HAPPY TUESDAY to all you ASN readers, we hope you were able to have the day off on Monday for President’s Day – as we did – and that everything is going well. Here is a quick notes to start your week.

Just to keep everyone in the loop, we have a lot of MLS content this week as the season is set to open this weekend. We will do our conference previews and predictions as well as rate the top young American players and toss in a few interviews if we have the time.

Here is some news to kick off your day.

Sands will miss a lot of time

James Sands, 24, was off to a great start at St. Pauli since joining the club last month on loan from New York City FC. The six-months deal included the possibility to extend through the following season if criteria were met (likely if St. Pauli weren’t relegated). 

But all that came to a screeching halt on Saturday when in the final minute against Freiburg, Sands was injured on a free kick into the box. The immediate scenes indicated it was serious as teammates and opponents signaled to the bench for help.

Sands was rushed into surgery for a complicated ankle injury. He is out indefinitely.

It’s an awful blow to a player who excelled with his hometown club and was on the brink of reestablishing himself with the national team via Bundesliga performances. Hopefully within a few weeks we can get a timetable for his return and whether the path forward for him is to return to NYCFC and get back to his level.

Americans abroad

I analyzed the weekend for Americans abroad over at Soccer America and it was a better weekend that at first glance. Aside from Paxten Aaronson and Josh Sargent, there weren’t too many fireworks.

The weekend was good to Tyler Adams and Antonee Robinson in the Premier League. 

For Adams, he went 90 minutes for Bournemouth in a 3-1 away win over cellar-dweller Southampton. Overall, it was another very good performance and Adams is turning in consistently strong outings for the first time in years. 

This is so important on so many levels. He is arguably the best American export out of MLS who started at the academy level, and now he has a chance to return to the Champions League and the list of American players who have qualified for that competition from the Premier League is short. It is a good thing for Adams and everyone that he is back into the highest levels of the game. Obviously for the national team, it is huge to finally have a stable presence in central midfield. 

For Robinson, his consistency is nothing new. He has been good for years, although this remains his best season. He is now captaining a Fulham team that is also within striking distance of Europe. He has been part of the club’s promotion and rise within the Premier League. He is now the team’s captain. 

Robinson turned in another 90-minute outing over the weekend in a 2-1 win over third place Nottingham Forest. It wasn’t a flashy performance, and he’s played better this season, but he was steady and reliable against a very good team. The result was Fulham’s third win over its last four league games and the Cottagers now sit in eighth place.  

In Serie A, it was also a very good day at the office for Weston McKennie, Tim Weah, and Juventus who defeated second-place Inter Milan at home 1-0 to move back into fourth place. Despite having just 42% possession, Juventus managed to win and both Americans played all 90 minutes. Weah was very good at right back while McKennie created many of the best Juventus chances in the game. McKennie seems to be settling back into his normal midfield role, which is good for him, Juventus, and the U.S. national team. 

In terms of younger players trying to push upward, Tanner Tessmann continues to build his resume with Lyon and on Saturday, the Alabama native played 90 minutes in a 4-1 away win over Montpellier. While he didn’t have any very big moments, he was quietly steady throughout the game and helped Lyon control the midfield in a win that saw the club remain in sixth place of Ligue 1. 

Tessmann had a good year in 2024. He helped Venezia win promotion to Serie A, he captained the Olympic team, and he moved to Lyon. While he hit a patch where minutes were tough to come by, he is back to playing and is taking advantage of his time on the field. Lyon has done well with Tessmann on the field, and he now has played 900 minutes for Lyon in all competitions. 

He’s had some tough learning lessons in moving to a big club like Lyon, but he should like where he stands. 

Likewise, this season has been a great learning experience for Santiago Castaneda. The young defensive midfielder signed with Paderborn last year and is in his first season with the 2.Bundesliga club. The 20-year-old from Tampa, hit a rough patch over the past month but was given the start for Paderborn on Friday against Preussen Munster. 

Really good from Santiago Castaneda in a 2-0 win.
- 10/13 ground duels
- 3/3 aerials
- 4 fouls drawn
- 4 clearances
- 3/4 dribbles
- 90 mins/73 touches
- 45/51 passing
- this could get Paderborn back into promotional race
- Castaneda should continue to start https://t.co/TAjR7LUNYG

— Brian Sciaretta (@BrianSciaretta) February 14, 2025

Needing to take advantage of the opportunity, Castaneda turned in one of his best and most complete performances of the season in a 2-0 win. He got on the ball a lot and he won an overwhelming majority of his duels to help Paderborn control the midfield. 

As mentioned, Paxton Aaronson scored for Utrecht in a 2-2 draw with PSV Eindhoven and was named to the Eredivisie Team of the Week. This continues to be a great loan that is only going to either open the door back at his parent club, Eitnracht Frankfurt, or with another club in a top league. As for the U.S. national team, it's hard to see many players in front of him as he fights for a roster spot. 

U-17 team qualifies for the World Cup

After two lopsided results to open the group stage, the U.S. team defeated Cuba 2-0 on Saturday to qualify for the 2025 U-17 World Cup. In three games, the U.S. team boasted a +31 goal differential. That is more reflective of CONCACAF’s new format which encourages lopsided routs because goal differential is at play.

“They became a team. They became a family. They were able to be successful.”

????? Head coach Gonzalez Segares on the #U17MNT’s journey throughout the @Concacaf qualifiers. pic.twitter.com/ZuLSAeiynd

— U.S. Soccer YNT (@USYNT) February 16, 2025

There isn’t much to take away other than the best U.S. players were Chase Adams and Maximo Carrizo who happened to be the goal scorers against Cuba. Adams had 11 goals in the three games and it will be interesting to see if Columbus signs him to a homegrown soon.

Hopefully this team can get back to playing better teams soon.