GIOOOO Back in the Goals

AMERICAN STATES UNITED

We’re just two weeks away from Gregg grabbing the mic in NYC Kendall Roy-style to reveal which 26 players will represent the USMNT at the World Cup. Last week, we tracked some fringe players who seemed to be making last-minute pushes to impress GGG, this week we start with some established stars who are hitting form at just the right time. Also in this newsletter, a Syracuse alum who is doing us proud in the Women’s Super League, and the controversy surrounding an American named Forrest Lasso in the Swedish top-tier.

A quick refresher for those of you who are new to this newsletter, which flies every Wednesday. It is intended to recap all of the previous week’s action from the Baby Eagles abroad, as well as our American Women plying their trade overseas. If you like it, we have just one ask: please share it with your friends and encourage them to subscribe. THEY CAN DO SO HERE.

For now, we newsletter:

MOMENT OF THE WEEKEND: GIOOOOOO

Four hundred and twenty one days. That’s how long it had been since Gio Reyna 🇩🇪 last scored for Borussia Dortmund. Until Saturday, that is, when, in the 44th minute against VfB Stuttgart, he curled in this beauty of a far-post finish.

It was a highly emotional and humanly beautiful moment for the 19-year-old from Bedford, N.Y. who has spent the last two seasons battling a gauntlet of injuries. Watch closely. First, you’ll see pure elation after he scores and points to the heavens. Then, after his knee-slide cele comes to a stop, he exhales, falls forward and collapses into the pristine Signal Iduna turf. He’s quickly joined by his Dortmund teammates, who dive in and pile on top of him, covering Gio in a human blanket of support, the ecstasy of the moment shared by all.

The World Cup is just 25 days away, savor his reaction: an intense mixture of joy and relief. It’s all coming together at the right time for The American Dream, who also played 87 minutes in Dortmund’s Champions League draw with Manchester City Tuesday. Let’s hope the momentum continues to build straight through to Wales on Nov. 21. Gio deserves it.

WAND. WE NEED MORE WAND! 🪄🪄

Further reason for USMNT fans to rejoice: Weston McKennie 🇮🇹 has scored two goals in his last two matches for Juventus. The first came Friday via a bullet header off a corner kick in Juve’s 4-0 win over Empoli (watch below). The second was an instinctive, swiveling finish in Juventus’ Champions League loss to Benfica Tuesday (WATCH HERE).

McKennie has come under some criticism lately, amid a Juventus season mired in turmoil. But few players seem to genuinely enjoy smiting the haters like Little Elm, Texas’ Finest. His trademark Harry Potter wand celebration after the Empoli goal is evidence of that. 🪄 It was also encouraging to see his teammates happily embrace their American teammate, even if they did nearly rip his head off in the process.

One U.S. player who just cannot stop scoring: striker Ricardo Pepi 🇳🇱. The 19-year-old from El Paso, Texas pounced on a breakaway rebound (WATCH HERE) to help lift Groningen to victory over second-place PSV Sunday. It was Pepi’s sixth goal in seven total appearances for the Dutch side, and after struggling to find his footing in the Bundesliga, El Tren 🚂 is certainly making the most of that loan life in Holland. We give him massive credit. He has taken the road less traveled and humbly parachuted into a slightly smaller league to get reps. And it’s paying off.

✈️🚆🚗 Men in Blazers This Cup’s for You Tour. We are hitting the road and going on a World Cup Tour, visiting New York, Philadelphia, D.C., Austin, Atlanta, St. Louis, LA, San Francisco, Seattle and Nashville to re-live the day's on-field narrative, celebrate each city’s distinct football culture, and we’re going to do it all with the help of some very special guests. TICKETS AVAILABLE HERE.

THE USMNT DERBY

Elland Road hosted what GFOP Paul Carr called the first “USMNT Derby” of the season between Leeds and Fulham Sunday. While Tyler Adams 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 didn’t play for Leeds due to a minor knock suffered in training, Yank Badger Brenden Aaronson 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 and the hosts still got out to an early 1-0 lead. Ultimately, fellow Americans Antonee Robinson 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 and Tim Ream 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 were ultimately able to help steer Fulham to a 3-2 victory.

The result sends Leeds into the bottom three, having not won in eight straight games, and sees the flames start to lick the cuffs of Jesse Marsch’s crisp denim. For Marsch, it was always going to be tough to be the man who follows the man — “the man,” in this case being legendary manager Marcelo Bielsa — especially when a squad that barely escaped relegation went on to sell its goal machine (Raphinha) and its midfield heartbeat (Kalvin Phillips). However, the ultimate role of a manager of a club in freefall is to play the role of the scapegoat, which seems to be the case for Marsch, although it sounds as though he will still be in the dugout this weekend against Liverpool. 🙏

NEWS AND NOTES

• Christian Pulisic 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 looked solid in two substitute appearances for Chelsea in draws with Brentford Wednesday and Manchester United Saturday, and then started and HAD AN ASSIST (WATCH HERE) to Kai Havertz in Chelsea’s Champions League win over Red Bull Salzburg Tuesday.

• Sergino Dest 🇮🇹 got his first Serie A start Saturday in AC Milan’s win over Monza, but unfortunately had to come off early due to an apparent injury. Dest was not on the bench in Milan’s 4-0 dismantling of Dinamo Zagreb Tuesday, but the injury is not believed to be serious, so hopefully the 21-year-old will be back in action soon.

• A Baby Eagle’s feather for Kevin Paredes 🇩🇪🪶, as the 19-year-old midfielder from South Riding, VA. got his first career start for Wolfsburg.

• Folarin Balogun 🇫🇷 scored his seventh goal in 12 matches for Reims (WATCH HERE). The 21-year-old Arsenal loanee, who was born in NYC, is eligible to play for England, the U.S., or Nigeria, but is still undecided on his international future.

• Marlon Fossey 🇧🇪, a 23-year-old RB born in LA but raised on the island of Jersey, scored the first goal of his Standard Liege career Sunday (WATCH HERE). Then hit the Auba cele after (WATCH HERE).

AMERICANS ABROAD - HOW TO WATCH

Need help keeping track of all the Americans playing soccer abroad as the USMNT gets ready for World Cup 2022? We’re here to help with our weekly “How to Watch: Americans Abroad” TV/streaming guide. From Weston to Weah, here's how to watch the top U.S. footballers for the week of Oct. 26-Nov. 1.

STATIONARY BIKE SET 🚑

Chris Richards 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 was out of the lineup for Crystal Palace against Everton Saturday, meaning he’s been out due to injury since Aug. 27. This led one U.S. scribe to predict it’s pretty unlikely the CB will be on the plane to Qatar. On the positive side, Reggie Cannon 🇵🇹 returned to the starting lineup for Boavista Sunday after being out of action since the United States’ friendly with Japan.

🎙️”Go! Go! USA! with Brendan Hunt: A Passionate Fans’ History of American Men’s Soccer”. Our newest Podcast on the Men in Blazers Media Network sees Rog and Coach Beard chop it up about the rich history of the men’s game here in the United States. From our semi-final appearance in 1930 all the way through to the present. The first episode is HERE. It is not to be missed. And if you’ve missed the first three episodes of “World Corrupt,” our collaboration with Tommy Vietor and the GFOPs at Crooked Media about the complexities and moral conundrums brought on by a World Cup in Qatar, START HERE.

U.S. WORLD CUP CHAMPIONS PLAYING IN EUROPE

Our Lady Eagles continue to fly with purpose in Europe. Lindsey Horan 🇫🇷 and Lyon fell to Arsenal in the Champions League, but not before the Great Horan pulled off a Brenden-esque bounce-pass assist off the crossbar [WATCH HERE].

In the WSL, Erin Simon 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 has become a fixture at right back for Leicester City. The 28-year-old from Oakhurst, N.J. has started all five matches for Leicester, playing 430 out of a possible 450 minutes. While the Foxes have lost all of their matches this season, they’ve dropped three by just one goal, and nearly earned a draw with first-place Manchester United Sunday. Simon has never been capped for the U.S. — though she has played for the U.S. U-23s — but the Syracuse alum is forging a path in one of the toughest leagues in the world. Erin Simon, we salute you.

PARTING SHOTS

This week we close with a different brand of AA coverage. According to reports out of Sweden, U.S. defender Forrest Lasso 🇸🇪 — a 29-year-old CB from Raleigh, N.C. who played for FC Cincinnati and Nashville SC before heading abroad — was suspended (or dropped, according to his agent) by Swedish club GIF Sundsvall for posting a personal highlight reel to social media on the same day that Sundsvall was relegated from the Allsvenskan, a move that didn't sit well with club supporters.

The kicker? Not just that an American named Lasso is making football headlines in Europe, but that Lasso's manager at Sundsvall, Brian Clarhaut, is a 36-year-old American coach from New Jersey. Here’s to hoping both Americans find their footing in the tricky world of European football.