a good offer comes. But he needs to get that offer.

Richard Ledezma: Ledezma has helped his case tremendously to start 2024/25 where he has played 773 minutes in the Eredivisie, 149 minutes in the Champions League, and 76 minutes in the Dutch Cup. It mostly has come out of position at right back where he is learning the position quickly. He only occasionally played in his attacking midfield position. But the question is now what is next? He’s in the last year of his contract and can negotiate with clubs in January. The wrinkle in his situation is that PSV must pay him the minimum non-EU salary, which is very high. If he was an EU player, PSV almost certainly would want to keep him. But as a non-EU player, it’s a tough decision. If he claims the starting right back job, he might get PSV to pull the trigger. It becomes harder if he’s a long-term backup (with Sergino Dest returning in the next month or two).

Ledezma has given himself more leverage to negotiate and we will have a good idea of his next steps in January.

Jack McGlynn: The Philadelphia Union midfielder has played a lot with the Union and earned a spot on the 2024 Olympic team. He’s shown a lot of promise as well. There aren’t any concrete rumors yet, but there is speculation that it wouldn’t be surprising if offers come in soon. The always reliable Jonathan Tannenwald has been beating this drum for a while now.

Gaga Slonina: The American goalkeeper recently had his loan to Barnsley terminated and while he had a few good games, it wasn’t a good loan. His first loan to Eupen last season was tough to rate as the club was in poor shape and there wasn’t much any goalkeeper could have done for them. He’s young and things can still go his way, but he probably would have been better remaining with the Chicago Fire, where he was a starter and was improving. He really needs his next move to be well thought out.

Matai Akinmboni: The U.S. U-20 central defender is likely moving this winter from DC United to AFC Bournemouth.  The question then becomes what is the best route for playing time once he joins the Premier League club? It’s too bad he did not get many minutes with DC United because if he was a starter, he could have stayed and developed more at home before making the move to a club where he could then start.

Brandon Vazquez: The U.S. international forward has struggled for consistent minutes at Monterrey even though his numbers have been pretty good. All signs point to an exit and Vazquez likely has his most value back in the United States where he has proven to be effective.  

Matthew Hoppe: Four years ago, Hoppe earned a wave of headlines after he scored a hat trick in the Bundesliga as a teenager with Schalke. Since then, he has struggled mightily to fit in anywhere (Mallorca, Middlesbrough, a loan to San Jose, and in his return to Boro). He needs to get out of Boro, drop to a level where he can play. Boro would love to get him off the books too. It’s up to Hoppe to make some tough choices.

Leo Duru: The U.S. U-20 right back is at Blackburn and seemed to hint a loan could be possible for him to help him continue his development. That would make sense as he will turn 20 in January and needs first team minutes.