Americans Abroad 2019-20: A New Hope

Titans Bastard

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New season, new thread. As the Weak Generation ages into its late 20s, there are few veterans of USMNT note plying their trade in the top European leagues. On the bright side, there is a burgeoning group of youngsters who are breaking through at respectable clubs and starting to make a name for themselves. Although attrition always takes a toll, there are more on the way.

Let's start with a list:

The Big Leagues & "Mid-Majors"

Austria

Bundesliga
CB Erik Palmer-Brown, 1997, Austria Wien (on loan from Manchester City)

Belgium
First Division A
GK Ethan Horvath, 1995, Club Brugge
CB Brendan Hines-Ike, 1994, Kortrijk
AM Kenny Saief, 1993, Anderlecht

First Division B
AM Isaiah Young, 1998, Saint Gilloise (on loan from Werder Bremen)

England
Premier League
RB DeAndre Yedlin, 1993, Newcastle United
AM Christian Pulisic, 1998, Chelsea

Championship
RB Eric Lichaj, 1988, Hull City
CB Geoff Cameron, 1985, QPR
CB Cameron Carter-Vickers, 1997, Stoke City (on loan from Tottenham Hotspur)
CB Matt Miazga, 1995, Reading (on loan from Chelsea)
CB Tim Ream, 1987, Fulham
LB Antonee Robinson, 1997, Wigan Athletic
CM Duane Holmes, 1994, Derby County
AM Gboly Ariyibi, 1995, Nottingham Forest
AM Luca de la Torre, 1998, Fulham
FW Andrija Novakovich, 1996, Reading

League One
RB Niall Mason, 1997, Peterborough United
RB Matthew Olosunde, 1998, Rotherham United
CB Giles Phillips, 1997, Wycombe Wanderers (on loan from QPR)
AM Lynden Gooch, 1995, Sunderland
FW Charlie Kelman, 2001, Southend United

France
Ligue 1
AM Tim Weah, 2000, Lille
FW Jordan Siebatcheu, 1996, Rennes

Ligue 2
FW Maki Tall, 1995, Ajaccio

Germany
Bundesliga
GK Zack Steffen, 1995, Fortuna Düsseldorf (on loan from Manchester City)
RB Timothy Chandler, 1990, Eintracht Frankfurt
CB John Brooks, 1993, Wolfsburg
CB Lennard Maloney, 1999, Union Berlin
CM Tyler Adams, 1999, RB Leipzig
CM Weston McKennie, 1998, Schalke
CM Alfredo Morales, 1990, Fortuna Düsseldorf
AM Fabian Johnson, 1987, Borussia Mönchengladbach
FW Josh Sargent, 2000, Werder Bremen
FW Khiry Shelton, 1993, Paderborn

2.Bundesliga
AM Jann George, 1992, Jahn Regensburg
AM Julian Green, 1995, Greuther Fürth
AM Kevin Lankford, 1998, St. Pauli
AM Giona Leibold, 2000, Wehen Wiesbaden
FW Marc Heider, 1986, VfL Osnabrück
FW Sebastian Soto, 2000, Hannover
FW Bobby Wood, 1992, Hamburg

3. Liga
CB Chris Richards, 2000, Bayern Munich II
AM Marcel Costly, 1995, Magdeburg
AM McKinze Gaines, 1998, Sonnenhof Großaspach
FW Terrence Boyd, 1991, Hallescher FC

Regionalliga
GK Treston Kederer, 1995, Heimstetten
GK Brady Scott, 1999, Köln II
RB Corey Anton, 1999, Mainz II
RB Ashton Götz, 1993, Drochtersen/Assel
RB Lucas Stauffer, 1995, Wacker Nordhausen
CB Michael Edwards, 2000, Wolfsburg II
CB Ryan Malone, 1992, VfB Lübeck
CB Lamar Yarbrough, 1996, Schweinfurt
LB Dallas Aminzadeh, 1993, Altona 93
CM Yannis Becker, 1991, Viktoria Berlin
CM Royal-Dominique Fennell, 1989, Hoffenheim II
CM Blaine Ferri, 2000, Greuther Fürth II
CM Evin Nadaner, 1992, Altona 93
CM Kofi Twumasi, 1996, Rot-Weiß Oberhausen
AM Benyas Junge, 1999, Lichtenberg
AM Gillian Jurcher, 1997, Saarbrücken
AM Danny Kierath, 1996, Wuppertal
AM Malik McLemore, 1997, Greuther Fürth II
AM Nick Taitague, 1999, Schalke II
FW Del-Angelo Williams, 1993, Elversberg

Netherlands
Eredivisie
RB Sergino Dest, 2000, Ajax
RB Desevio Payne, 1995, Emmen
FW Haji Wright, 1998, VVV-Venlo

Eerste Divisie
LB Chris Gloster, 2000, Jong PSV
CM Mael Corboz, 1994, Go Ahead Eagles
AM Richie Ledezma, 2000, Jong PSV
AM Alex Mendez, 2000, Jong Ajax

Spain
Segunda
RB Shaq Moore, 1996, Tenerife

Segunda Division B
GK Victor Vidal, 1999, Lleida
CM Ander Egiluz, 1998, Leioa

Turkey
Süper Lig
AM Tyler Boyd, 1994, Beşiktaş


Smaller UEFA

Albania

Superliga
FW Kyrian Nwabueze, 1992, Laçi

Bosnia & Herzegovina
Premier Liga
CB Darick Kobie Morris, 1995, FK Tuzla City

Bulgaria
First League
LB Aleksandar Isaevski, 1995, Dunav Ruse

Czech Republic
First League
FW Izzy Tandir, 1995, Sigma Olomouc

National Football League
AM Luis Gil, 1993, Viktoria Žižkov

Denmark
Superliga
GK Michael Lansing, 1994, Horsens
CM Jens Cajuste, 1999, Midtjylland
CM Christian Cappis, 1999, Hobro
AM Jonathan Amon, 1999, Nordsjælland
AM Yosef Samuel, 1997, Hobro
FW Louicius Deedson, 2001, Hobro
FW Emmanuel Sabbi, 1997, Hobro

1st Division
CB Kyle McLagan, 1995, Roskilde
LB Chris Thorsheim, 1994, Nykøbing
FW Seyi Adekoya, 1995, Vendsyssel
FW Steven Enna, 1995, Fredericia

Estonia
Meistriliiga
AM Eric McWoods, 1995, Narva Trans

Faroe Islands
Premier League
FW Darius Lewis, 1999, KÍ Klaksvík

Finland
Veikkausliiga
GK Tim Murray, 1987, Honka
AM Dion Acoff, 1991, SJK

Ykkönen
CM Jacob Bushue, 1992, Haka
FW Will Inalien, 1999, Jaro

Greece
Super League 2
AM Joe Efford, 1996, Ergotelis

Ireland
League of Ireland
CB Joshua Smith, 1992, Finn Harps

Israel
Premier League
GK Josh Cohen, 1992, Maccabi Haifa
CM George Fochive, 1992, Hapoel Hadera
FW Aaron Schoenfeld, 1990, Maccabi Tel Aviv

Liga Leumit
CM Jake Rozhansky, 1996, Hapoel Afula

Norway
Eliteserien
AM Henry Wingo, 1995, Molde

1.divisjon
CB Stefan Antonijevic, 1989, Sogndal
FW Luke Ferreira, 1995, Jerv

Scotland
Premier League
RB Matt Polster, 1993, Rangers

Championship
CM Ian Harkes, 1995, Dundee United
CM James Murphy, 1997, Arbroath

Sweden
Allsvenskan
GK Benjamin Machini, 1996, Djurgarden
AM Romain Gall, 1995, Malmö
FW Aron Jóhannsson, 1990, Hammarby

Superettan
RB Christopher McVey, 1997, Dalkurd (on loan from Elfsborg)
AM Brian Span, 1992, Våsterås
FW Andy Stadler, 1988, Syrianska

Switzerland
Super League
GK Jonathan Klinsmann, 1997, St. Gallen

Challenge League
GK Nicholas Ammeter, 2000, Aarau

CONCACAF, CONMEBOL, and beyond

Argentina

AM Matko Miljevic, 2001, Argentinos Juniors
AM Alan Soñora, 1998, Independiente
AM Joel Soñora, 1996, Arsenal de Sarandí (on loan from Talleres de Córdoba)

Canada
LB Blake Smith, 1991, Pacific FC (on loan from FC Cincinnati)

Colombia
Primera A
GK Kevin Piedrahita, 1991, La Equidad
AM Ivan Luquetta, 1996, Junior

Mexico
Liga MX
GK Lalo Fernandez, 1992, Tigres
GK William Yarbrough, 1989, León
CB Ventura Alvarado, 1992, Necaxa
CM Fernando Arce, Jr., 1996, Tijuana
CM Rodrigo Lopez, 1987, Veracruz (on loan from Celaya)
AM Jonathan Suarez, 1997, Querétaro
AM Alejandro Zendejas, 1998, Guadalajara

Ascenso MX
RB Jonathan Esparza, 1999, Celaya (on loan from Tijuana)
CB Tony Alfaro, 1993, Zapatepec (on loan from Guadalajara)
CB Angel Uribe, 1999, Dorados de Sinaloa (on loan from Tijuana)
LB Jesus Antonio Vazquez, 1995, Atlante
AM Jesus Vazquez Delgadillo, 1994, Universidad de Guadalajara
FW Alonso Hernandez, 1994, Cimarrones de Sonora
FW Rubio Rubin, 1996, Dorados de Sinaloa (on loan from Tijuana)

South Africa
Premier League
FW Nana Akosah-Bempah, 1997, Cape Town City

South Korea
K-League
CM Mix Diskerud, 1990, Ulsan Hyundai (on loan from Manchester City)
 

DJnVa

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What's the deal with one team in Denmark having 4 US players?
 

bosox4283

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As always, thanks! I really enjoy reading and following your work and updates.

Do you have any sense of the average number of US players in the Premier League each season? Two seems below the average to me.
 

Titans Bastard

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What's the deal with one team in Denmark having 4 US players?
Not sure. They've had good success with Sabbi and Cappis, so I guess they've decided to go back to the well for two more players. Also, some clubs are mindful about creating small cohorts of players from the same country if possible, to help mitigate against "failing to settle", i.e. homesickness.

As always, thanks! I really enjoy reading and following your work and updates.

Do you have any sense of the average number of US players in the Premier League each season? Two seems below the average to me.
If the number stays at two players with EPL minutes (assuming Yedlin gets in at some point), it will be AFAICT the lowest number since the 2000/01 season when only Joe-Max Moore played (Everton).

I think this is because:

1. The older generation of Americans in the EPL has aged out and there just aren't many EPL-caliber players in the Yedlin age bracket.

2. It is legally impossible for most US youth to sign with British clubs. It's also, IMO, professional unwise because even low-end EPL clubs spend stupid money in the transfer market, making it so hard to break in to the first team. So top American players going abroad have been flowing elsewhere, especially to Germany which has all the key components: good level of play/prestige/money, good development, better opportunities for academy players, no legal barriers to entry other than age requirements (which apply everywhere).
 

McBride11

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The Faroe islands have their own professional league?? Not only that but there are TEN teams in the league. For a country with only 50k people that seems awfully large.
 

Titans Bastard

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The Faroe islands have their own professional league?? Not only that but there are TEN teams in the league. For a country with only 50k people that seems awfully large.
I doubt any of the players there are full-time professionals.
 

tmracht

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Hope we can convince Dest (Netherlands) and Soto (Chile) to stay in the USNT program. Losing either would be rough considering all the time they got at the U20s.

Already have my Pulisic jersey in the funky Chelsea Camo Blue Kit.
 

Titans Bastard

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Hope we can convince Dest (Netherlands) and Soto (Chile) to stay in the USNT program. Losing either would be rough considering all the time they got at the U20s.
They are in tough positions to switch. The other countries for which they are eligible are better than the US, which means two things: (1) the call to the USMNT will likely happen first and (2) if they end up in the range of USMNT-quality but not Dutch/Chilean NT quality, they've lost their entire international career because they can't switch back.

For example, Teal Bunbury would have had 40+ caps for Canada by now, but instead he just has a few January camp appearances for the USMNT because he played for a Canadian youth team in CONCACAF qualifiers and later filed a one-time switch.
 

Titans Bastard

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And now for academy/youth. It's an incomplete list because I'm still trying to track down if some players are still at their clubs, but I don't think I've missed any big prospects.

Some young players are listed in the opening post if they play on reserve teams high enough in a pyramid, like the Dutch 2nd division (Gloster, Mendez, Ledezma) or the German fourth division.

Plenty of the better American prospects are coming through MLS academies, USL, and eventually MLS, but there are some players to follow here, too.

Gio Reyna and Uly Llanez are both wingers who should do very well in the U19 Bundesliga. Llanez has four goals in his first two games!

In Germany I'm also watching out for Taylor Booth at Bayern, and for recent signee Matthew Hoppe of Schalke. Hoppe was a top scorer in the Development Academy and has been banging in goals in preseason for Schalke U19.

Colombia
Primera A
CM Andres Jimenez, 2000, Envigado

England
Premier League
GK Nicolas Defreitas-Hansen, 2001, Everton U23
GK Chituru Odunze, 2002, Leicester City U18
GK Ethan Wady, 2002, Chelsea U18
CB Jonathan Tomkinson, 2002, Norwich City U18
CM Owen Otasowie, 2001, Wolverhampton Wanderers U23
CM Matteo Ritaccio, 2001, Liverpool U18
CM Peter Stroud, 2002, West Ham United U18
CM Indiana Vassilev, 2001, Aston Villa U23
AM Armando Shashoua, 2000, Tottenham Hotspur U23

Championship
CM Jaheim Headley, 2001, Huddersfield Town U18
FW Dillon Keane, 2001, Stoke City U18

League Two
AM Vaughn Covil, 2003, Forest Green Rovers

Germany
Bundesliga
GK Kevin Malone, 2003, Augsburg U17
CB Niklas Dossmann, 2003, Mainz U17
CB Mason Judge, 2002, Eintracht Frankfurt U19
CB Michael Wentzel, 2002, Borussia Mönchengladbach U19
CM Taylor Booth, 2001, Bayern Munich U19
CM Maximilian Dietz, 2002, Freiburg U19
CM Pablo Soares, 2002, Borussia Mönchengladbach U19
AM Uly Llanez, 2001, Wolfsburg U19
AM Gio Reyna, 2002, Borussia Dortmund U19
FW Matthew Hoppe, 2001, Schalke U19
FW Nasuhi-Noah Jones, 2002, RB Leipzig U19

2.Bundesliga
CB Maximilan Göggel, 2002, Stuttgart U19
LB Stuart Ritchie, 2001, Hannover U19
LB Travian Sousa, 2001, Hamburg U19
CM Leon Flach, 2001, St. Pauli U19
CM Ian Hoffmann, 2001, Karlsruhe U19
AM Timo Bosselman, 2002, Sandhausen U19
AM Roberto Hategan, 2001, Nürnberg U19
AM Joon Kang, 2002, Dynamo Dresden U19

3. Liga
GK Jordaine Jaeger, 2002, Ingolstadt U19
LB Elias Thomas, 2001, Eintracht Braunschweig U19
AM Jalen Hawkins, 2001, Ingolstadt U19
FW Justin Butler, 2001, Ingolstadt U19

Italy
Serie A
CM Gennaro Nigro, 2000, Roma U19

Mexico
Liga MX
GK Marco Canales, 1999, Juárez U20
GK Benny Diaz, 1998, Querétaro U20
GK Hector Holguin, 2001, Santos Laguna U20
GK Luis Zamudio, 1998, América U20
LB Michael Barragan, 2002, Atlas U17
LB Sebastian Medina, 2001, Atlas U20
LB Ralph Orquin, 2003, América U17
DF Steven Chiu, 2003, Juárez U17
CM Jared Romero, 2000, Tijuana U20
AM Mauricio Isais, 2001, León U20
AM Mario Lopez, 2002, Tijuana U17
AM Manuel Mendoza, 2001, Veracruz U20
AM Antonio Nava, 1999, Tijuana U20
AM Orlando Sanchez, 2000, Atlético San Luis U20
AM Pedro Santos, 1999, Querétaro U20
MF Leo Marquez, 1999, León U20
MF Bryan Osuna, 2002, Juárez U17
MF Miguel Ramirez, 2002, América U17
MF Luis Rodriguez, 1999, Toluca U20
FW Jose Adame, 2000, Atlas U20
FW Sagir Arce, 2002, Morelia U20
FW Domingo Contreras, 2002, Tijuana U17
FW Manuel Lopez Terrazas, 2000, Santos Laguna U20
FW Cesar Mata, 2002, Necaxa U17
FW Fernando Sanchez, 2002, Toluca U17
FW Joseph Simental, 2002, Juárez U17

Netherlands
Eredivisie
AM Joshua Pynadath, 2002, Ajax U19
MF Coby Sultan, 2001, VVV-Venlo U19

Eerste Divisie
LB Rickson van Hees, 2002, NEC Nijmegen U19

Portugal
Primeira
GK C.J. dos Santos, 2000, Benfica U19

Scotland
Premier League
AM Cameron Harper, 2001, Celtic U20

Spain
La Liga
AM Mukwelle Akale, 1997, Villarreal B
AM Konrad de la Fuente, 2001, Barcelona U19
AM Jack Imperato, 2002, Villarreal U19

Segunda Division B
CB Leonardo Sepulveda, 2001, Salamanca B

Switzerland
Challenge League
CM Rafael Iacovelli, 2000, Lugano U21
 

Titans Bastard

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German-American right back Ken Gipson '96 signed with Sonnenhof Großaspach of Germany's 3. Liga. He started in RB Leipzig's academy, then moved to Sandhausen in the 2.BL where rarely played, so hopefully he's found a level where he can play and improve. Doubtful that he'll ever be on the USMNT radar at this point.

View: https://twitter.com/sgaspach/status/1164090778261557248
 

67YAZ

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German-American right back Ken Gipson '96 signed with Sonnenhof Großaspach of Germany's 3. Liga. He started in RB Leipzig's academy, then moved to Sandhausen in the 2.BL where rarely played, so hopefully he's found a level where he can play and improve. Doubtful that he'll ever be on the USMNT radar at this point.

View: https://twitter.com/sgaspach/status/1164090778261557248
Wow, that’s a deep cut. I’d say you have a problem if I didn’t admire the work and learn so much from it.
 

InstaFace

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"deep cuts for soccer nuts" could be TB's tagline, especially now that his current tagline is mooted. As someone who routinely goes down the rabbit hole for far less interesting causes, I respect the extent to which he's diving down that rabbit hole and sending reports so that we don't have to do likewise.
 

Titans Bastard

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How irrationally excited am I allowed to be about Gio Reyna?
I think you are allowed to be pretty excited before the level is deemed irrational.

He’s amazing 1v1, both because of his technique and his athleticism.

Things to watch out for:

- has a bit of “street baller” to his game which I think is good to an extent, but he also needs to learn to function well in a team concept. Sometimes he needs to pick his head up and make the smart pass.

- He is already on the tall side for a winger. If he continues to grow, it’s possibly a concern for his lateral quickness.


If you’d like to hedge your bets on winger prospects, I’ll note that Uly Llanez has played in three U19 games for Wolfsburg and has scored a brace in each of them.
 

Titans Bastard

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Wow, that’s a deep cut. I’d say you have a problem if I didn’t admire the work and learn so much from it.
I’m a high functioning addict. It’s good. I can handle it.

Right?
 

Titans Bastard

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One of the reasons I'm optimistic about the USMNT in the medium- and long-term isn't just that there are good prospects doing good things in Europe, but there's also positive momentum in MLS. MLS clubs are competing to retain a growing number of academy prospects. They win some, they lose some, like how FC Dallas lost McKennie, but kept Pomykal and many others.

Here's a short profile on a guy who just signed a deal with Philadelphia instead of PSV or FC Copenhagen:

https://www.inquirer.com/soccer/jack-de-vries-philadelphia-union-psv-eindhoven-20190821.html
 

tmracht

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I think you are allowed to be pretty excited before the level is deemed irrational.

He’s amazing 1v1, both because of his technique and his athleticism.

Things to watch out for:

- has a bit of “street baller” to his game which I think is good to an extent, but he also needs to learn to function well in a team concept. Sometimes he needs to pick his head up and make the smart pass.

- He is already on the tall side for a winger. If he continues to grow, it’s possibly a concern for his lateral quickness.


If you’d like to hedge your bets on winger prospects, I’ll note that Uly Llanez has played in three U19 games for Wolfsburg and has scored a brace in each of them.
Man good shout I hadn't been keeping up with Llanez since the U20 WC. Those were some fun highlights.

Upside Dest and Sargeant wer called into camp for September. I can breathe a bit easier for Dest if they can get him to the Nations Cup thing to lock him in I will be a happy camper :D
 

Jimy Hendrix

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View: https://twitter.com/MLSist/status/1167447381425606656


DC United loaning Chris Durkin to a mid-table Belgian club with an option to buy:

On one hand, he'll likely get minutes sooner there than at Leverkusen or some of the Portuguese clubs that have been rumored to be interested in him, but it's a step down from those clubs as well.

I wonder how much of this is down to him not impressing in DC or at the U20 WC, versus DC United bungling his various transfer options as an organization.

Then again, loan fee plus transfer appears to be $2.5 million total which I could easily see being more than lowball offers by larger clubs, so maybe they got what they wanted out of it. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
 

Titans Bastard

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Sargent video here:

View: https://twitter.com/FOXSoccer/status/1168161230256820230



Dest started again for Ajax on the road at Sparta Rotterdam. He was subbed off after 65', when Ajax as up 4-0.


Another one to keep an eye on: 20 year old attacking midfielder Matko Miljevic, who scored his first career goal for Argentinos Juniors yesterday. He's been in some Argentine YNT camps and accepted a call to go to the US U20 camp next week, but his club didn't release him.
 

Titans Bastard

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View: https://twitter.com/NFFC/status/1168093700725051392


Going to Forest was always a dicey move for Ariyibi. He had been in some good form in League One, but Nottingham Forest were dysfunctional and had a 30+ man squad, then changed managers, so Ariyibi was never in the picture. He had a successful loan at Motherwell last season, but he was unable to move there on a permanent transfer because Motherwell couldn't come close to matching his wages.

Can't imagine he's making a fortune at a smaller Greek club, and hopefully the check clears.
 

Titans Bastard

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Danny Williams signed with Pafos FC in the Cypriot league.
 

Titans Bastard

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Americans in the CL:

— Dest, 90 minutes in a 3-0 win over Lille
— Pulisic, didn't come off the bench in an 0-1 loss vs Valencia
— Marsch, oversaw a 6-2 win over Genk
— Weah, Adams DNP (injured)

Red Bull Salzburg have so many resources relative to other Austrian clubs, but Marsch is really off to a rip-roaring start. They are 7-0-0, and just killing teams with a 34-6 goal differential. Nipping second place in a group with Liverpool and Napoli is a very tall task, but what a profile-boost that would be.

In the U19 UEFA Champions League, Gio Reyna (Dortmund) faced off against Konrad de la Fuente (Barcelona) and scored the equalizer in a 2-1 win.
 

InstaFace

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He was probably tired of being referred to as Crime Dog, and needed to get out of a place where people understood that reference.
 

Titans Bastard

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I sometimes hear some second-hand inside info from a friend of mine. My friend spoke with a source in a solid position to make educated guesses about this and was told this:

- Dest could go either way
- Mendez, Ledezma, Araujo unlikely to switch
- saw Llanez as the biggest flight risk


Personally, I think the inertia of playing for the US in U17 and U20 World Cups is huge. Dest has had good experiences in those tournaments, but it also seriously raises the stakes of switching. If he files that one-time switch, there's no going back if he falls a little short of the Dutch NT internationally. Given that he's already poised to get a lot of caps for a country that is likely to play in just about every World Cup like the US ( :oops: ) the opportunity cost of switching is high.
 

InstaFace

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hey now, they changed the rules to make sure that never happens again, as long as we're ranked in the top 6 nations in CONCACAF. We'd have to lose to the likes of Jamaica, or Ireland, or T&T, before that'd be a risk.

Current Elo Rank for CONCACAF:

15: Mexico
38: USA
46: Costa Rica
56: Honduras
58: Canada
60: Jamaica
67: Haiti
77: Panama
83: Guatemala
88: El Salvador
95: Martinique
101: Curacao
113: Trinidad & Tobago

So we're closer to 6th than we are to 1st. But maybe Dest will make a difference!
 

Jimy Hendrix

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I sometimes hear some second-hand inside info from a friend of mine. My friend spoke with a source in a solid position to make educated guesses about this and was told this:

- Dest could go either way
- Mendez, Ledezma, Araujo unlikely to switch
- saw Llanez as the biggest flight risk


Personally, I think the inertia of playing for the US in U17 and U20 World Cups is huge. Dest has had good experiences in those tournaments, but it also seriously raises the stakes of switching. If he files that one-time switch, there's no going back if he falls a little short of the Dutch NT internationally. Given that he's already poised to get a lot of caps for a country that is likely to play in just about every World Cup like the US ( :oops: ) the opportunity cost of switching is high.
My only fear with Dest is how much he might dislike playing a slightly unnatural position for him, given the relative RB vs. LB depth charts.
 

Titans Bastard

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My only fear with Dest is how much he might dislike playing a slightly unnatural position for him, given the relative RB vs. LB depth charts.
He's an LB for now because that's the path of least resistance, but if he develops well I think it's totally conceivable that he could become the top RB. We just need one of our better LB prospects to hit the jackpot...

RBs in the pool by birth year

1993: DeAndre Yedlin
1994: Nick Lima
1998: Reggie Cannon
2000: Sergino Dest

LBs in the pool:

1987: Tim Ream
1991: Dan Lovitz
1997: Antonee Robinson


The thing is, I think there are more interesting LB prospects than RB prospects coming up right now.

RB:

2001: Julian Araujo

LB:
2000: Chris Gloster
2002: George Bello, Kobe Hernandez-Foster
2003: Jonathan Gomez

There are plenty more names that could be mentioned for both positions, although I am unsure of their upside.
 

Jimy Hendrix

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Playing more of a RM too, although that was with a man down and already being shellacked so I don’t see that as a statement of intent from Steve Bruce or anything.
 

Titans Bastard

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Sargent started for Werder again and has scored in the 7th minute.

View: https://twitter.com/HenryBushnell/status/1185551924051042305


Uly Llanez returned from injury and scored one or possibly two goals for Wolfsburg U19 in 30 mins off the bench. One of them was credited as an own goal in other places. Coming into this match, he had 6 goals and 1 assist in 242 minutes, so he basically has 7 or 8 goals in the equivalent of three full U19 games.

Brooks is healthy enough to be on the bench for Wolfsburg. No Adams for RB Leipzig yet.
 

Titans Bastard

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Pulisic helped set up Chelsea's winner against Newcastle.

Dest assisted on both Ajax goals today against RKC Waalwijk.

Miazga scored a late winner for Reading.
 

tmracht

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Pulisic was immense in his 25 min+ sub. He opened up the locked down defense, made dangerous runs, a massive step up over Willian.
 

cromulence

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More good stuff from Pulisic. Came on as a sub vs Ajax and looked dangerous, then beat Dest and sent in a cross that Batshauyi put in to give Chelsea the lead.
 

Titans Bastard

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Pulisic & Sargent start today.

Reports that Richie Ledezma will make the bench for PSV for the first time tomorrow.

19 year old forward Nicholas Gioacchini started and scored for Caen in Ligue 2, which was his first-team debut. I don't know a lot about him, as it's difficult to follow youth teams in France.