GOAL reviews the major takeaways from Americans playing in Europe, including an extended streak of goal contributions
Heading into this international break, manager Mauricio Pochettini will be keeping a close eye on which of his U.S. men's national team stars are in good form. Finding that form early in the season is as much about mentality as it is about talent. Who returned from the summer ready to go? Who returned with a point to prove – and the ability to prove it?
Pochettino should like what he sees. It was another weekend with plenty of goals, but one with some lows, too.
The Championship remains the league to watch for American fans as key USMNT attackers continue to rack up numbers. Sergino Dest, meanwhile, is doing the same in the Eredivisie. It was a tough weekend, though, for other stars, as Christian Pulisic, Folarin Balogun and Johnny Cardoso saw their side slump to frustrating results.
With the September squad set to be announced this week, all eyes will soon be on USMNT duty.
GOAL looks at the major takeaways from this weekend's Americans Abroad.
Getty Images SportSargent impossible to ignore
Only Pochettino knows why he left Josh Sargent off the Gold Cup squad. He described it as an "football decision," and fair enough. Pochettino clearly wanted a look at other players this summer, and Sargent was a victim of that.
Pochettino, though, has to be absolutely thrilled with Sargent's response. It's been about as emphatic as possible.
It's four games, four goals for Sargent now, three of which have come in the Championship. He's gotten on the board in each of Norwich's four competitive fixtures and, despite mixed results, Sargent continues to show he's likely the Championship's most reliable goalscorer.
The latest came in a 2-1 loss to Middlesbrough, and in another game in which Sargent saw little of the ball. He had just 25 touches, the fewest of any player that went the full 90. But despite that, he got his goal and completed more dribbles (three) than anyone else on the field. Sargent, to put it lightly, is making a lot out of a little.
It's been impressive, and Pochettino will certainly be getting a look at it up close this fall, as Sargent has made himself impossible to ignore.
AdvertisementGetty Images SportWright won't be outdone
Not to be outdone by Sargent, Haji Wright has been equally as dominant this season. And, while Norwich haven't been able to make the most of Sargent's goals, Coventry City certainly have.
The club made it two wins out of three this weekend, and did it in style as they ran over QPR in a 7-1 win. Wright scored twice in that win, netting in the 12th and 37th minutes to trigger the avalanche that was to come. With those goals, Wright has three in the Championship for the season, having also scored in last weekend's 5-3 win over Derby County.
It's early days, yes, but Coventry have clearly been the Championship's most gung-ho team, with Wright playing a huge part in making that happen. Just as Sargent has made his case for a USMNT spot, so too, has Wright, who was unlucky to suffer an injury early into his Gold Cup run. That's behind him, paving the way for a USMNT return soon.
AFPDest raises the bar again
Another week, another goal contribution, and that makes Sergino Dest the most interesting player in the USMNT pool heading towards the international break.
In four appearances, including the Supercup to open the season, Dest now has two goals and an assist, not to mention a direct contribution to an own goal in the one game where he didn't log an official contribution. His most recent came on Saturday, as he set up Esmir Bajraktarevic's finish just after halftime, helping PSV to a 4-2 win over Groningen.
Dest wasn't the only American story in that match. Ricardo Pepi made his long-awaited return from a knee injury, coming off the bench, getting five minutes and a few touches under his belt. PSV missed both Pepi and Dest down the stretch last season and, while the former may not quite be ready, the latter is looking like one of the most dangerous weapons in the Eredivisie.
That all comes as Dest nears the end of an extended USMNT absence, one that should likely end in just a few short days. Pochettino will have no worries about his fitness, confidence or form, though, as Dest is playing arguably the best soccer of his career.
Getty Images SportPulisic can't save another bad day for Milan
This wasn't the start Milan would have imagined. Starting the season at home against lowly Cremonese fresh off a Coppa Italia win last weekend, Milan were huge favorites. They were also, in the end, the losing side.
Milan conceded a goal in either half, ultimately losing, 2-1, to the newly-promoted side. It was a blow to a Milan team that, after finishing eighth last season, certainly wanted to start this new era in the right way. Instead, it was more of the same, if not worse.
Pulisic was one of the few bright spots, providing nearly all of Milan's attacking danger. He created four chances, a few of which could have ended up as goals if Santi Gimenez was more clinical, while firing a shot on target himself.
This failure, meanwhile, was historic. This was Milan's first loss to Cremonese at home since October 1925. An imperfect stat, yes, given the trajectories of the two clubs in the 100 years since, but it does show just how unprecedented, and unexpected, this poor start was.
There's once again a lot of work to do in Milan and, even with Pulisic at his best, sometimes that isn't enough.
