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Americans abroad

Yanks Abroad: Cardoso out, Yank duo surges in Austria, Dest & Reyna shine, & more

ASN's Brian Sciaretta is here with his weekly column on Americans abroad, going over the good and the long list of bad as the European season nears its end
BY Brian Sciaretta Posted
May 11, 2026
3:00 PM

LIKE ANY WEEEKEND in the world of Americans abroad, there was plenty of good and bad. Unfortunately, the bad news outweighed the good as injuries are not a massive concern in how it affects the U.S. national team at the World Cup.

There is a lot to break down and we will start with the latest from Spain.

 

Cardoso to undergo surgery

 

The latest injury to the U.S. national team player pool is a significant one as Johnny Cardoso is forced to undergo surgery on his ankle. Last week the club announced Cardoso suffered a high-grade ankle sprain in training but did not elaborate.

Today, on Monday, Atletico Madrid announced that Cardoso would be forced to undergo surgery on his ankle. While no timetable was given for his return, the news makes it highly unlikely that he will be ready to play in the World Cup.



Cardoso has always been an enigma with the U.S. national team. His club form has never fully translated over to the national team but the indications seemed to be that he would make the World Cup team. In recent months he had been playing important minutes for Atletico Madrid in La Liga, The Champions League, and the Copa del Rey. His most recent performances were in a narrow 2-1 aggregate loss to Arsenal in the semifinal of the Champions League.

Regarding the World Cup, this raises the stakes for other players such as Tyler Adams, Tanner Tessmann, Aiden Morris, Sebastian Berhalter, and perhaps Weston McKennie.

 

Injuries mounting

 

The injuries are beginning to mount for the U.S. team. At first it was Cameron Carter-Vickers earlier in the season who suffered a major injury. Then there were major injuries to James Sands and Patrick Agyemang. Then deeper in the player pool, John Tolkin and Jonathan Klinsmann also picked up significant injuries.

This past weekend Tanner Tessmann, Christian Pulisic, and Tim Weah all missed games. The same could be said of Noahkai Banks, even if we do not know how much he is in the U.S. national team pool.

It is only natural that players are banged up at the end of the European season and we don’t know the degree of some of the injuries. But it is a concern and the loss of Cardoso is significant as he might have been a starter.

 

More concerning news

 

When looking at the news abroad, there is always a mix of good and bad. Beyond the injuries, there is still plenty of news to run through that is not good.

Malik Tillman should be a significant concern for Mauricio Pochettino and his staff. The Bayer Leverkusen playmaker is simply not playing much, and when he does play he is not playing well.

On Saturday, Tillman played the final 25 minutes of a 3-1 loss to Stuttgart with all the scoring having taken place before he entered the game. Other than having a decent shot saved in the 85th minute, Tillman didn’t do much.

After Bayer paid $40 million for Tillman last summer, the club was surely hoping for more. Of course, Tillman is adjusting to his first full Bundesliga season but he hasn’t been improving as the season progressed. After the early season coaching change, every player was asked to adjust to Kasper Hjulmand but Tillman has struggled with it.

It will be interesting to see how Bayer handle Tillman this summer, and for the U.S. national team, what will his form be?

In Spain, Alex Freeman did not get off the bench despite playing well for Villarreal in its previous two wins.

Also of note, Kevin Paredes did not play in Wolfsburg’s important game against Bayer Leverkusen due to disciplinary reasons. Wolfsburg is in a tight relegation battle and the club felt compelled to suspended him and fine him.



Reports suggest that it was due to an altercation with Mohammed Amoura, who was also suspended.

Regardless, this is not good for Paredes who has been injured for most of the past two year. Now when he is healthy, he is suspended for games critical to Wolfsburg’s relegation battle. The club is currently in a three way tie on points for last place with St. Pauli and Heidenheim. It will face St. Pauli in the final week of the season in hopes of qualifying for the relegation playoff position.

The number of American players who have had a bad season, whether it due to injuries, form, or fits with the club is high.

Paredes hasn’t been able to stay healthy.

Cole Campbell and Damion Downs began the season in promising fashion but haven’t been able to do anything.

Matai Akinmboni was injured at the start of the season for the U-20 World Cup but hasn’t returned to form. Caleb Wiley has been missing from action since his loan to Watford was terminated in 2025.

Taylor Booth doesn’t seem to factor into Twente’s plans. Yunus Musah is wrapping up a lost season that will also cost him a spot on the World Cup team. Gio Reyna scored this weekend but also didn’t do much this season. Benja Cremaschi is injured, but he spent most of the season on the bench at Parma.

Then there is Noahkai Banks not willing to commit to the U.S. program on the eve of the World Cup.

Of course, there are success stories but this season hasn’t been great for a bunch of players who were trying to break through.

 

Dest and Pepi

 

One bit of positive news from the U.S. national team player pool came from the Eredivisie where Sergino Dest made his first start since suffering his hamstring injury in early March.

 

Pepi is just a great Eredivisie player at this point. This year it is 15 goals in 1325 minutes in the league (this goes along with another three goals in the Champions League this year). It will be interesting to see when he moves up a league, likely this summer. But Pepi reads the game well.

The big news, however, was Sergino Dest showcasing that he is healthy and ready to play. He played 65 minutes at left back and assisted on Pepi’s goal with a left footed cross. He doesn’t like left back nearly as much as right back, but he is an option there.

Left back is very unpredictable for the U.S. team right now. Antonee Robinson is playing for Fulham, but injuries are a concern. Max Arfsten is playing well, but is a winger and has essentially been pulled from left back this season at Columbus. John Tolkin was on the edge of the pool, but he is injured. Kristoffer Lund has never been in the picture.

That makes you wonder how much Pochettino will consider moving a player like Dest, Joe Scally, or Tim Weah from the right to the left side.

 

Reyna scores for M’Gladbach

 

Gio Reyna finally scored his first goal for Borussia Monchengladbach when he found the back of the net in the dying minutes of a 3-1 loss to Augsburg.

Reyna entered the game in the 58th minute with M’Gladbach down 2-0. He played relatively well and set up a bunch of chances. The goal, which was fantastically set up by Rocco Retiz, was icing on the cake.

It was good for Reyna, and it would not be a surprise if he starts the Bundesliga finale as the club likely wants to build up Reyna’s value or help him get on the World Cup team.

That begs the question whether Reyna will make the World Cup team. Everyone has an opinion, but only Pochettino and his staff know. He hasn’t been a good club player in years. He has struggled with injuries, but he has also found it difficult to earn the trust of managers during the last four years.

But does Pochettino believe that Reyna can offer something if the U.S. team is chasing a game? Does he believe that Reyna will not behave poorly if he isn’t playing? That was the case in 2022, but has Reyna grown up?

It is a complex issue.

 

LASK nears Austrian title

 

One of the more fun stories in the world of Yanks Abroad involves two players with no chance of making the U.S World Cup team.

Both George Bello and Sam Adeniran have been important parts of LASK this season in the Austrian Bundesliga. Earlier this month they helped LASK to with the Austrian Cup. After Saturday’s 2-1 win over Salzburg, LASK is now up by two points over second-place Sturm Graz with one game remaining. On Sunday, LASK will visit Austria Vienna and a win would clinch the Bundesliga title and the Austrian double.

Adeniran, 27, has arguably been LASK’s best player in the second half of the season. He scored the first goal against Salzburg and had two in the cup final. He now has 14 goals in all competitions this season.

Both Bello and Adeniran have had tough times in their respective careers. Bello was once a top prospect with Atlanta United but his move to Europe was poorly planned from the start when he joined a troubled Arminia Bielefeld team that was relegated in each of his seasons there. By the second season, he was rarely playing. Also, Bello not only fell out of the national team picture, but also was never in the Olympic team picture despite being age eligible.

Quietly, he rebuild his career in Austria and now might have impressive silverware to back up his revival.

Adeniran, meanwhile, was a journeyman in MLS and the USL. During his time playing domestically, he only had one decent season – for St. Louis during its expansion year. But he quietly moved abroad after his last stint in Philadelphia did not yield much playing time.

Now Adeniran is scoring important goals in a great title race in Austria.

Yes, the Austrian Bundesliga is not a top European league. But is has allowed two American players to find their way back into the game. We might even see both in the Champions League next season.

It is a great story.

 

Morris and Boro draw

 

In the Championship promotional playoffs, Middlesbrough and Southampton drew 0-0 in the first leg which Middlesbrough hosted. On Tuesday, the second leg will shift to the south of England. The winner will take on Hull City, which upset Millwall in the other semifinal.

Morris was among Boro’s best players in the first leg and this fit his reputation as being consistently good in just about every game. But Middlesbrough are now the underdogs in this series after failing to gain an advantage at home.

Regardless of what happens, this has been a very good season for Morris who is a top Championship player. Does he have a higher level? That remains to be seen but everything he has shown suggests he is capable of more.

But from the U.S. national team perspective, the injury to Cardoso makes Morris a lot more important right now.

 

Poch watches Adams & Robinson

 

With two games remaining in the Premier League, AFC Bournemouth is in a strong position to qualify for Europe after posting a 1-0 away win over Fulham in London on Saturday. Mauricio Pochettino was on hand to watch both Tyler Adams and Antonee Robinson play.

Robinson started the game and played all 90 minutes for Fulham at left back. It was a good representation of him as a player as he excelled defensively and did well to get into dangerous attacking positions. His problem, however, was delivering a final pass or shot. Several good Fulham possessions ended with the ball at his feet. Still, his strengths defensively are obvious.

Adams, meanwhile, entered the game in the 41st minute due to a red card to a teammate. But minutes later in first half stoppage time, Fulham were reduced to 10 men as well.

The game had a lot of space and Adams did well in helping Bournemouth see out a huge win. He wasn’t frequently involved in the attack but he made a case to start the two remaining games as Bournemouth have a two point lead on Brighton for sixth place.

Adams and Robinson remain very important players for the U.S. team.  

 

Celtic & Trusty keep hope alive

 

Auston Trusty went 90 minutes for Celtic for a 3-1 win over Rangers in the always heated Old Firm Derby. That kept Celtic within reach of leaders Heats heading into the final two rounds of games. Celtic now trails Hearts by just a point and Celtic will host Hearts on the final day of the season on Saturday.

Trusty was solid in the win over Rangers and has had a good season. Celtic typically controls most of the games it plays but this game was even with Rangers having nearly as many chances as Celtic.

With the World Cup roster nearing its announcement, Trusty is in a good position. Central defense is the weakest area of the pool and there are concerns with Tim Ream’s age, Miles Robinson’s injury, and Mark McKenzie’s inconsistencies. But Trusty has quietly made a case for himself to be involved and compete for minutes in the World Cup camp.

 

Serie B’s finale

 

In the final round of games in Serie B, Venezia defeated Palermo 2-0 to clinch first place. Last week Venezia clinched promotion but now they are the Serie B champs with Frosinone also going up. Gianluca Busio had another strong performance in the final game of the season and he looks more ready for Serie A than his other two stints (that ended in immediate relegation). This was his best season since heading to Europe in 2021 as he was a clear leader of Venezia.

Andrija Novakovich scored the winning for Reggiana in a 1-0 victory over Sampdoria. Despite that, the other results did not break Reggiana’s way and the club was relegated to Serie C. It remains to be seen if Novakovich will head to the third tier with them or whether  he will be able to force his way out.

Jonathan Klinsmann is out injured, but Cesena lost to Padova on the final game of the season and fell out of the playoff positions. Cesena will be back in Serie B next year.

 

2.Bundesliga roundup

 

After this past weekend, there is only one more round of games in the 2.Bundesliga in Germany.

Santiago Castaneda is the only American in the promotion race and he played 76 minutes for Paderborn in frustrating 2-2 draw with Karlsruher on Saturday. The defensive midfielder from Tampa has had a busy season but Paderborn has stumbled down the stretch, and are winless in their last four games.

The result sunk Paderborn to fourth place but the teams in second place, third place, and fourth place (Paderborn) are all even on points. Paderborn really needs an away win over Darmstadt in the season finale and could use Elversburg and Hannover to drop points.

Speaking of Darmstadt, young American defender Grayson Dettoni played the final 81 minutes on Saturday in a 1-1 draw with Preussen Munster after a teammate was injured. His job was made easier with last-place Preussen Munster being reduced to 10 men in the 28th minute.

Unfortunately, there are several Americans involved in the relegation battle.

Greuther Furth lost to Hertha BSC 2-1 and now sits in second to last place, two points deep in automatic relegation. Hertha won despite picking up a first half red card when the score was 0-0.  Max Dietz played 60 minutes in midfield while Julian Green played the last 20 minutes.

Mael Corboz, Isaiah Young and Arminia Bielefeld current occupy the relegation playoff position after a 2-0 loss to Kaiserslautern. Survival has been the goal for Arminia Bielefeld all season and they really could use a win over Hertha on the final day.

Eintracht Braunschweig moved a point clear of the relegation playoff position after a 2-1 win over Dynamo Dresden. American midfielder Johan Gomez played the final 30 minutes.

 

Other notes

 

Without Weah or Tessmann playing this weekend in France, there was not a strong presence of Americans in Ligue 1.

Mark McKenzie had one of his strongest performances of the season for Toulouse in a 2-1 win over Lyon. Toulouse had to play the final 11 minutes with 10 men and it forced McKenzie and his teammates into emergency defending at times.

Folarin Balogun was actually very quiet for Monaco in its 1-0 loss at home to Lille. Balogun played all 90 minutes but had just 17 touches and one shot, which was blocked.

It wasn’t pretty, but Juventus improved its Serie A position following a 1-0 away win over Lecce on Sunday. Weston McKennie played well over his 86 minutes as Juventus is now within two points of overtaking Napoli for second place.

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