Americans Abroad 2019-20: A New Hope

Titans Bastard

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I've seen it pointed out that with his first goal, Pulisic got on the scoresheet in the EPL for the first time, and with his third goal, he surpassed Altidore's career EPL scoring totals. Ouch!
 

cromulence

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I've seen it pointed out that with his first goal, Pulisic got on the scoresheet in the EPL for the first time, and with his third goal, he surpassed Altidore's career EPL scoring totals. Ouch!
Bad memories of watching Sunderland whenever they were on TV and trying to root for Jozy. It was... challenging.
 

tmracht

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Bad memories of watching Sunderland whenever they were on TV and trying to root for Jozy. It was... challenging.
I even bought a Sunderland shirt off wegotsoccer clearance for 10 bucks. Challenging and fiscally irresponsible times.
 

Titans Bastard

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Borussia Mönchengladbach announced the signing of NYCFC and US U17 right back Joe Scally, who will join in January 2021 after he turns 18.

https://www.borussia.de/de/aktuelles-termine/news/borussia-news/news-detailansicht.html?tx_ttnews[tt_news]=47620&cHash=67c94e875c5a4d9b61e20f4059774627
TBH, I wasn't a huge fan of him with the U17s, but maybe he'll improve his defensive lapses. He's also grown to be quite tall and may well end up transitioning to CB.

Some vague news on the fee. This sounds like an amazing deal for NYCFC. It's really good to see a club just sell when a good offer comes around instead of doing the usual hemming and hawing, and ultimately waiting too long.

View: https://twitter.com/JeffreyCarlisle/status/1194649120050425857
 

Jimy Hendrix

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There's a rumor that Fiorentina is offering more than $3m for SKC's Gianluca Busio. The Italian press is suggesting that SKC is holding out for $10m. That's unreasonable, so hopefully SKC either comes off that number or the Italian press is just making stuff up again.

https://sbisoccer.com/2019/11/sources-fiorentina-set-to-make-multi-million-dollar-bid-for-busio
Based on their "get nothing instead of something for Erik Palmer-Brown" strategem, I'll believe that they've figured out how to reasonably value prospects when they do it and not a moment before.

There are also mentions of Inter (Milan, not Miami) and Man U being interested, but those very much smell like SKC trying to get Fiorentina's bid up.
 

DJnVa

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US keeper Brandon Austin is on the Tottenham bench today.
 

Titans Bastard

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Sebastian Saucedo, out of contract at RSL, has signed with Pumas in Liga MX. He's a decent, if inconsistent, winger. I don't see him topping out better than as someone on the NT fringe, but you never know. For now, he stands a solid chance of being part of the U23 squad for Olympic qualifying.

View: https://twitter.com/PumasMX/status/1204076651837083652
 

DJnVa

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Titans Bastard

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Hmm. He played some U18 for the US. Spurs site doesn't really say.

https://www.tottenhamhotspur.com/teams/under-23/players/brandon-austin/
This says he's also been called up to England's U21, but hasn't played:
https://www.football.london/tottenham-hotspur-fc/players/who-brandon-austin-everything-you-17112730
He's definitely been in US camps in the past, but that doesn't prove he is eligible. There's no real regulations for who you call to an informal youth national team camp, only to official youth NT competitions at the regional and FIFA level. Ineligible players and non-citizens have been called into camps in the past.

His eligibility isn't confirmed either way, but a well-connected journalist at one point reported that there are doubts. I think this is what we know about him:

  • He was born in England
  • His father, a pro basketball player who played at UGA, was also born in England but has American citizenship. His father's citizenship appears to come through heritage in the US Virgin Islands, which doesn't matter for general legal purposes but may matter for FIFA purposes because the USVI has a separate federation.
The questions are:

1. You can only pass citizenship to your foreign-born children if you have lived a certain number of years in the US as an adult. If his father only lived in the US for the four years he was in college, he has not met the requirements to pass on citizenship.
2. If his father did live in the US long enough to pass on citizenship, it's unclear in FIFA terms whether Austin could play for the US or only for USVI.

I know the club source says that Austin is a US citizen, but it wouldn't be the first time a club got something like this wrong. That said, if Austin is ineligible I think (2) is more likely because I believe his father also played HS basketball in the US.

Here's a FIFA rule geared towards situations where there are multiple federations for one nationality (e.g. England/Scotland/Wales/N.I. or US/PR/USVI/Guam)

A Player who, under the terms of art. 5, is eligible to represent more than one Association on account of his nationality, may play in an international match for one of these Associations only if, in addition to having the relevant nationality, he fulfills at least one of the following conditions:

a) He was born on the territory of the relevant Association;
b) His biological mother or biological father was born on the territory of the relevant Association;
c) His grandmother or grandfather was born on the territory of the relevant Association;
d) He has lived continuously on the territory of the relevant Association for at least two years.


Applied to Austin's potential eligibility for the US, he potentially fails all four. Maybe (c), though it's likelier that his grandparents lived in USVI and not the continental US. If so, I guess he could still become eligible if he moved to an American team in MLS and played for two seasons?
 

tmracht

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Yeah Brian Sciaretta pretty definitely said on twitter this summer he's ineligible.
 

67YAZ

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Jesse Marsch is getting some love from the big names.

View: https://twitter.com/JDNalton/status/1204497335746727936
No idea what his contract looks like, but it will be hard for Salzburg to hold on to Marsch, especially if Nagelsmann has the Leipzig job locked down for the foreseeable future.

Salzburg are so effective in transition, they are clearly very well coached in this phase of the game. Surely there are a bunch of mid-table English and German sides that see this and imagine that Marsch could help a squad punch well above its weight.
 

Dummy Hoy

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Marsch has been so methodical in his decision making, I don’t see him jumping to a bigger club just because the opportunity is there. I mean, why would you leave the RB family just to go to some mid table German club punching above its weight or some old English giant who is run by visionless capitalists? I’m hopeful he waits for the right fit- he’s our great American standard-bearer. Wagner is American but not generally perceived as such, so Marsch is the guy who can prove we know a bit about the game.
 

DJnVa

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Marsch has been so methodical in his decision making, I don’t see him jumping to a bigger club just because the opportunity is there. I mean, why would you leave the RB family just to go to some mid table German club punching above its weight or some old English giant who is run by visionless capitalists?
Wouldn't hiring someone like Marsch show some vision?
 

Dummy Hoy

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Wouldn't hiring someone like Marsch show some vision?
Sure, but from his perspective, I’d be very careful about jumping to a new job just because it’s higher profile. It wouldn’t kill him to take another run with Salzburg while waiting for a good place rather than just cashing in now.
 

Cellar-Door

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Weston McKennie dislocated his shoulder today, they haven't decided if he needs surgery yet, but either way I expect he is out for some time.
 

Titans Bastard

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Here's a very under the radar US coaching story:

Pellegrino Matarazzo is an Italian-American who grew up in NJ, played at Columbia, then went on to have a journeyman's career in the 3rd and 4th divisions of Germany from 2000-2010. He held various coaching roles at Nürnberg from 2010 to 2017, then moved to Hoffenheim where he's been an assistant. Today, he was appointed manager of VfB Stuttgart, who are 3rd in the 2.Bundesliga.

It's great to see another US-raised manager get a shot overseas.

https://www.vfb.de/de/vfb/aktuell/neues/profis/2019/neuer-cheftrainer/
 

Titans Bastard

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Gio Reyna goes to winter camp with BVB's first team. Håland isn't direct competition for Reyna, but his arrival will make the overall attacking situation busier and potentially more difficult for Reyna to break into.

View: https://twitter.com/BVBJugend/status/1212760546715541504



Central midfielder Blaine Ferri has been kicked out of Greuther Fürth for unknown disciplinary reasons. He had been a regular with their reserve team.
 

Titans Bastard

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In the FA Cup:

Midfielder Indiana Vassilev '01 made his first team debut for Aston Villa, coming off the bench in a 2-1 loss to Fulham. On the opposing side, Luca de la Torre '98 also came off the bench.
 

Titans Bastard

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It feels like Gio Reyna is getting a serious look with Dortmund's first team this winter camp. He's not just one of the U19s along for the ride, he's starting in friendlies along with pretty strong and established XIs. Yesterday, he started in the attack along with Reus and Sancho and had a goal and assist.


Josh Sargent is back from his injury and scored two goals in a friendly. He looked sharp in the highlights, too.

View: https://twitter.com/usmntonly/status/1216359659059253255



After playing for Aston Villa in the League Cup and FA Cup, 18 year old Indiana Vassilev is on the bench in the EPL for the first time vs. Man City.
 

InstaFace

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His teammate near the goal looks really sad about it for some reason.
As does the winger who wanted him to pass it to him and got frustrated that he didn't. Yeah, clearly the wrong choice there by Gooch, buddy.

What a weird clip. Is something up with Sunderland?
 

Jimy Hendrix

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As does the winger who wanted him to pass it to him and got frustrated that he didn't. Yeah, clearly the wrong choice there by Gooch, buddy.

What a weird clip. Is something up with Sunderland?
Yes, constantly, but they’re actually on an uptick in form right now that has them back in the playoff places.
 

InstaFace

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Not mentioned yet:

- Yedlin was starting most games for Newcastle, but broke his hand a few weeks ago.
- Pulisic was starting most games for Chelsea, but picked up an adductor (tendon) injury in training after New Year's Day, now expected to keep him out till mid-February.
- Weston McKennie, after being carted off the field against Frankfurt, opted against surgery and is back in training, expected to play again in february. His injury history is piling up, nevertheless.

...but, uh, Gio Reyna got on the field for Dortmund! And, um, Geoff Cameron is still playing 90 minutes a game for QPR...
 

Titans Bastard

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And, um, Geoff Cameron is still playing 90 minutes a game for QPR...
Eric Lichaj is amid his seventh season as a starter in the Championship. Post-USMNT players who still play abroad sure fall off the radar of the general US soccer fan public quickly.
 

tmracht

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Eric Lichaj is amid his seventh season as a starter in the Championship. Post-USMNT players who still play abroad sure fall off the radar of the general US soccer fan public quickly.
I do wonder if that is a normal behavior for a nation, like do general fans from Australia follow post-Socceroo abroad players?
 

Titans Bastard

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There have been rumors for a while, but today there are a ton of reports that AC Milan is buying Antonee Robinson for $10m. If true, it would be one of the most bonkers US-related transfers that I can remember.
 

Joe D Reid

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The Guardian’s live blog now has it as a done deal.

EDIT: Correction, done pending medical exam.
 
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InstaFace

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wasn't he on track to be a Championship lifer? He's 22, Everton never gave him much of a first-team crack, and Wigan - relegation-zone in the Championship - was apparently as much interest as he could generate for his services. 3 years full-time starting in the Champ.

I don't get why he'd cost the reported 6-10M GBP, either. That's big-league money and while the Championship is no joke, that kind of dough would have gotten Milan a player from an EPL team, I'd have thought.

Anyway, prior to that BBP report, there were earlier reports that the deal had fallen through over personal terms, which would seem even sillier than the idea that he'd go from Wigan to playing for AC Milan.

...update: In fact, the most recent report I can find is that he's flying home, deal cancelled.

Wigan confirmed the deal had collapses in a statement. It read: "Wigan Athletic defender Antonee Robinson will remain at the DW Stadium after his move to AC Milan could not be completed.

"Robinson, 22, travelled to Milan this morning after the two clubs agreed a fee for the permanent transfer on Thursday evening.

"The USA international underwent a medical examination with AC Milan, though further medical tests with the Italian authorities were required, which were subject to a 72-hour deadline.

"As such, the deal could not be formally ratified before the 8pm Italian Transfer Deadline on Friday."
That seems like a lot of Italian bullshit.
 

Joe D Reid

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The whole idea is genuinely odd, although I can't imagine they would have flown him from Wigan to Milan if the deal weren't done except for the medical exam. If the whole thing was a bit, they really committed to it.
 

Titans Bastard

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Dest had a good day vs. PSV.

View: https://twitter.com/AFCAjax/status/1224032127471226880


A lot of highlights here, including a penalty he should have won that went uncalled. All this, a day after Reggie Cannon was MOTM for the US. We are in very good shape at RB. EPL bona fides aside, I honestly think that Yedlin is our third-string RB at this point.

View: https://twitter.com/USMNTvideos/status/1224041680157978626



Reyna came off the bench for the third game in a row. BVB got rid of Jacob Bruun Larsen and Reyna has been used ahead of Götze in all three games. That won't necessarily be sustained all spring, but it's still pretty cool.
 

InstaFace

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A lot of highlights here, including a penalty he should have won that went uncalled. All this, a day after Reggie Cannon was MOTM for the US. We are in very good shape at RB. EPL bona fides aside, I honestly think that Yedlin is our third-string RB at this point.
Yedlin had the announcers shouting about how well he created some chances in his last game vs Norwich. Load up the MOTD highlights here and run to 1:50, they praise him twice in a 30-second span. Newcastle is 12th in the EPL, but they're in the EPL, and Yedlin's pretty clearly their first-choice RB whenever he's healthy. And he's 26 years old, with 62 caps.

I think you're right to be excited about Dest's potential, but putting him ahead of Yedlin right now, nevermind putting FC Dallas' RB ahead of him in the depth chart, is a little ludicrous.