THERE WAS A LOT OF MIDWEEK soccer games to take in and some important bits of news that surfaced regarding the United States national team player pool and a possible addition.

Here is the news and some thoughts about it.

Siebatcheu hopes for call-up

It wasn’t too much of a surprise but it generated a lot of headlines when CBS Sports published an interview with Jordan Siebatcheu, 24, that said that he was ready to accept a call-up for the United States national team. Born in Washington, DC, Siebatcheu was raised in France and played for the French U-21 team in a pair of unofficial games in 2019.

At the start of 2020, Siebatcheu strongly hinted to ASN that he was willing to accept a call-up for the United States. We’ve been told Siebatcheu has been wanting a call-up for some time, but the problem is that until December 2020, he hasn’t done enough to join an emerging young U.S. forward group that has shown promise.

During that time, he was glued to the bench with Rennes with coaches there having no interest in him. At the start of the season, he was loaned to Swiss Champions BSC Young Boys and Siebatcheu was limited to mostly late-game cameos.

But in December, Siebatcheu started to play and the goals started to come. Last weekend he scored his ninth Super Liga goal to go along with three in the Europa League – all against Bayer Leverkusen.

Jordan Siebatcheu’s 9th of the Swiss Super League season to go along with 3 Europa League goals for Young Boys #USMNT pic.twitter.com/cfyZeljYnk

— Brian Sciaretta (@BrianSciaretta) March 6, 2021

He’s playing very well and is effective. I would be very surprised if he’s not called into the March friendlies.

But what do we make of his addition?

With the way Sargent is playing, even beyond his recent goal scoring outburst, he is the starting striker on the U.S. team. He is physical, he moves well, he can pass well.

Siebatcheu is in the mix with Daryl Dike, Jozy Altidore, Gyasi Zardes, Matthew Hoppe, Jesus Ferreira, Sebastian Soto, Nicholas Gioacchini.

There are a few things to note about Siebatcheu as a player. He is extremely fast, big, and strong in the open field. He is lethal in the air and typically finishes with his first touch. He’s not the most technical. His passing is okay and he rarely takes defenders on with a dribble. He seems like a situational forward that is best used against certain opponents or late in games when pushing. If there is a lot crossing or if the U.S. team is counterattacking, he’s very good.

But one honest question to ask is that he seems to be a little bit similar to Daryl Dike who is also big and strong while also not being the most technical. Is there room for both on the roster or is that redundant? Maybe or maybe not, but that will be interesting to see develop over this year – assuming Siebatcheu and Dike continue playing well.

On another note, he struggles with his English and it will be interesting to see how he can relate with his new teammates – many of whom are bilingual but few speak French.

Sargent scores again

On Wednesday, Josh Sargent scored again for Werder Bremen in a 2-0 away win over Arminia Bielefeld. After goals against Koln and Eintracht Frankfurt, it was his third straight game with a goal. Beyond the goals, Sargent is playing well and when players are working hard, they tend to get luck. This goal was similar to that as it was likely going in away after a deflected cross.

As for Sargent’s goal. When you’re playing well, you get the luck. Sargent’s been great the last few games, so he’s getting the bounces #USMNT https://t.co/bwdHio8Obu

— Brian Sciaretta (@BrianSciaretta) March 10, 2021

For Sargent, he put up better numbers in the last two games but in this game, on the road, it was just about seeing out a win. Once Werder moved ahead, protecting it was the goal.

• 64 minutes
• 23 touches
• 1 shot
• 1 goal
• 8/13 passing
• 3/8 duels won
• 2 clearances
• 0 dribbles
• 2x fouled

Sargent finally looks confident, relaxed, and happy. Werder might not generate enough chances for him, but Sargent is doing far better now with the same amount of service. When you watch his goal. He read the play well to make a nice run to get in front of the goal. He stayed onside and as soon as the cross was hit and then deflected, he was in the right spot. His instincts are impressive and he will be much better off after fighting through the difficult midseason spell he was in.

Dike and Barnsley held scoreless

For the first time in the eight Championship games since Daryl Dike joined the club, Barnsley failed to collect all three points. This happened on Wednesday when Barnsley and Derby County played to a 0-0 draw.

Dike, for his part, had another one of his typical and interesting stat lines. His passing at 6/16 was less than 40%. But once again, the Oklahoma native tried to put himself into the physical side of the game winning 10/22 duels and 7/13 aerials. He continues to put himself in to a huge number of attempts and his numbers are pretty good considering many of his attempts at aerials and duels have less than a 50-50 chance of winning. By doing this, Dike draws a lot of attention from defenders who know they will be in for a difficult contest against the 6’2”, 220 pound Dike.

The result was disappointing but Barnsley still have accumulated 22/24 points since Dike’s arrival and due to his presence, his team generally has more chances even if Dike is not the person most involved in the chance.

This weekend, Dike and Barnsley will face Cameron Carter-Vickers and an AFC Bournemouth team it is challenging for a promotional playoff position. Between Dike and Carter-Vickers, it is sure to be a physical battle. 

 Adams and Dest bow out

The Champions League was a bit anticlimactic on Wednesday when Tyler Adams started for RB Leipzig and Sergino Dest started for Barcelona. Leipzig dropped its first leg, 0-2, at home to Liverpool and Barcelona dropped its first leg, 1-4, to Paris St. Germain. Neither American had much of a chance of advancing and, true to form, that is how it played out.

What is interesting is that both American players played rightwing back – which was good for Dest but not great for Adams.

For Adams, he went the distance in a 2-0 loss (4-0 aggregate) and was decent but still mostly quiet. His best attribute is his defensive work rate and that seems to be limited when he’s on the right side. But Leipzig is second in the Bundesliga, and their approach is working – so its tough to justify switching. American fans were hoping for Adams to return to the No. 6 position regularly after his stellar outing in a 3-2 win over Borussia Monchengladbach on February 27. That has yet to happen, however.

For Dest, Ronald Koeman has recently shifted to a three-man backline and moved Dest from a traditional right back and into a right wingback. The result has worked wonders for the American who was previously struggling to get involved in the attack but is now able to get forward far easier with the switch.

• 66 minutes
• 52 touches
• 1 shot
• 1 cross
• 2/4 dribbles
• 3/8 duels won
• 1x fouled
• 0 tackle attempts
• 1 interception
• 0 clearances

Barcelona drew the second leg 1-1 to fall 5-2 on aggregate and yes, PSG took its foot off the gas pedal, but Barcelona was much better. Dest was dynamic and dangerous pushed further up the field – and he will likely continue to play that way.