Several American players took part in matches across Europe, yielding varied performances. Matthew Hoppe played in SønderjyskE’s win but lacked impact, while Rokas Pukstas contributed in Hajduk Split’s victory. Other American players were either rested or did not see action. Overall, the weekend showed mixed results for Yanks abroad.
Rokas Pukstas scored for Hajduk Split, intensifying transfer rumors prior to the summer window’s close. Meanwhile, Korede Osundina and Samuel Adeniran also found the net in their leagues. Notable performances in Denmark, Scotland, Croatia, Austria, Poland, and Portugal highlighted the weekend’s games featuring American players abroad.
The third round off European qualification completed during the week, further narrowing the list of Americans attempting to reach the various League Phases. Erik Palmer-Brown will breathe a sigh of relief after his team’s narrow win, while the American pair of Cameron Carter-Vickers and Auston Trusty at Celtic learned their opponents as they begin their adventure next week in the play-off round.
The road to the group stage of European competition continued rolling along, with the third qualification rounds of the Champions League, Europa League and Europa Conference League all kicking off last week.
The final days of the European transfer window are here, and several Americans have made their moves for the upcoming season, with several more potentially set to pack their bags in the coming days. Most notably, former USMNT defender John Brooks has returned home to Berlin, to help his hometown club Hertha fight for promotion.
In the early-rounds of qualification to reach the group stages for the three European competitions, Rokas Pukštas was the only American to earn a start for his team, however the most memorable performance of the round was a limited cameo by former USMNT player Aron Jóhannson.
Hajduk Split’s Rokas Pukstas will be sidelined for an undisclosed period of time as an announcement from the club has said he suffered a knee injury.
Rokas Pukstas has started the Croatian First League season in excellent form as he came to the rescue again for Hajduk Split with the goal to seal a 1-0 win over Rijeka on Sunday.
Rokas Pukstas came up big for Hajduk Split as he was on the spot to score the game-winner for the team in the 2-1 win over rivals Dinamo Zagreb as Croatia’s First League kicked off their new season on Friday night.
The United States lost to Uruguay 2-0, sustaining little coherent attacking possession and giving up two ugly goals. We take a closer look at how it all went down, the context of some of the key plays within the flow of the game, and what it means for the team going forward.
