Antonee_robinson_-_asn_top_-_fulham_-_bright_and_hove_-_feb_2023
Americans abroad analysis

Ream, Robinson, Pepi, & Steffen stand out in tough weekend for Yanks in Europe

ASN's Brian Sciaretta opens up his Americans abroad notebook and gives an outline as to the good and the bad for Americans abroad this past weekend - in what has been an overall tough start to 2023. 
BY Brian Sciaretta Posted
February 20, 2023
5:45 PM

HAPPY PRESIDENT’S DAY weekend and we hope that all of you have the day off and are enjoying the time. As for soccer, it is a busy time in the United States but for Americans abroad this past weekend wasn’t all that great.

Among the top players, there were exceptions – here’s looking at you Fulham’s left side of the defense, Zack Steffen, Bryan Reynolds, and a few others as well – but it was a very bad set of days.

Where do we even start? Here’s the Cliff Notes version.

 

Christian Pulisic is still out. The Leeds United trio of Weston McKennie, Tyler Adams, and Brenden Aaronson had a terrible loss that puts the club in serious danger of relegation. Gio Reyna was unused in Dortmund’s win. Mark McKenzie and Belgian-leading Genk are suddenly in a little slump after a tough draw. Chris Richards only saw a handful of minutes for Palace. Erik Palmer-Brown only played the first half for a Troyes team sinking towards relegation. Tim Weah fatigued late and was exposed by PSG in Lille’s 4-3 loss.  Josh Sargent and Norwich are slipping from the promotion battle after a lackluster 0-0 draw and now Sargent suffered an ankle injury and will miss the club's next two games. Ethan Horvath and Luton Town lost. Jordan Pefok and Union Berlin squandered a golden opportunity to move atop the Bundesliga table. The same could be said for Djordje Mihailovic and AZ Alkmaar. Joe Scally was unused in a massive M’Gladbach win. Sergino Dest was unused for AC Milan. Malik Tillman was injured for Rangers. Pellegrino Matarazzo and John Brooks lost a heartbreaker as Hoffenheim is in trouble. In the 2.Bundesliga, George Bello and Julian Green didn’t get off the bench. Terrence Boyd and Kaiserslautern were held scoreless in a loss that seriously hurts their promotional campaign.

But let’s get into the specifics – some good but mostly bad.

 

Leeds United is in trouble

 

On Saturday, Leeds United traveled to face Everton in what was a classic relegation “six-pointer.” With Leeds crumbling, this was a game they had to win to show life that they are serious about staying up. Instead, Everton came away with a 1-0 win on Seamus Coleman’s 64th minute goal.

Tyler Adams was probably the best Leeds United player on the day, and he went 90 minutes but there is only so much he can do. Weston McKennie started and played 78 minutes in a decent but unspectacular performance. Brenden Aaronson played 29 minutes and was okay but not a game-changer.

It’s an ugly situation and it has left Leeds United now in second to last place and needing wins to climb out. The problem is that Bournemouth and Everton are playing better and this has left Southampton, Leeds, and West Ham (the current three in the relegation zone) in poor shape.

Leeds has much deeper problems than the three American players. The team can’t score as it has been shutout in four of its last five Premier League games. It is winless in its last 10 league games. There just isn’t nearly enough talent in the front line. Did the team overpay on the Americans? Maybe - although McKennie is there only on loan. But it didn’t spend nearly enough in key areas.

If Leeds goes down, McKennie will return to Juventus and possibly make another move. Adams will probably get sold. Aaronson might remain in the Championship. On Monday, he played for Leeds United’s U-21 team in the Premier League 2.

 

Fulham post a big win

 

One of the bright spots this weekend was Fulham’s 1-0 away win over Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday. Both Tim Ream and Antonee Robinson were first-rate over 90 minute performances and Fulham finished the weekend sixth in the Premier League. It’s been a remarkable season and the Cottagers have a real chance of finishing in line for spot in Europe. Most figured Fulham were going to be relegation fodder.

Robinson, 25, is playing like he is going to get serious offers this summer. He has been a way-above-average Premier League left back this season. Two years ago in his first Premier League season, Robinson showed glimpses in an unsuccessful relegation battle. This year, he is showing he is far more than an athlete with a great engine. His runs getting forward are effective, his crosses are improving but still okay, and his defense is first rate. He is winning his duels and isn’t getting beaten.

Robinson will get offers but the good news for him is that there aren’t many teams in England better than Fulham at the moment. If Robinson remains at Fulham, it’s still a good situation.

As for Ream, it’s been one of the best feel-good stories for American soccer in a long time. He used to have a reputation as an excellent Championship defender but not effective at a higher level. This season in the Premier League, he’s even more effective than he is in the Championship. He’s not far off from the Premier League team of the season.

How long will Ream be able to keep it going? No one knows. Maybe he can remain with the national team through the Copa America next year? It’s certainly a possibility.

 

Hajduk Split – America

 

While Leeds United has three American players, Hajduk Spit is now one of the few teams (along with Fulham) who plays two American players.

Last weekend, U.S. U-20 midfielder Rokas Pukstas scored two goals for Hajduk Split in a 4-1 win over Varazdin. He looks as if he will start most of the games for the remainder of the season and he started on Sunday against HNK Gorica.

But also starting against Gorica is Miami native Augustin Anello who recently joined Hajduk Split on loan from Lommel in Belgium’s second tier. The 20 year-old left winger impressed at Lommel and earned the loan with an option to buy.

 

In this game, Anello played 64 minutes and Pukstas played 90 minutes for Hajduk Split in a 2-1 win. Anello left the game with the score 1-1. Pukstas played well in his performance and was behind setting up several opportunities and winning duels.

But overall, a narrow win over last-place Gorica isn’t great for Hajduk, which is in second place and is one of two powerful clubs in Croatia. Next weekend will be a huge opportunity for both players and Hajduk when they visit leaders Dinamo Zagreb. It is a clash between the country’s two biggest teams.

Pukstas is quickly emerging as a promising 18 year old starter for Hajduk and it will be interesting to see if he is released for the U-20 World Cup which starts on May 20th and the NHL season runs through June 3. He also should then be in the mix for the U.S. U-23 Olympic team later in the year.

Anello, 20, has never played with U.S. youth teams but that could change if he plays with the Hajduk the rest of this season and plays well. He is eligible for the U.S. U-23 team.

 

Pepi scores for Groningen

 

Ricardo Pepi, 20, scored his eighth goal of the season for Groningen on Sunday in an otherwise disappointing 1-1 draw with Emmen. The good news for Pepi is that he is performing well enough on a club where it is very difficult to do so. Groningen is having an abysmal year and is second to last in the Eredivisie. Drawing a fellow relegation battler in Emmen at home is not a good sign.

But Pepi now has eight goals in 1445 minutes in the Eredivisie and that is good – especially when several of his opponents are just on another level. In terms of development, this is a good year for Pepi. He’s learning to do more with less. This was his goal from the weekend.



Pepi almost surely won’t be back with Groningen next year. His loan from Augsburg expires in June and they might want to give him another look as they are midtable in the Bundesliga. Even if not, he is doing more than enough for a loan to a better team next season.

Internationally, Pepi will have options. This summer, he should be with the U.S. team for one of the two tournaments – either the Nation’s League or the Gold Cup. He probably won’t be with the U.S. U-20 World Cup team. After that, U.S. Soccer will have a decision whether to have him focus on the Olympics for 2024 or the Copa America. It will also come down to how other players in his position are performing.

 

Headley earns MOTM

 

A big congratulations to Jaheim Headley, 21, the young left back from Huddersfield. Making just his second start for the club, Headley was enormous for a Huddersfield in a 2-1 win over Auston Trusty and Birmingham City (as a note, Duane Holmes remains out injured for Huddersfield).

Headley notched a goal and an assist in the win which pushed Huddersfield to within two points of safety after sitting in last place.

The goal was the result of a fantastic run forward up the left flank and a brilliant finish to the far post.

Headley was born in London and developed at Millwall’s academy before moving to Huddersfield’s academy. Through his parents, he is eligible for England, the United States, and Jamaica. Jamaica seems like a realistic contender for his services but if he continues to play well perhaps he can push John Tolkin, Caleb Wiley, and Jonathan Gomez for a left back spot on the Olympic team.

 

It is amazing that after being thin at left back for generations, American soccer is producing more young left backs than right backs these days.

 

Steffen & Boro’s big win

 

One of the biggest Americans abroad winners from the weekend was Zack Steffen on Saturday which defeated QPR 3-1 at home. This comes on the heels of their big 3-1 win on the road over second place Sheffield United. On top of this, Millwall defeated Sheffield United and everything is breaking for Boro.

It was once thought that Burnley and Sheffield United were going to run away with the two automatic promotion spots. But third-place Middlesbrough has now won five in a row and nine of ten with other results going their way.

 

At the end of this weekend, Steffen and Boro are now in third place, seven points ahead of fourth place Luton Town and is now only four points behind Sheffield United (after being 10 points behind a week ago).

Steffen had to make just one save against QPR but made nine saves against Sheffield United. He has clearly set himself up for a big spring and a true promotional race. If successful, the most likely result is that Boro finds a way to buy him from Manchester City off his loan and he starts in the Premier League. He had a rough start to the season but he’s now in great shape.

 

Musah and Valencia’s costly defeat

 

The odds that Valencia are relegated out of La Liga are increasing every week. This team is stuck in the mud and is playing way below its talent level. On Monday, the team’s 1-0 loss to Getafe was a great example. Playing against another relegation battling team, Valencia had the chances and the possession to win this game. They couldn’t capitalize, but Getafe could.

Musah hasn’t been great this season. He has no goals and two assists on the year. He’s stifled by the team’s system and negative environment, but he’s also part of the problem too. He’s not getting on the ball enough or creating much of anything.

In the loss to Getafe, Musah played 69 minutes and completed just 15 passes over 25 touches. He had only one pass into the final third with no shots. That is simply not enough for what is supposed to be a La Liga team with a floor of midtable. Yes, part of it is on the club but part of it is on him.

If Valencia goes down, Musah will get sold but if his numbers don’t improve it will raise the question over his market value. You can see his talent, but clubs will also want to pay top dollar if they see output too.

 

Yanks in England

 

In the Premier League, Chris Richards played the final nine minutes of Crystal Palace's 1-1 draw at Brentford on Saturday. He was on the field for Brentford's late equalizer although he was not involved or at fault. Also, Matt Turner watched from the bench as Arsenal defeated Aston Villa 4-2 away.

In the Championship, Josh Sargent started up top in the absence of the injured Teemu Pukki but he could not help Norwich score in a very disappointing 0-0 draw with last-place Wigan. Norwich remains in ninth place and have not improved much under David Wagner.

After the game, it was revealed Sargent suffered an ankle injury and would miss the next two games. 

 

Fourth place Luton Town dropped a 1-0 decision at home to leaders Burnley. Ethan Horvath made one save in the loss.  

On Monday, Daryl Dike played the final 28 minutes for West Brom in a 3-2 loss away to Watford. Dike had just four completed passes, 14 touches, and no shots in the loss.

 

Yanks in France

 

Tim Weah played 90 minutes at left back in a difficult 4-3 loss to leaders Paris St. Germain. Playing out of position due to injury, Weah has been looking decent at left back. In this game, he was strong for about 80 minutes but then noticeably fatigued. Lille had a surprising 3-2 lead until Kylian Mbappe equalized in the 87th and Lionel Messi won it with a free kick in stoppage time. Weah struggled in defense during the last 10 minutes. Even with the loss, Lille remained in sixth place.

Weah’s use at Lille hasn’t been optimal as he’s been used at a variety of positions to cover for injuries. He is a player who might seek an exit in the summer?

Erik Palmer-Brown started for Troyes at home to Montpellier but was pulled at halftime with the score 0-0. He was not on the field for Montpellier’s goal in a 1-0 win. With the loss, Troyes fell into 17th place and is in the relegation zone of Ligue 1. Troyes has now lost four in a row and has just one point from eight games.

 

Yanks in Germany

 

In the Bundesliga, Gio Reyna again did not get off the bench for Borussia Dortmund in its 4-1 win over Hertha BSC on Sunday. It was his second straight game remaining on the bench. While he has played well when given minutes, is time on the field remains very uneven.

The same could be said for Reyna’s friend Joe Scally who did not get off the bench for Borussia Monchengladbach’s massive 3-2 upset win over Bayern Munich. Scally too has not had the best of runs since the league resumed play in January but this was his first spell on the bench. Given the result, he might have to wait for more minutes.

Bayern’s loss opened a huge door for Union Berlin on Sunday. All they needed to do was defeat last-place Schalke and they would move atop the Bundesliga table. But it was a missed opportunity as the score finished 0-0. Jordan Pefok had a modest performance as he played the final 24 minutes, had 13 touches, one shot, and was 5/8 passing.

On Friday, Pellegrino Matarazzo had his second game for Hoffenheim in charge and he tried to reverse the team’s skid away at Augsburg. John Brooks played 90 minutes for Hoffenheim in what was a brutal 1-0 loss where the winning goal was conceded off a late corner. Brooks was decent but unspectacular in this game. He wasn’t at fault for the goal but the loss only has Hoffenheim in the safe positions only on goal differential.

Elsewhere in the Bundesliga, Caden Clark made RB Leipzig’s bench for the first time but did not play in a 3-0 win over Wolfsburg. His U.S. U-20 teammate Kevin Paredes missed the game for Wolfsburg due to illness. Timothy Chandler was an unused sub for Eintracht Frankfurt in a 2-0 win over Bremen. U.S. U-20 attacker Paxten Aaronson, however, scored for Frankfurt’s reserve team.

In the 2.Bundesliga, Julian Green stayed on the bench for Greuther Furth in a 2-1 win over Fortuna Dusseldorf. George Bello did the same for Arminia Bielefeld in a 2-1 loss to Hamburg which sent Bello & Co. back into the relegation zone.

Paderborn sent Kaiserslautern to its second straight loss with a 1-0 victory. Former U.S. national team forward Terrence Boyd, who turned 32 before the game, was held scoreless over his 84 minutes in the loss. Ryan Malone played 90 minutes in central defense for Hansa Rostock in a 1-0 loss at home to leaders Darmstadt.

The best American player in the 2.Bundesliga this weekend was Lennard Maloney who played 90 minutes for Heidenheim in a 5-0 pounding of 10-man Nurnberg. Heidenheim remained in third place and is in the mix of a promotional hunt.

How about Fabian Hurzeler? The 29-year-old head coach of St. Pauli was born in Houston (and played for the U.S. U-20 team) oversaw his team defeat Magdeburg 2-1 on the road. With that win, St. Pauli now has 12 points from four games under Hurzeler. It’s been a brilliant start to his head coaching career.

 

Yanks in Spain

 

Luca de la Torre played well in his 68 minutes for Celta Vigo but left with his team trailing Real Sociedad 1-0. He was not on the field for his team’s late equalizer in a 1-1 draw. But de la Torre continued his strong form in terms of passing, beating defenders with the dribble, and helping in possession.

U.S. U-20 eligible Luca Koleosho was an unused substitute for Espanyol in a 1-0 win away at last-place Elche. Koleosho has been called up by Canada but has never played for them. He is also eligible for Italy. He would be a nice upgrade for the U.S. U-20 team in the attack.

 

Yanks in the Netherlands

 

In a matchup between the top two teams in the Eredivisie, Feyenoord defeated AZ Alkmaar 2-1 to remain in first. Former Chicago Fire homegrown Djordje Mihailovic returned from injury and played the final six minutes for AZ in the loss. He was on the field for Feyenoord’s late winner but only had five touches.

Utrecht played PSV to a 2-2 draw on Sunday. Taylor Booth went 90 minutes for Utrecht and was 24/32 passing with two shots. Overall, it was another strong outing for the Utah native. Richard Ledezma was an unused sub for PSV as rumors of a loan to NYCFC loom.

 

Yanks in Portugal

 

Vizela played Gil Vicente to a 1-1 away draw on Saturday. Alex Mendez played the final 28 minutes for Vizela and was quiet, although he was on the field for Vizela’s late equalizer. U.S. U-20 mid Alejandro Alvarado was not in the squad for Vizela.

Benji Michel was an unused sub for Arouca in a 2-0 loss on the road to Sporting Braga on Sunday.

Reggie Cannon played 90 minutes in central defense for Boavista in a predicable 3-1 loss at leaders Benfica on Monday. Cannon managed seven clearances in the loss.

 

Yanks in Italy

 

Sergino Dest did not get off the bench for AC Milan in a 1-0 away win over Monza. Unless things change quickly, AC Milan does not appear likely to exercise its option to buy Dest on its loan from Barcelona.

In Serie B, Venezia remained just outside of its relegation playoff position following a 1-1 draw away at Pisa. Tanner Tessman might be the team’s best player this season and he put in another strong shift winning duels, taking shots, completing long balls, and helping dictate the pace of the game. The U.S. U-23 hopeful has been a bright spot in a bad situation at Venezia. Andrija Novakovich played just the final 16 minutes and Gianluca Busio made a late cameo.

 

Yanks in Belgium

 

For most of the Americans in Belgium, it has been a good season. That continued this weekend.

Bryan Reynolds had yet another strong outing for Westerlo in a 1-0 away win over St. Truiden. Reynolds, 21, caused all sorts of problems for St. Truiden and in this game he drew the winning penalty in the 41st minute. Reynolds is playing his way into a very good position this summer as his loan from Roma will expire and he should have plenty of suitors.

Marlon Fossey played 89 minutes for Standard Liege in their best win of the season, a 4-2 away victory over second place Union SG. Fossey continues to thrive as a wingback in a 3-5-2 formation where he can bomb forward into the attack. He’s been one of the better breakout stories this season for Americans in Europe. Will it translate into a call-up? It’s hard to say given that he plays in a far different formation. But if the U.S. team ever adopts a wingback formation again, Fossey could be a great fit.

The Union SG loss was huge news for Genk which has had its toughest two-game stretch of the season following a 2-2 draw on Friday to Mechelen. Mark McKenzie played the full 90 minutes and Genk has now failed to win in two straight games. But with Union SG losing, Genk move its lead up to seven points. McKenzie hasn’t been at the top of his game these past two weeks but hasn’t been a problem either. It’s still been a breakout season as they remain the heavy favorite to win the Belgian title this year.

 

Yanks in Scotland

 

It was a big day for Matthew Hoppe on Sunday after an injury forced him into the game for Hibs in the 37th minute against Kilmarnock. With the score 1-0 in the 47th minute, Hoppe got on the end of a lucky bounce after a failed Kilmarnock clearance hit a teammate in the face. The ball bounced back to Hoppe and he was able to finish from close range and a 2-0 lead. That is how it ended.



Hoppe, 21, has needed some luck to go his way and this was a good moment in his second game on loan to Hibs. Hoppe had three shots in this game and was named the MOTM for coming off the bench early and finding the back of the net.

Elsewhere in Scotland, Cameron Carter-Vickers and Celtic had no problems in a 4-0 win over Aberdeen (Dante Polvara went as an unused sub for Aberdeen). Celtic has a nine point lead atop the table and continues to have no problems this season with 24 wins in 26 games, with just one loss.

Rangers continues to win but the nine-point gap seems insurmountable at this point given Celtic’s quality. This weekend, it was a 3-0 win for Rangers over Livingston. Malik Tillman is out injured for Rangers while James Sands came into the game in the 87th minute to see out the win. Scott Pittman played all 90 minutes for Livingston.

 

Yanks elsewhere

 

After a big outing last game in Serbia’s Premier League in a win over Partizan Belgrade, Romain Gall started and played just the first half for Mladost Novi Sad in a 2-1 loss at home to TSC.

In Austria’s Bundesliga, Sebastian Soto played the second half for Austria Klagenfurt in a 3-0 loss to Wolfsberger. The former U.S. youth international came on after Wolfsberger had scored all three goals but he was unable to muster a comeback.

In the Greek Super League, Caleb Stanko started and played 63 minutes for last-place Lamia in a 3-0 loss at home to Olympiacos.

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