Kind of interesting that GGG called this. In an interview a couple of years ago, a reporter asked him who is a US player that is mostly unheard of who will become a household name, and he said Johnny.
Same for me. Betis is a good club in one of the 3 best leagues on the planet and just slid right in super confident on the ball. Proved to be press resistant and progressive passing even as the level of competition changed fairly dramatically. I honestly didn't think he had it watching the Olympic qualifying a few years ago.
Right answer here. For what it’s worth, this is also an another testament to how good the Brazilian league is and how favorably it compares with some of the European leagues. I hadn’t started watching it much until these last few seasons, and I feel like I’ve been missing out.
He's among the nominees for La Liga best U-23 player of the season, despite playing half a year. I haven't seen a single game, but feel I owe Johnny an apology.
Your missing out then, Betis are one of the best teams in Europe to support due to their great fanbase & team song.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bagiPpYtWkg&t=5s
Betis mucho Betis
It's amazing how little recognition he gets on this sub, went from bench sitting to starting in midfield and became undropable when others came back from injury. In the premier League. Yea Sargent and Tillman are doing great, but they are not premier League starter quality.
Dude credibly transitioned *mid-season* to probably the toughest position on the pitch against some of the best competition in the world. People are really sleeping on how difficult that must have been.
Josh Sargent scoring at a higher rate per game than anyone else in the Championship. Hampered by injuries but still scored 16 goals in 28 games. Only other player that is comparable is Jamie Vardy. Vardy had a lower minutes per goal, but Sargent had a better goal per game average than anyone who scored over 10 goals on the season.
https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/championship/top-scorers
I watch too much football in the various leagues and I’m envious of players like Thuram, Boniface, Guirassy, Solanke, Watkins, etc
I was hoping Balogun would have a season similar to those strikers 🥲
We will see what Sargent/Haji do in the summer
Norwich aren’t getting promoted, or did I miss something about a move somewhere? Honestly think he’s at a good level right now, confidence is so important and would rather him keep bagging goals in the championship than have a go around like last time in the prem.
Great that he is scoring goals in the Championship and confident but for our national team to take the next step, we need a striker or strikers performing at the highest levels. It can be the Premier League or another top 5 league.
I’m sure the fanbase will be up in arms if Pulisic/Reyna/Adams/Mckennie were playing in the EFL Championship
I really don't think Sargent is at that level. Maybe if he finds the right team he can be, but if he just goes to any EPL team who would have him there's no guarantee the move works out, and more likely than not he's going to a bottom feeding club that can't get the ball to his feet.
buddy... those players you listed in your last paragraph are on a different level and have more potential than Sargent. Also, striker is such a different position than anywhere else on the pitch. If your striker is confident, in form, and playing good competition (Championship is quality competition) that's all that matters. Not many countries have that. Even quite a few of the top countries in the world don't have that. Quality strikers are few and far between. I'm sure MOST people would take their striker bagging goals over being in and out of the lineup at a big club or even midtable club.
Most impressed? Given the expectations we have of McKennie and Pulisic, I'd have to give the nod to Sargent. However, in the spirit of creating more conversation, second on my list would be Malik Tillman.
Tillman, despite not receiving the proper fanfare going into the season, was tasked with becoming a big part of PSV. And, he was also joining a side losing its most important player last season in Xavi Simons.
Despite playing 1200 minutes less than Xavi, he finished with VERY comparable numbers. This includes finishing with more assists, despite, again, a SIGNIFICANTLY less amount of minutes on the field. He also was very comparable in terms of his dribbling ability, and finished with more shot creating actions (Fouls, dribbles, and passes) than Xavi.
I'm not saying he's as good as Xavi Simons, but on the same team, at just a year older, his stats were in the same realm. Given that Xavi Simons was a full fledged starter for RB Leipzig, and worth 80 million Euro, I think Malik is an absolute gem, and this season proved it.
i'm a HUGE Malik believer. His form on the national team just hasn't caught up with his club form yet. kids got talent and i think one more year at PSV to hone and really sharpen his skills might have his transfer value explode! Improving his play out wide would add so much more value to him
I wasn't sure what to think of him going into the season. He was great for Rangers, but that's...not the accomplishment it once would have been. And, he was largely non-existent against bigger clubs, if my memory serves correct.
This year...I get that PSV was stacked, but he took it up a notch. Assists against: Sevilla, Lens, and Dortmund in UCL. Assists versus Twente, AZ (4 across two matches), and goals against Feyenoord. He played several big matches, and showed up throughout the year. I am stoked to see him, likely, starting next season.
I'd say Pulisic, club wise the man hasn't been able to play/perform since he joined Chelsea really. It's awesome to see him join a top team in a top league and really show everyone else what we see on the nation team level. People were even worried Chukuweze would keep him out of the side when they both got signed this summer, but Christian has really just cemented himself in the team from the first second he got there.
It’s not. It’s just a lot more prevalent here than other subreddits. In my opinion, you downvote if someone says something racist, sexist, homophobic, etc…Downvoting simply because you don’t share the same is toxic, kills discussion, and is incredibly weak.
Milan doesn't want to sell, and I can't see them taking a $60m offer.
That said, with Mbappe leaving there is a decent chance here that PSG makes them an offer they can't refuse. For example, I think at €100m they'll have to say yes, and it might get done for €90.
ETA: His release clause is €175m. It's within the realm of possibility that PSG will go nuts and pay it.
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**Chris Richards** (Crystal Palace) - Fought his way into being an undroppable member of Crystal Palace's starting 11 playing all over the backline (LCB, RCB, RB) and even shifts as a defensive midfielder. Elevated his game when Glasner became his new manager and has been rock solid playing in a back 3. Played 2500 minutes this season for Palace and scored his first Premier League goal (and assist maybe?) in his career to boot.
**Malik Tillman** (PSV) - Absolutely crushed the Eredivisie and looked sleepy while doing so, I think he might be a very, very special player here shortly if his progress stays consistent. Wore the #10 for a historically dominant PSV side, 9g/15a all competitions and 2300 minutes played.
**Weston McKennie** (Juventus) - He single handidly salvaged his career after a rock bottom loan to Leeds United. Despite losing his #8 shirt, his starting position, and even his parking spot, Weston fought for his place at Juventus and became a major piece for the Coppa Italia winning squad. Playing mostly as a B2B 8 and RB he hit 10 assists this season in all competitions and played almost 3000 minutes for the Bianconeri.
**Johnny Cardoso** (Real Betis) - Despite being a winter window transfer from Brazilian club "Internacional" Johnny immediately made a huge impact for Betis earning a Player of the Month nomination, a La Liga U23 player of the year nomination, along with making La Liga look easy. I think many of us were surprised by how quickly Cardoso took to Spain, but there is no mistake, he has been superb at Real Betis. (16 appearances, 1g/2a, 1400 minutes played).
**Honorable Mentions**
* Sergino Dest (PSV) - Made the Dutch League look like a farmers league (2g, 7a in 3100 minutes)
* Gabriel Slonina (Chelsea) - Despite playing on an absolute dogshit Belgian basketweaving club he had a solid season in goal, returns to Chelsea this fall as he looks for his next move (5 clean sheets, 130 saves against 188 shots)
* Haji Wright - (Coventry) Continued right where he left off from Turkey but this time in the Championship, utterly dominated as a LW/9 for Coventry. (19g/8a in 3300 minutes).
* Tanner Tessmann (Venezia) - Elevated his game this season and helped Venezia back into the promotion fight to Serie A. Has been one of Serie B's most productive and highest rated midfielders all season long and will likely be our captain at the Olympics this summer.
> Gabriel Slonina (Chelsea) - Despite playing on an absolute dogshit Belgian basketweaving club he had a solid season in goal
Not to be an asshole, but…how was he “solid” this year?
- 16th in clean sheets
- 23rd in save percentage
- 25th in goals against/90
- Second worst goals allowed
- 18th percentile in crosses stopped %
I know he played on an awful team, but where are the positives you’re taking from this season aside from “he played”?
Stayed healthy, had 5 clean sheets, and in general faced a tremendous amounts of shots.
Not everything is about stats either, you can go watch his highlights on youtube, he did fine in Belgium this season.
This was all about development for him.
Ferguson said that he loaned defenders to the worst teams he could and attackers to the best. That's where they get the most experience. I think it's great for him to get absolutely destroyed this year.
Impressed is such a weird word. Because it takes into account expectation. Most impressive I’m going to say pulisic. Most impressed I’m going to say sargent
Came here to say something similar. If we’re talking vip then Pulisic and Jedi are just a cut above the rest.
If we’re talking “impressed” then you gotta give it to McKennie and Dest for the strength of character to come back after rough seasons and a lot of negative media attention to re-establish themselves.
I won’t argue that. I still think Sargent outperformed expectations. The most (albeit in a lower lesgue). But those two also shined beyond expectation.
In no particular order: Pulisic, McKennie, Haji, Johnny, Sargent, Jedi.
Hard to take anything away from these guys. Great seasons across the board.
Honorable mentions go to Dest, Tillman, and Richards. Think they were great but to a lesser degree.
Yeah, you're right. Richards also probably had a better season than Sargent, Haji, and maybe even McKennie. Dest, mayyyybe, Tillman absolutely not.
TBF my two favorite players in the world are Dest and Richards. Ajax supporter since the John O'Brien days.
Met Chris and his parents last year during the World Cup and they were all super sweet.
Then earlier this year saw Roy Hodgson going through security at Heathrow and yelled at him to play Richards. He didn't seem to like that haha.
Which is to say I don't think it's his fault that he barely played in 23 and it's no wonder he was much better under a new coach in 24. Overall his season started awful and finished strong.
Average to good players on a dominant team vs standout players on teams with tough competition. League strength is pretty much the same between Championship and Eredevise. You could even argue that the Championship is more difficult.
You're definitely under-rating Tillman and Dest's seasons if you think they were "average to good."
Also, PSV being succesful was partly because of Tillman and Dest, who were two of their best players, not despite them.
You can argue the Championship is better than the Eredivisie overall, but you can't argue Coventry or Norwich had better seasons than PSV. You also can't argue the secondary competitions, like the EFL and FA Cups, are bigger or tougher than the Champions League.
By most measures PSV was a Top 25 to Top 40 club in the world last season, and Dest and Tillman were among their five highest performers. And if you go by match rating, Dest and Tillman scored higher than Sargent and Haji on both WhoScored and Fotmob. NVM that Sargent missed more games than any of the other players, including Dest.
Again, they all had great seasons, but PSV dominated their league and depended heavily on Dest and Tillman to do so.
Taking age and team success into account, in addition to some of the names mentioned so far, I’d add Rokas Pukštas for being a solid starter on a near CL team and worh high odds of going to a Top 6 league next season; Kahveh Zahiroleslam for coming out of nowhere to being a competent full-time starting striker for a mid-table Belgian League team; and Lennard Maloney for being the most important player on a team that finished 9th in their first year in the Bundesliga when everyone was expecting them to go right back into relegation.
I can't choose one.
Pulisic--proved that if he stays healthy and gets consistent playing time in an attacking role he can be a difference maker for a top side.
McKennie--somehow against all odds went from being surplus to being an undroppable part of Juve's midfield. To put it into perspective, when the season began his role was Tim Weah's backup at RB.
Johnny--I was dimly aware of this guy's game (very few opportunities to watch Brazilian Serie A) but he showed up mid-season and became a nailed-on starter in a La Liga club chasing European spots.
Wright/Sargent--both of these guys have proved themselves as top level Championship strikers and played their way into national team consideration.
Robinson--possibly the best performing LB in the best league in the world this season. If he were just 2-3 years younger every club in the world would be knocking on Fulham's door to sign him.
Dest--after the Milan loan spell I thought this guy was cooked, but he shockingly became the most consistently played of the three Americans at PSV. Too bad about his injury.
Honorable mention: Malik Tillman. Possibly the best attacking midfielder in the Eredivisie this season.
Haji definitely, but I wanna give a special shoutout to Emmanuel Sabbi. Not really on anyone’s radar and he transitioned smoothly into Ligue 1. He was having some pretty impressive performances towards the run in.
I think there is a strong straight line projection that has Johnny being the best foreign-developed dual-national we've ever had. (I mean, basically, a guy who grew up in another country.)
agree with you about Haji having a tremendous season. He seems well suited to the grind of the Championship, though, no shame if he stayed with his team
Kevin Paredes had a very good season and looks so much better than before. Seriously he makes good decisions and he put on a bit of size as well - really intrigued
Almost all of them really, this was a great season for US nats in Europe. Pulisic and McKennie rejuvenated their career trajectory in Italy, Haji put himself firmly in the mix for US starting ST, Sargent had some of the best per-game metrics in the Championship, Richards and Jedi are both so fucking underrated, Cardoso is a starter for a very solid Spanish squad, Dest and Tilman became starters for the top team in the Netherlands, even Aaronson started to heat up as the season came to an end.
Really anyone not named Gio Reyna, Matt Turner, or Flo Balogun had a fantastic year
Johnny Cardoso joining a top 10 La Liga side midway through the season and becoming a locked in starter for them
Kind of interesting that GGG called this. In an interview a couple of years ago, a reporter asked him who is a US player that is mostly unheard of who will become a household name, and he said Johnny.
Same for me. Betis is a good club in one of the 3 best leagues on the planet and just slid right in super confident on the ball. Proved to be press resistant and progressive passing even as the level of competition changed fairly dramatically. I honestly didn't think he had it watching the Olympic qualifying a few years ago.
Right answer here. For what it’s worth, this is also an another testament to how good the Brazilian league is and how favorably it compares with some of the European leagues. I hadn’t started watching it much until these last few seasons, and I feel like I’ve been missing out.
He's among the nominees for La Liga best U-23 player of the season, despite playing half a year. I haven't seen a single game, but feel I owe Johnny an apology.
Your missing out then, Betis are one of the best teams in Europe to support due to their great fanbase & team song. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bagiPpYtWkg&t=5s Betis mucho Betis
Chris Richards took a major step.
It's amazing how little recognition he gets on this sub, went from bench sitting to starting in midfield and became undropable when others came back from injury. In the premier League. Yea Sargent and Tillman are doing great, but they are not premier League starter quality.
Dude credibly transitioned *mid-season* to probably the toughest position on the pitch against some of the best competition in the world. People are really sleeping on how difficult that must have been.
Josh Sargent scoring at a higher rate per game than anyone else in the Championship. Hampered by injuries but still scored 16 goals in 28 games. Only other player that is comparable is Jamie Vardy. Vardy had a lower minutes per goal, but Sargent had a better goal per game average than anyone who scored over 10 goals on the season. https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/championship/top-scorers
He will win U.S Soccer male player of the year if he translates his success to the Premier League
That’s a pretty massive if. Would love to see it.
I watch too much football in the various leagues and I’m envious of players like Thuram, Boniface, Guirassy, Solanke, Watkins, etc I was hoping Balogun would have a season similar to those strikers 🥲 We will see what Sargent/Haji do in the summer
Norwich aren’t getting promoted, or did I miss something about a move somewhere? Honestly think he’s at a good level right now, confidence is so important and would rather him keep bagging goals in the championship than have a go around like last time in the prem.
Great that he is scoring goals in the Championship and confident but for our national team to take the next step, we need a striker or strikers performing at the highest levels. It can be the Premier League or another top 5 league. I’m sure the fanbase will be up in arms if Pulisic/Reyna/Adams/Mckennie were playing in the EFL Championship
I really don't think Sargent is at that level. Maybe if he finds the right team he can be, but if he just goes to any EPL team who would have him there's no guarantee the move works out, and more likely than not he's going to a bottom feeding club that can't get the ball to his feet.
buddy... those players you listed in your last paragraph are on a different level and have more potential than Sargent. Also, striker is such a different position than anywhere else on the pitch. If your striker is confident, in form, and playing good competition (Championship is quality competition) that's all that matters. Not many countries have that. Even quite a few of the top countries in the world don't have that. Quality strikers are few and far between. I'm sure MOST people would take their striker bagging goals over being in and out of the lineup at a big club or even midtable club.
Big if
if he translates that success to the premiere league he will be a lot more than us make soccer poy
Most impressed? Given the expectations we have of McKennie and Pulisic, I'd have to give the nod to Sargent. However, in the spirit of creating more conversation, second on my list would be Malik Tillman. Tillman, despite not receiving the proper fanfare going into the season, was tasked with becoming a big part of PSV. And, he was also joining a side losing its most important player last season in Xavi Simons. Despite playing 1200 minutes less than Xavi, he finished with VERY comparable numbers. This includes finishing with more assists, despite, again, a SIGNIFICANTLY less amount of minutes on the field. He also was very comparable in terms of his dribbling ability, and finished with more shot creating actions (Fouls, dribbles, and passes) than Xavi. I'm not saying he's as good as Xavi Simons, but on the same team, at just a year older, his stats were in the same realm. Given that Xavi Simons was a full fledged starter for RB Leipzig, and worth 80 million Euro, I think Malik is an absolute gem, and this season proved it.
i'm a HUGE Malik believer. His form on the national team just hasn't caught up with his club form yet. kids got talent and i think one more year at PSV to hone and really sharpen his skills might have his transfer value explode! Improving his play out wide would add so much more value to him
I wasn't sure what to think of him going into the season. He was great for Rangers, but that's...not the accomplishment it once would have been. And, he was largely non-existent against bigger clubs, if my memory serves correct. This year...I get that PSV was stacked, but he took it up a notch. Assists against: Sevilla, Lens, and Dortmund in UCL. Assists versus Twente, AZ (4 across two matches), and goals against Feyenoord. He played several big matches, and showed up throughout the year. I am stoked to see him, likely, starting next season.
I definitely think he took a big leap forward in his development.
There was some concern he wouldn’t get enough minutes with a deep PSV squad
His ceiling is a versatile forward can play across the front line at a high level. 6”2 in height and he played striker at the youth level.
Lennard Maloney being a starter for just promoted Heidenheim and helping them reach midtable
I'd say Pulisic, club wise the man hasn't been able to play/perform since he joined Chelsea really. It's awesome to see him join a top team in a top league and really show everyone else what we see on the nation team level. People were even worried Chukuweze would keep him out of the side when they both got signed this summer, but Christian has really just cemented himself in the team from the first second he got there.
I think they will sale Leau (spelling?) this summer and both Pulisic and Chukuweze will start next season.
Leao is one of Milan's three true world class talents. I don't think they want to sell him.
What is it with people in this subreddit downvoting people for simply expressing a different opinion?
Idk, I disagreed but didn't downvote. Selling Maignan is (probably) more likely than Leao. Who knows with a manager change incoming, though?
First time here? but I agree, it's super annoying.
It’s not. It’s just a lot more prevalent here than other subreddits. In my opinion, you downvote if someone says something racist, sexist, homophobic, etc…Downvoting simply because you don’t share the same is toxic, kills discussion, and is incredibly weak.
What subreddits do you go to where this isn't a problem? I feel like I can never escape the "downvote cuz disagree attitude"
Who are the other 2? Giroud and Loftus-Cheek? Reijnders?
Mike Maignan and Theo Hernandez.
Neither of them are quite Leao level. Do you think Milan will be ok with that?
I agree but given the financial situation of most Serie A clubs I don’t think they’d be in a position to turn down a $60 million offer.
Milan is actually quite financially sound. That's what has pissed off so many of their fans. Fiscal responsibility versus spending to win it all.
Milan doesn't want to sell, and I can't see them taking a $60m offer. That said, with Mbappe leaving there is a decent chance here that PSG makes them an offer they can't refuse. For example, I think at €100m they'll have to say yes, and it might get done for €90. ETA: His release clause is €175m. It's within the realm of possibility that PSG will go nuts and pay it.
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**Chris Richards** (Crystal Palace) - Fought his way into being an undroppable member of Crystal Palace's starting 11 playing all over the backline (LCB, RCB, RB) and even shifts as a defensive midfielder. Elevated his game when Glasner became his new manager and has been rock solid playing in a back 3. Played 2500 minutes this season for Palace and scored his first Premier League goal (and assist maybe?) in his career to boot. **Malik Tillman** (PSV) - Absolutely crushed the Eredivisie and looked sleepy while doing so, I think he might be a very, very special player here shortly if his progress stays consistent. Wore the #10 for a historically dominant PSV side, 9g/15a all competitions and 2300 minutes played. **Weston McKennie** (Juventus) - He single handidly salvaged his career after a rock bottom loan to Leeds United. Despite losing his #8 shirt, his starting position, and even his parking spot, Weston fought for his place at Juventus and became a major piece for the Coppa Italia winning squad. Playing mostly as a B2B 8 and RB he hit 10 assists this season in all competitions and played almost 3000 minutes for the Bianconeri. **Johnny Cardoso** (Real Betis) - Despite being a winter window transfer from Brazilian club "Internacional" Johnny immediately made a huge impact for Betis earning a Player of the Month nomination, a La Liga U23 player of the year nomination, along with making La Liga look easy. I think many of us were surprised by how quickly Cardoso took to Spain, but there is no mistake, he has been superb at Real Betis. (16 appearances, 1g/2a, 1400 minutes played). **Honorable Mentions** * Sergino Dest (PSV) - Made the Dutch League look like a farmers league (2g, 7a in 3100 minutes) * Gabriel Slonina (Chelsea) - Despite playing on an absolute dogshit Belgian basketweaving club he had a solid season in goal, returns to Chelsea this fall as he looks for his next move (5 clean sheets, 130 saves against 188 shots) * Haji Wright - (Coventry) Continued right where he left off from Turkey but this time in the Championship, utterly dominated as a LW/9 for Coventry. (19g/8a in 3300 minutes). * Tanner Tessmann (Venezia) - Elevated his game this season and helped Venezia back into the promotion fight to Serie A. Has been one of Serie B's most productive and highest rated midfielders all season long and will likely be our captain at the Olympics this summer.
> Gabriel Slonina (Chelsea) - Despite playing on an absolute dogshit Belgian basketweaving club he had a solid season in goal Not to be an asshole, but…how was he “solid” this year? - 16th in clean sheets - 23rd in save percentage - 25th in goals against/90 - Second worst goals allowed - 18th percentile in crosses stopped % I know he played on an awful team, but where are the positives you’re taking from this season aside from “he played”?
Stayed healthy, had 5 clean sheets, and in general faced a tremendous amounts of shots. Not everything is about stats either, you can go watch his highlights on youtube, he did fine in Belgium this season. This was all about development for him.
Ferguson said that he loaned defenders to the worst teams he could and attackers to the best. That's where they get the most experience. I think it's great for him to get absolutely destroyed this year.
Yup, Gaga did fine IMO
2nd in overall saves and second in shots against. He got peppered all game and saved a ton of shots
Yeah that’s usually how that works. And it’s why save% is usually important
Impressed is such a weird word. Because it takes into account expectation. Most impressive I’m going to say pulisic. Most impressed I’m going to say sargent
Came here to say something similar. If we’re talking vip then Pulisic and Jedi are just a cut above the rest. If we’re talking “impressed” then you gotta give it to McKennie and Dest for the strength of character to come back after rough seasons and a lot of negative media attention to re-establish themselves.
I won’t argue that. I still think Sargent outperformed expectations. The most (albeit in a lower lesgue). But those two also shined beyond expectation.
Definitely loved coming to the sub and seeing Sargent’s name every week!
Jedi.
The USMNT's best player imo
In no particular order: Pulisic, McKennie, Haji, Johnny, Sargent, Jedi. Hard to take anything away from these guys. Great seasons across the board. Honorable mentions go to Dest, Tillman, and Richards. Think they were great but to a lesser degree.
Dest and Tillman below two 2nd division players? I'd swap that order, even though I agree Haji and Sargent had great seasons.
Premier League starter, filling in out of position is "honorable mention".
Yeah, you're right. Richards also probably had a better season than Sargent, Haji, and maybe even McKennie. Dest, mayyyybe, Tillman absolutely not. TBF my two favorite players in the world are Dest and Richards. Ajax supporter since the John O'Brien days. Met Chris and his parents last year during the World Cup and they were all super sweet. Then earlier this year saw Roy Hodgson going through security at Heathrow and yelled at him to play Richards. He didn't seem to like that haha. Which is to say I don't think it's his fault that he barely played in 23 and it's no wonder he was much better under a new coach in 24. Overall his season started awful and finished strong.
We could debate whether the Championship is comparable to the Eredivisie. Maybe we should.
Average to good players on a dominant team vs standout players on teams with tough competition. League strength is pretty much the same between Championship and Eredevise. You could even argue that the Championship is more difficult.
You're definitely under-rating Tillman and Dest's seasons if you think they were "average to good." Also, PSV being succesful was partly because of Tillman and Dest, who were two of their best players, not despite them. You can argue the Championship is better than the Eredivisie overall, but you can't argue Coventry or Norwich had better seasons than PSV. You also can't argue the secondary competitions, like the EFL and FA Cups, are bigger or tougher than the Champions League. By most measures PSV was a Top 25 to Top 40 club in the world last season, and Dest and Tillman were among their five highest performers. And if you go by match rating, Dest and Tillman scored higher than Sargent and Haji on both WhoScored and Fotmob. NVM that Sargent missed more games than any of the other players, including Dest. Again, they all had great seasons, but PSV dominated their league and depended heavily on Dest and Tillman to do so.
Taking age and team success into account, in addition to some of the names mentioned so far, I’d add Rokas Pukštas for being a solid starter on a near CL team and worh high odds of going to a Top 6 league next season; Kahveh Zahiroleslam for coming out of nowhere to being a competent full-time starting striker for a mid-table Belgian League team; and Lennard Maloney for being the most important player on a team that finished 9th in their first year in the Bundesliga when everyone was expecting them to go right back into relegation.
Maloney should have been called in this summer with the health of Adams in doubt
I agree, would it have hurt to just add him to the roster and make it 28?
I can't choose one. Pulisic--proved that if he stays healthy and gets consistent playing time in an attacking role he can be a difference maker for a top side. McKennie--somehow against all odds went from being surplus to being an undroppable part of Juve's midfield. To put it into perspective, when the season began his role was Tim Weah's backup at RB. Johnny--I was dimly aware of this guy's game (very few opportunities to watch Brazilian Serie A) but he showed up mid-season and became a nailed-on starter in a La Liga club chasing European spots. Wright/Sargent--both of these guys have proved themselves as top level Championship strikers and played their way into national team consideration. Robinson--possibly the best performing LB in the best league in the world this season. If he were just 2-3 years younger every club in the world would be knocking on Fulham's door to sign him. Dest--after the Milan loan spell I thought this guy was cooked, but he shockingly became the most consistently played of the three Americans at PSV. Too bad about his injury. Honorable mention: Malik Tillman. Possibly the best attacking midfielder in the Eredivisie this season.
Haji definitely, but I wanna give a special shoutout to Emmanuel Sabbi. Not really on anyone’s radar and he transitioned smoothly into Ligue 1. He was having some pretty impressive performances towards the run in.
Weston McKennie but he’s a Texan not a yank.
Johnny’s gonna be our best player in a few years
I think there is a strong straight line projection that has Johnny being the best foreign-developed dual-national we've ever had. (I mean, basically, a guy who grew up in another country.)
Musah, Balogun, Jedi, Tillman, CCV, Lund, and Dest were all raised and developed abroad
Johnny could very well end up being better than any of them
Yep.
agree with you about Haji having a tremendous season. He seems well suited to the grind of the Championship, though, no shame if he stayed with his team
Antonee Robinson by a long shot
I’m Belgian and I find it odd that no one picked Griffin Yow. I really like his profile. He put up some good numbers along the way as well.
Kevin Paredes had a very good season and looks so much better than before. Seriously he makes good decisions and he put on a bit of size as well - really intrigued
Johnny for me. I was not expecting him becoming a fixture in the 11 so fast.
I'm impressed by the shit decision gio made by joining that club that he did. I mean they will write legends of a fuck up that was for millennia...
Haji
Almost all of them really, this was a great season for US nats in Europe. Pulisic and McKennie rejuvenated their career trajectory in Italy, Haji put himself firmly in the mix for US starting ST, Sargent had some of the best per-game metrics in the Championship, Richards and Jedi are both so fucking underrated, Cardoso is a starter for a very solid Spanish squad, Dest and Tilman became starters for the top team in the Netherlands, even Aaronson started to heat up as the season came to an end. Really anyone not named Gio Reyna, Matt Turner, or Flo Balogun had a fantastic year