18 year old forward Timothy Weah is expected to be in PSG's squad tomorrow. He's the beneficiary of a slew of injuries to their attackers at the moment. https://en.psg.fr/pro/article/le-groupe-parisien-face-a-troyes-1
Big Tim Weah fan; his father is one of my all time favorite players and it would be rad if his son turns into a player for the USMNT.
A world class striker would have faked the right footed shot and then gone left to round the keeper, but he had very little margin of error to work with there. I'll go with good save.
U17 left back Chris Gloster has signed with Hannover. He came up with the NYRB academy, but he left them in search of a Euro deal several months ago.
American keeper Klinsi is good. Hertha is looking for german keeper Klinsi... The german article mentions a positive development especially in physical strength and his german got better. He still lacks confidence, some naivety (maybe too easy-going?), bad german and lack of communication with his defenders and the "german, serious, workmanlike approach".
New player watch: the US U16s have a camp and called up a few players I've never heard of before: DF Dylan Kelemen (Club Deportivo Universidad Católica; Las Condes, Chile) MF Chitua Hani-Okoroafor (Sheffield Wednesday Football Club; Leeds, England) FW Vaughn Covil (Southhampton FC; Wiltshire, England) There's a player from the RGV - that's a rarity. Also another Alabaman in an MLS academy - this time Atlanta instead of Dallas like Servania and Richards.
Weston McKennie made his first start since getting hurt last weekend in Schalke's 1-0 win over Mainz. Freiburg CB/DM Caleb Stanko is out for a bit with a meniscus injury. He's made six Bundesliga appearances this season, which is six more than I expected. I think he would have moved on this summer when his contract is up anyway. Andrija Novakovich is up to 17 goals this season for Telstar in the Eerste Divisie. That's good enough for second in the league scoring chart. I'd love to see an Eredivisie club make a move for him next season, but a lot will depend on what his parent club (Reading) want to do. Shortly after signing, Brian Iloski made his pro debut for Legia Warsaw, coming on as a late sub against Lechia Gdansk.
TB, who would you say is their best U-20 prospect at striker? Obviously Pulisic is their best attacking player, but as a pure striker who would you say is the best prospect? I'd like it to be Weah, who is physically strong and getting some run at an elite club even if it is because of injuries, but who else is in the conversation?
Spring update of Americans abroad: Argentina Primera AM Joel Sonora -- 1996 -- Talleres Belgium First Division A GK Ethan Horvath -- 1995 -- Club Brugge CB Erik Palmer-Brown -- 1997 -- Kortrijk (on loan from Manchester City) LB Kenny Saief -- 1993 -- Anderlecht (on loan from Gent) CM Juan Pablo Torres -- 1999 -- Lokeren Colombia Primera GK Kevin Piedrahita -- 1991 -- La Equidad Denmark Superliga GK Bill Hamid -- 1990 -- Midtjylland GK Mike Lansing -- 1994 -- Aalborg AM Jonathan Amon -- 1999 -- Nordsjælland FW Emmanuel Sabbi -- 1997 -- Hobro 1. Division CM Arun Basuljevic -- 1995 -- Fremad Amager CM George Fochive -- 1992 -- Viborg FW Nick DePuy -- 1994 -- Fremad Amager (on loan from Montreal Impact) England Premier League RB DeAndre Yedlin -- 1993 -- Newcastle United CB Geoff Cameron -- 1985 -- Stoke City CM Emerson Hyndman -- 1996 -- Bournemouth CM Danny Williams -- 1989 -- Huddersfield Town Championship GK Eric Lichaj -- 1988 -- Nottingham Forest CB Cameron Carter-Vickers -- 1997 -- Ipswich Town (on loan from Tottenham) CB Tim Ream -- 1987 -- Fulham LB Antonee Robinson -- 1997 -- Bolton Wanderers (on loan from Everton) AM Luca de la Torre -- 1998 -- Fulham AM Lynden Gooch -- 1995 -- Sunderland League One GK Brendan Moore -- 1992 -- Rochdale LB Niall Mason -- 1997 -- Doncaster Rovers AM Gboly Ariyibi -- 1995 -- Northampton Town (on loan from Nottingham Forest) AM Duane Holmes -- 1994 -- Scunthorpe United Finland Veikkausliiga GK Tim Murray -- 1987 -- Honka Ykkonen CB Etchu Tabe -- 1986 -- Ekenäs CM Jacob Bushue -- 1992 -- Ekenäs AM Josue Soto -- 1989 -- Oulu FW Gerald Ben -- 1992 -- Haka France Ligue 1 FW Timothy Weah -- 2000 -- PSG Ligue 2 GK Quentin Westberg -- 1986 -- Auxerre FW Jordan Siebatcheu -- 1996 -- Reims FW Maki Tall -- 1995 -- Tours Germany Bundesliga RB Timothy Chandler -- 1990 -- Eintracht Frankfurt CB John Brooks -- 1993 -- Wolfsburg CM Weston McKennie -- 1998 -- Schalke CM Caleb Stanko -- 1993 -- Freiburg AM Fabian Johnson -- 1987 -- Borussia Mönchengladbach AM Christian Pulisic -- 1998 -- Borussia Dortmund FW Aron Jóhannsson -- 1990 -- Werder Bremen FW Bobby Wood -- 1992 -- Hamburg 2.Bundesliga GK Kenneth Kronholm -- 1985 -- Holstein Kiel RB Ken Gipson -- 1996 -- Sandhausen CM Alfredo Morales -- 1990 -- Ingolstadt AM McKinze Gaines -- 1998 -- Darmstadt AM Jann George -- 1992 -- Jahn Regensburg AM Jerome Kiesewetter -- 1993 -- Fortuna Düsseldorf AM Kevin Lankford -- 1998 -- Heidenheim FW Terrence Boyd -- 1991 -- Darmstadt FW Julian Green -- 1992 -- Greuther Fürth (on loan from Stuttgart) FW Andrew Wooten -- 1989 -- Sandhausen FW Haji Wright -- 1998 -- Sandhausen (on loan from Schalke) 3. Liga GK David Yelldell -- 1981 -- Sonnenhof Großaspach RB Marcel Costly -- 1995 -- Magdeburg CM Royal-Dominique Fennell -- 1989 -- Halle AM Nermin Crnkic -- 1992 -- Rot-Weiß Erfurt AM Joe Gyau -- 1992 -- Sonnenhof Großaspach AM Devann Yao -- 1990 -- Meppen AM Isaiah Young -- 1998 -- Werder Bremen II FW Marc Heider -- 1986 -- Osnabrück FW Robbie Kristo -- 1993 -- Osnabrück FW Mario Rodriguez -- 1994 -- Sonnenhof Großaspach Regionalliga GK Jonathan Klinsmann -- 1997 -- Hertha Berlin II RB Masami Okada -- 1991 -- Babelsberg CB Ryan Malone -- 1992 -- Lokomotive Leipzig CB Javan Torre -- 1993 -- FSV Frankfurt CM Mamadou Balde -- 1995 -- Altona 93 CM Mael Corboz -- 1994 -- Wattenscheid CM Bryan Gaul -- 1989 -- Elversberg CM Justin Kinjo -- 1997 -- Fortuna Düsseldorf II AM Junior Ebot-Etchi -- 1996 -- Weiche Flensburg AM Junior Flores -- 1996 -- Borussia Dortmund II AM Gillian Jurcher -- 1997 -- Germania Halberstadt FW Branden Stelmak -- 1989 -- Chemie Leipzig Iceland Úrvalsdeild GK Will Dieterich -- 1987 -- Stjarnan AM Dion Acoff -- 1991 -- Valur FW Will Daniels -- 1990 -- Grindavik Ireland League of Ireland CM Conor Agnew -- 1994 -- Derry City Israel Premier League CM Jake Rozhansky -- 1996 -- Maccabi Netanya FW Aaron Schoenfeld -- 1990 -- Maccabi Tel Aviv Italy Serie C AM Joshua Perez -- 1998 -- Livorno (on loan from Fiorentina) Japan J.League GK Daniel Schmidt -- 1992 -- Vegalta Sendai Macedonia First League FW Travis Bowen -- 1989 -- Pelister Mexico Liga MX GK Lalo Fernandez --1992 -- Tigres GK Bernie Magaña -- 1993 -- Pumas GK William Yarbrough -- 1989 -- León CB Ventura Alvarado -- 1992 -- Necaxa CB Omar Gonzalez -- 1988 -- Pachuca CB Michael Orozco -- 1986 -- Tijuana LB Jonathan Bornstein -- 1984 -- Querétaro LB Jorge Villafaña -- 1989 -- Santos Laguna CM Fernando Arce, Jr. -- 1996 -- Tijuana CM Joe Corona -- 1990 -- América CM Alejandro Guido -- 1994 -- Tijuana CM Jose Torres -- 1987 -- Tigres AM Landon Donovan -- 1982 -- León AM Kekuta Manneh -- 1994 -- Pachuca FW Rubio Rubin -- 1996 -- Tijuana Ascenso MX GK Benny Diaz -- 1998 -- Cimarrones (on loan from Querétaro) GK Carlos Lopez --1996 -- Dorados (on loan from Tijuana) GK Justin Perez -- 1992 -- Murciélagos LB Josue Soto -- 1995 -- Cimarrones (on loan from Querétaro) LB Jesus Vazquez -- 1995 -- Atlante (on loan from Tigres) CM Manny Guzman -- 1986 -- Venados CM Rodrigo Lopez -- 1987 -- Celaya AM Fernando Mercado -- 1994 -- Venados AM Jonathan Suarez -- 1997 -- Cimarrones (on loan from Querétaro) AM Jesus Vazquez -- 1994 -- Universidad de Guadalajara AM Alejandro Zendejas -- 1998 -- Zacatepec (on loan from Chivas) Netherlands Eredivisie RB Ashton Götz -- 1993 -- Roda JC Kerkrade RB Desevio Payne -- 1995 -- Excelsior CB Matt Miazga -- 1995 -- Vitesse (on loan from Chelsea) CB Shane O'Neill -- 1993 -- Excelsior Eerste Divisie AM Maurits de Baar -- 1997 -- RKC Waalwijk FW Andrija Novakovich -- 1996 -- Telstar (on loan from Reading) Norway Eliteserien CB Stefan Antonijevic -- 1989 -- Lillestrom Poland Ekstraklasa CM Brian Iloski -- 1995 -- Legia Warsaw Portugal Primeira CM Keaton Parks -- 1997 -- Benfica Romania Liga I CM Kofi Twumasi -- 1996 -- Viitorul Constanta Slovenia Prva Liga FW Kyrian Nwabueze -- 1992 -- Gorica South Africa Premier League FW Nana Akosah-Bempeh -- 1997 -- Cape Town City Spain La Liga RB Shaq Moore -- 1996 -- Levante Sweden Allsvenskan GK Josh Wicks -- 1983 -- IK Sirius CB Alex DeJohn -- 1991 -- Dalkurd CB Brendan Hines-Ike -- 1994 -- Örebro CM Mix Diskerud -- 1990 -- IFK Göteborg (on loan from Manchester City) AM Romain Gall -- 1995 -- GIF Sundsvall FW Andy Stadler -- 1988 -- Dalkurd Superettan GK Matt Pyzdrowski -- 1986 -- Varbergs BoIS CM Zev Taublieb -- 1993 -- Varbergs BoIS Vietnam V.League CB Mobi Fehr -- 1994 -- Hoàng Anh Gia Lai
It's between Weah and Josh Sargent, who has signed with Werder Bremen but can't play in games until next season because he turned 18 after the registration deadline. Sargent was one of the stars of the last U17 team and even got bumped up to the U20 WC (which is rare for the US to do). They are different types of forwards. Sargent is a classic #9, good at holding the ball and a solid passer who can combine with teammates well. Weah is a bit faster and can stretch a defense. I like both of these guys, but the bench beyond them isn't deep. I don't see huge upsides in guys like Haji Wright, Jeremy Ebobisse, and Emmanuel Sabbi. I guess it's worth mentioning FC Dallas attacker Jesus Ferreira. He's the son of Davide Ferreira and although he's not a citizen yet he is supposedly very close. Some people really like him, though it's not clear whether he'll be a winger type or a second striker.
Thanks TB; you do a better job in this forum than pretty much anyone else does on any other forum on this site.
Dumb question I probably should know---he had a call up for the US U17s, although he didn't play. You can do that before becoming citizen? Or was it because he's apparently going to be, that they just wanted him in camp?
I'll second that. It's like reading Kremlin Watcher's thoughts on Russia. Everyone here thinks likewise, but it feels almost redundant to keep saying it - still, I bet you'd like to hear it more often.
At the youth level you need to have proper documentation to play in official games (WC + qualifying tournaments), but FIFA doesn't regulate anything else. So, the latter. Diego Fagundez once went to a U15 camp, IIRC, and he wasn't even close to citizenship. During the 2013 U20 cycle, we called up Danny Potts a few times, and it turned out he wasn't even eligible for citizenship.
Thanks guys, but we have to give the edge to Kremlin Watcher. I don't have any sketchy Eastern European club owners in my rolodex.
Attacking midfielder Nick Taitague is one of 4-5 players from Schalke U19 who have been training with the first team for a bit now. This is his last year of U19 eligibility and Schalke are considering doing away with their U23 team, so it's possible we'll soon get a clear sign of how Schalke rates him based on his contra. I haven't seen too much of him, but he's supposed to be quite technical and quick enough, but not overwhelmingly fast. He's generally been a winger, but such a profile raises the question of whether his long-term future will be in the middle.
Lennard Maloney, an 18 year old German-American center back, made his pro debut for Union Berlin this weekend. He has a bit of a history with the German YNTs, most recently playing in a friendly for the U19s in November 2017. He has never appeared in a US camp at any level. He'd be an interesting recruit for the current US U20s. The '99 and '00 cohorts look weak at CB right now. -- Emmanuel Sabbi scored his first goal for Hobro in Denmark. I don't have high hopes for him, but still - a landmark for him.
Poor Union Berlin. I had such high hopes for promotion mid-season. It most definitely will not be happening. I just looked at the stats from Sunday’s game and it looked like a wretched performance. I’ll see if I can find any mention of him in the news about the game. I’d hoped to avoid that . Edit: no real mention of him in the game report. He was called up from U19 team due to an injury to the regular player Marc Torrejon. I haven’t been able to follow them too closely the last couple of months, but I was just stunned to see the word “Abstiegskampf” (demotion fight) show up so frequently. From fourth place (I think) to two points above the playoff since firing Jens Kellner (who I really liked), is not a good look for the current manager Andre Hoffschneider, or ownership, who fired a successful and popular manager in Kellner because they wanted to be in the first Bundesliga immediately. You may be getting out of the second, but not the way you wanted... Sounds like there’s a Harvard business case to be written here. It’s like the reverse of de Boer and Hodgson for me. This is a cruel, cruel game. Edit 2: I should note that they’ve lost their two top goal scorers and are +6 in GD - which is actually somehow 5th in the league - but this team looked the real deal until Kellner was let go, presumably because they were a point or two off promotion at the time of his firing. Since Hoffschneider has been installed, they have the fewest points in the league.
Not an Arsenal fan but I know he's supposed to be the best of his intake year and he destroyed West Ham U18 when they played. One interesting note, this tweet is the only thing on the internet that says he was US born or eligible. Everything else lists England as his place of birth.
Sciaretta is a trustworthy source. One thing I've noticed is that with little-known young players, a lot of internet database sites basically just copy each other. There was a former QPR academy player named Romone Rose who was initially listed as being born in Reading, PA. Turns out he was born in Reading, UK and had no connection whatsoever to the US, but all the internet sites had the wrong info because it came from a solitary bad source.
Rubio Rubin scored his first goal for Tijuana: 17 y.o. German-American forward Maurice Malone made the bench for Augsburg yesterday. He's played for Germany's U17 in the WC, so he'd need to file a one-time switch to play for the US. I have no idea if he'd be interested if Germany doesn't work out, but he's been productive at the youth levels and is a name to file away. Little-known German-American winger Jann George scored a brace for Jahn Regensburg yesterday. George & Regensburg are in the hunt for their third consecutive promotion, two points back of Holstein Kiel for the Bundesliga playoff spot. Kiel have their own obscure German-American - goalkeeper Kenneth Kronholm, who like George has fought his way up from the Regionalliga to become a 2.Bundesliga starter.
Pulisic had a decent game in the Revierderby today, though BVB went down to Schalke 2-0. McKennie came on for the last 20 minutes and drew a FK that resulted in Schalke's second goal. Yedlin had an assist against Arsenal today: Relatively unknown 19 year old German-American winger Kevin Lankford recorded a very nice first pro assist for Heidenheim: Local kid Amos Shapiro-Thompson, who is from Worthington, MA, has joined Legia Warsaw's academy. He previously spent some time with Revs youth teams.
A rumor from a credible source that Wood may be heading to MLS this summer. Whatever happens, getting away from Hamburg will probably be good. He's having a bad year and Hamburg are going down.
That'd be a real shame. The guy who lit the 2.Bundesliga on fire 2 years ago and had a good campaign last year, suddenly has his team fall apart around him and now we're all sure he can't cut it in europe? That's Michael Bradley thinking. Even if he ends up in Ligue 1 or something, it's still making him a better player than he'd be in MLS.
We'll see what happens. Nobody in MLS is going to offer Wood anywhere near the money that Toronto is paying Bradley. The way the article is phrased doesn't make it sound like he is absolutely set on going somewhere in MLS. I'm sure it will depend on what other offers come in. Wood is under contract until 2021, so it will depend on who bids for him and how much Hamburg will ask for to let him go. They'll undoubtedly be looking to shed salary, though I have no idea if Wood is one of their top earners or not. If I'm a club executive in any league, the prospect of signing Bobby Wood makes me nervous. He's the sort of player that always seems to be either injured or playing through a minor injury. I'm actually not counting on him for the 2022 WC at all right now, just because I'm bearish on his knees.
McKennie with the start today and so far he looks very good. Great worker, positionally sound, good closing speed, wins the ball, excellent passer whether he’s playing it out of the back or as part of an attack. Will fit in any scheme so the only way an American manager can truly misuse him will be by not using him. He’s already very physical and is going to be an absolute beast when he gets his man strength. Commanding a very tough position as a teenager. Nothing eye-popping like Pulisic, but this is a future leader.
Going back to U17 days, Richie Williams says "challenge accepted!". I definitely think so, too. Dude was captaining Schalke's U19 team in friendlies while still on trial. It's gonna be awesome when he develops into the next Arturo Vidal!
He played a good game otherwise, but Yedlin was caught failing to clear the ball or close out his player and was probably the most at-fault player in conceding the only goal in Newcastle's match today at Everton.