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Tyler Adams dominates, Josh Sargent returns to form and a new role for Sergino Dest

Sergino Dest Barcelona February 2021

The United States men's national team have been blessed with an array of youthful talent, some of whom now ply their trade in Europe's top leagues and we are continuing to follow their progress.

As the likes of Sergino Dest, Matthew Hoppe and Giovanni Reyna continue to get a run of games for their respective sides, there are numerous other United States men's national team players succeeding in Europe.

While American talent flourishes all over the continent, some others, such as Christian Pulisic, are having to bide their time before they can impress and stand out for their clubs.

The United States are a 60-1 longshot with Paddy Power for success at FIFA World Cup 2022 - but we will continue to track each player's progress with a weekly report and rating.

Christian Pulisic

February 28, Chelsea 0-0 Manchester United

As has been the case for the majority of games under Thomas Tuchel so far, Pulisic was named as a substitute for the visit of Manchester United.

Introduced for Olivier Giroud in the 65th minute, the ex-Dortmund forward struggled to make any significant contribution for the Blues as they trudged to a fairly uneventful stalemate with the Red Devils.
With opportunities to impress being few and far between amongst a wealth of expensive attacking talent, Pulisic will need to perform better if he is to break into Tuchel's starting eleven in the near future.

Rating: 6/10

Deandre Yedlin

February 27, Galatasaray 2-0 Buyuksehir Belediye Erzurumspor

After a commanding performance last week, it was unsurprising to see Yedlin complete the full 90 minutes after his side coasted to yet another Super Lig win.

Roaming up and down the right-hand channel, Yedlin's role was based around his attacking rather than defensive abilities. 

The right-back could have had a goal himself if his effort from the middle of the park had not fallen to the wrong side of the left-hand post.
Yedlin appears to be enjoying life in Turkey after his loan move and will undoubtedly be in search of Super Lig silverware at the end of this season.

Rating: 7/10

Sergino Dest

February 27, Sevilla 0-2 Barcelona

With Ronald Koeman opting for a 3-5-2 formation, Dest was offered the freedom to attack down the right-hand side with the additional protection of the three-man defence.

Asserting his attacking dominance, the majority of Barcelona's play went through the right wing-back, who clutched the touchline to make central space for the likes of Ousmane Dembele and Lionel Messi.

A clean sheet and a 2-0 win to send his side up to second in La Liga would only have been improved upon if Dest's 60th-minute strike had gone in instead of hitting the post.

Rating: 7/10

Giovanni Reyna

February 27, Borussia Dortmund 3-0 Arminia Bielefeld

Edin Terzic's team cruised to a 3-0 victory, however, Reyna once again failed to provide any significant attacking contributions.

While his team-mates, specifically Jadon Sancho and Erling Haaland, continue to thrive around him, the 18-year-old American has now not scored or produced an assist in 11 Bundesliga games.

Usually used as an attacking midfielder, Reyna was forced to occupy a wider role on Saturday, playing on the right of the hosts' four-man midfield.
Nevertheless, if Dortmund continue to win, it is likely Reyna will stay in the starting eleven, continuing to gain vital experience despite his career still being in its infancy.

Rating: 6/10

Matthew Hoppe

February 27, Stuttgart 5-1 Schalke

Despite a productive January - which saw the striker score five goals in six Bundesliga games - Hoppe has hit somewhat of a wall and is now goalless in six German top-flight matches.

Losing 5-1 away at Stuttgart, Schalke are eight points adrift of safety and in desperate need of the 19-year-old forward returning to form in front of goal.

However, the blame cannot solely be pinned on the American for the lack of goals, given the service from his supporting team-mates behind him has often been lacklustre.

With talks of a move to Liverpool floating around in midweek, Hoppe is going to have to do a lot more to justify a move to top-tier English soccer, never mind the Premier League champions.

Rating: 6/10

Tyler Adams

February 27, RB Leipzig 3-2 Borussia Monchengladbach

Perhaps Adams' best performance of the season came against Gladbach, after being shifted from right wing-back into a defensive-midfield position by Julian Nagelsmann.

Partnering Marcel Sabitzer in a two-man pairing, the American outshone his captain as he dominated the midfield proceedings to guide his team to an important win which keeps them two points behind first-placed Bayern Munich.

Seemingly covering every blade of grass, Adams' defensive output was not the only defining factor of his successful performance. He also remained incredibly calm in possession, despite Marco Rose's relentless pressing style.

Making a total of 91 passes out of an attempted 106, Leipzig's American showed his versatility and proved his worth once more, demonstrating his workrate at right wing-back can be replicated and backed up by quality when deployed in midfield.

Rating: 8/10

Josh Sargent

February 26, Werder Bremen 2-1 Eintracht Frankfurt

Sargent scored what proved to be the winner as his side mounted a comeback from 1-0 down to defeat Frankfurt at home.

Holding his run and then latching onto Max Eggestein's pass before powering past Kevin Trapp into the bottom left corner, the forward's goal ended his three-game drought prior to Friday's fixture.

A key factor to the American's stellar performance may have been the tactical decision to use him as an attacking midfielder, paired up with Romano Schmid to support the lone striker Milot Rashica.
Josh Sargent Werder Bremen

Josh Sargent scored the winner for Werder Bremen against Eintracht Frankfurt on Friday night

Usually operating as a two-man strike force with Rashica, it will be interesting to see if Sargent gets the opportunity to play a little deeper in the coming weeks.

Rating: 7.5/10

Weston McKennie

February 27, Verona 1-1 Juventus

Despite impressing and scoring last week past Crotone, McKennie had to settle for a place on the bench away at Verona.

Waiting until the 68th minute for his introduction in which he replaced Welshman Aaron Ramsey, the American will have then been disappointed to see his side throw away their one-goal advantage to draw 1-1.

Perhaps not offering enough time to stamp his mark on the game, McKennie will be looking ahead to Champions League action against Porto and hoping to get his starting position back under Andrea Pirlo.

Rating: 6/10

Chris Richards

February 28, Union Berlin 1-1 Hoffenheim

Richards struggled to reproduce the form which made him so dominant last time out as Hoffenheim were held to a 1-1 draw away from home.
To compound the issue of not keeping a clean sheet, the American centre-back was also booked in the 78th minute for a late tackle on Cedric Teuchert.
Chris Richards Hoffenheim

Chris Richards and Hoffenheim were held to a frustrating draw at Union Berlin over the weekend

The loanee will be looking to return to form next week after a fairly disappointing performance on Sunday.

Rating: 6/10

Tim Weah

February 28, Lille 1-1 Strasbourg

Weah was once again a substitute with duo Jonathan David and Jonathan Ikone the preferred partnership up top.

Eventually being sent on in the 61st minute, Weah's 30-minute cameo didn't give him enough of an opportunity to turn the game in Lille's favour.
While Jose Fonte did score a late equaliser for the hosts, the American forward will be hoping to get a run of games in the starting eleven if he is to develop further in Ligue 1.

Rating: 6/10

Bryan Reynolds

February 28, Roma 1-2 AC Milan

Reynolds did not feature in the squad for this game, despite having travelled back from the United States after sorting some visa-related issues.
Having not played for nearly three months now, Reynolds will have to build-up his match fitness in training before he gets the chance to perform in Serie A.

Rating: N/A

Indiana Vassilev

February 27, Scunthorpe Town 0-2 Cheltenham Town

Vassilev, as has been the case since joining Cheltenham on loan, started on the bench and came on the 65th minute away at Scunthorpe.
Showing brief glimpses of quality, including his pace which tormented the weary legs of the hosts' defenders, the loanee will be desperate for more game time to assert some authority on League Two.

Since joining on loan in January, Vassilev has now appeared five times as a substitute but has only played a total of 96 minutes, which is hardly enough to impress his parent club Aston Villa.

Rating: 6/10

Antonee Robinson

February 28, Crystal Palace 0-0 Fulham

Surprisingly, an in-form Robinson was named amongst the substitutes for the trip to Selhurst Park.  

Antonee Robinson Fulham

Antonee Robinson came on as a half-time substitute as the Cottagers battled for a draw at Selhurst Park

Unsatisfied by what Ola Aina offered the visitors as an inverted wing-back, Scott Parker brought on Robinson at half-time in an attempt to create more space inside for his players with the left-back dragging the opposition out wide.

Robinson did his job with no real problems, looking more of a threat going forward than Aina did all first half, although the American did get booked for a late foul on Jordan Ayew.

Rating: 6.5/10

Tim Ream

February 28, Crystal Palace 0-0 Fulham

In the same game, Ream once again had to settle for a place on the bench as Joachim Andersen and Tosin Adarabioyo have developed a great centre-half pairing, keeping four clean sheets in their last five games.
Ream was one of Fulham's standout performers last season in the Championship but, for now, will have to stay patient until Parker requires him to play for the Cottagers.

Rating: N/A

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