After a big summer, with two tournaments, movement has been plentiful for USMNT stars so far this window, and it appears there could be more on the way. Let’s try to make sense of it, and what USMNT summer transfers are better or worse than others.
Grading the USMNT Summer Transfers, So Far
Christian Pulisic and Yunus Musah
Christian Pulisic needed to get out of Chelsea. Bad. Spells of injuries, and just flat out not getting minutes, were the main storylines from a Chelseas tenure which saw him hoist a Champions League, Club World Cup, and UEFA Supercup trophy, and become just the second American to score a hat trick in Premier League history, and the youngest player to do so in Chelsea history. It’s a shame that his success got overshadowed by the dark cloud of injuries, and falling out of favor with some managers. Pulisic scored his ticket out, moving to storied Serie A side AC Milan. In the end, 22 million euros was all it took. He’s already made an impact, even though it’s just preseason.
Christian Pulisic assist against Real Madrid.
AC Milan lead 1-0!
(via @ESPNDeportes) pic.twitter.com/f60mIfdJM5
— USMNT Only (@usmntonly) July 24, 2023
Yunus Musah also secured a move to AC Milan, which calls for a little more caution. The jump from Valencia to Milan means Musah’s playing time could take a hit. However, with Sandro Tonali headed to Newcastle, there’s a spot in the midfield for the taking. If Musah can impress in preseason training, AC Milan could become the Fulhamerica of the Serie A.
Grades: Pulisic gets an A, Musah gets a B-. Time will tell for Musah, but for now, it’s nice to see him challenging himself.
Tim Weah to Juventus
Staying in Italy, Serie A is the place to be for USMNT fans. Pulisic and Musah at Milan, plus Tim Weah and Weston McKennie, for now, at rivals Juventus. Weah secured a 10m euro move, and inked a five year deal. They intend to use him as a right wing-back, which he did play some at Lille. With De Sciglio not expected to return until January, the starting spot might just be Weah’s to lose, however, when De Sciglio does come back, he might have to make way for the Italian, unless he proves otherwise.
Grade: Weah to Juventus gets a B. Always good to see a player make a jump to a better league. Here’s hoping Weah can lock in a starting spot by January.
Ricardo Pepi to PSV
With all the news surrounding Christian Pulisic finally getting out of Chelsea, this move went under the radar, and it’s a sneaky great one. El Tren, or Ricardo Pepi, is heading to Eredivisie side PSV Eindhoven. Pepi, who scored 13 goals in 31 appearances for FC Groningen in the same league, could take the starting job at PSV sooner rather than later. Sitting behind and learning from veteran Luuk De Jong isn’t a bad thing, but PSV is known for how well they develop youngsters, so Pepi could see a lot of playing time here.
Grade: Pepi to PSV gets an A. This is my favorite move of the USMNT summer transfers. This could be a huge stepping stone for Pepi in his already bright future.
Rumors and Housekeeping
On the margins, Brenden Aaronson scored a loan move to Union Berlin in the Bundesliga, teaming him up with Jordan Pefok. Young centerback Joshua Wynder is heading straight from the USL Championship’s Louisville City to Benfica. Though it’s just Benfica B, it’s clear the talent is there, and they are another great squad for youth development. Bryan Reynolds is heading to Belgium, to play for Westerlo. It is a step down from Roma, but hopefully it gets him some playing time.
On the rumor mill recently has been Matt Turner. Nottingham Forest have expressed interest in Turner, after Keylor Navas kept them in the league on his loan spell. Turner getting a chance to start every week in the Premier League would be huge for the USMNT going into a massive few years of tournaments here in the states.
It’s already been a hectic summer for the yanks abroad, and I’m not expecting it to slow down any time soon.
