Strong Week for US-AC Milan 🇺🇸🇮🇹

"He wants to win. If you talk to Tyler and spend any time with him at all, he wants to win. And that's what I look for (in players) … Do they have the desire?"

—Bournemouth owner Bill Foley, on why he chose to bring Tyler Adams to the Cherries. Be sure to check out Rog’s full interview with the American Premier League owner. LISTEN HERE.

Strong Week for US-AC Milan:

Following their home Champions League draw with PIF petrodollar side Newcastle last Tuesday, Milan have won two straight in the league, with Christian Pulisic and Yunus Musah playing key roles in both games.

The USMNT duo started in the first win against Hellas Verona on Saturday. Pulisic played 80 minutes, his midfield tackle triggering the attack that led to Milan’s lone match-winning goal (WATCH). Yet it was Musah who was arguably the more impressive of the two on the day, as the 20-year-old who normally plays in midfield went the full 90 at right wing back, winning praise for his versatility from media and manager alike. “The lads are settling in well,” said Stefano Pioli afterwards, commenting on the play of Musah and Tijani Reijnders.

In the 3-1 victory at Cagliari on Wednesday, it was Pulisic who stole the show for Milan. On Milan’s first goal, Pulisic worked a hesitation move to perfection to help setup the goal (WATCH), before officially getting an assist on the second, feeding Ruben Loftus-Cheek for the ol’ Stamford Bridge One-Two (WATCH). Musah came on in the 58th minute to help see the game out.

Now it appears there’s a chance there could be a third American wearing red and black, as Spanish outlet Fichajes is claiming that Milan are interested in bringing Gio Reyna to the San Siro in January. Although on tonight's Do it Live! Special Guest Fabrizio Romano indicated a move to an English club might be a more likely option. Either way, a move away from Dortmund may not be the only fresh start for the 20-year-old from Bedford, N.Y., as ESPN reported Sunday that Gio and Gregg Berhalter have communicated in an effort to move their relationship forward, with Reyna set to be called in to the next USMNT camp for which he’s healthy.

EVEN MORE FROM ITALY … Weston McKennie played very well in back-to-back starts this week for Juventus — the first a 4-2 loss to Sassuolo, the second a 1-0 win over Lecce, with Wes getting the hockey assist on the game’s only goal. McKennie has now started Juventus’ last four matches, the Bianconeri winning three of those.

Tyler Adams :

Great news from the South of England. The Hudson Valley Hammer is back. After being out for over six months with a hamstring injury, USMNT captain Tyler Adams made his Bournemouth debut on Wednesday as a 70th minute substitute in the Cherries’ 2-0 League Cup win over Stoke City. So genuinely happy for Adams as he embarks on his return to full fitness. Here’s to all that lies ahead on the South Coast for Wappingers Falls’ Finest. 🙌

MORE AMERICAN PREMIER LEAGUE GOODNESS … Antonee Robinson put in a Man of the Match performance for Fulham in their scoreless draw with Crystal Palace on Saturday … Chris Richards got the start for Crystal Palace in their 3-0 League Cup loss to Manchester United on Tuesday … Matt Turner had two saves and played the full 90 in Nottingham Forest’s tough 2-0 loss at defending champions Manchester City on Saturday.

Netherlands:

With six wins in their first six league matches, PSV show no signs of slowing down in the Eredivisie, and our young American trio is at the heart of all that’s going down in Eindhoven.

With two tackles, three duels won, 10 ball recoveries, and numerous forays upfield, Sergino Dest was a standout performer in PSV’s 4-0 win at Almere City, which represented a homecoming for the 22-year-old Almerian. Dest was deemed “not fit” to play in PSV’s next match, a 3-0 win over Go Ahead Eagles on Wednesday.

While Ricardo Pepi is finding it difficult to get a start for PSV — this is due simply to Luuk de Jong playing like RVP II this season, with six goals and four assists in six matches — he’s having no trouble finding the back of the net for the Dutch side. The 20-year-old from El Paso, Texas scored in Saturday’s win at Almere City, his third goal in six appearances this season, all off the bench. Meaning he has three goals in just 106 minutes of play, giving him a ridiculous 2.55 Goals per 90 minutes. The Goals Per 90 leader in Europe’s Big 5 Leagues is Serhou Guirassy at Stuttgart with a 2.09. Kylian Mbappe is next with a 1.85. 🤯

While Dest has been buzzing, and Pepi banging, Malik Tillman has been … snoozing. The 21-year-old attacker from Nürnberg, Germany was left at home for PSV’s trip to Almere City after he overslept. Manager Peter Bosz 🗣: “Tillman overslept, so I decided to leave him at home. I think there’s not a single coach out there who would let you get away with that … He was keen to join the team regardless, but I told him there was no need for it.” Everything seems to be forgiven now, as Tillman was a 68th minute sub against Go Ahead Eagles on Wednesday.

Paxten Aaronson Kit Giveaway Winner 👕

A few weeks ago, we ran a giveaway with the GFOPs at Eintracht Frankfurt for a Paxten Aaronson home kit. We’re happy to say we have a winner. A big Men in Blazers congratulations to Stanley K. on winning the kit. Big Love, Stanley. COURAGE.

News and Notes:

• Delaware Man Mountain Mark McKenzie scored a booming header (WATCH) for Genk in their 2-2 Europa Conference League draw with Fiorentina.

• Folarin Balogun had a difficult home starting debut, as the 22-year-old striker from London missed back-to-back penalties in Monaco’s 1-0 loss to rivals Nice on Friday. The positive? Monaco manager Adi Hütter was extremely supportive afterwards. 🗣 “He was unlucky today, but we win together and we lose together…In the future, he will help us a lot.”

• Luca de la Torre — a.k.a. “Frenkie de Jong From Aldi” (WATCH) 😂 — had a lovely assist (WATCH) in Celta Vigo’s tough 3-2 loss to Barcelona.

• Paxten Aaronson got the start in Eintracht Frankfurt’s 2-1 Europa Conference League victory over Aberdeen on Thursday.

• Huge congrats to 21-year-old American forward Kahveh Zahiroleslam, who made his club debut for Sint-Truidense V.V. in Belgium’s first division Sunday. The Yale product played 15 minutes in Sint-Truiden’s 3-3 draw at Genk.

• Reggie Cannon has completed his move to QPR. Feels like the right move for the 25-year-old USMNT defender who last played with Boavista in Portugal’s top flight.

• Serie B Bowl I was played on Tuesday, with Palermo winning at Venezia, 3-1. Kristoffer Lund drew a penalty for the first goal, and hit the cross that led to the go-ahead goal for the visitors. USMNT midfielders Tanner Tessmann and Gianluca Busio started for Venezia in the loss.

• Born to an American father and a German mother, 20-year-old Damion Downs from Werneck, Germany made his Bundesliga debut for FC Köln as an 82nd-minute substitute during Saturday’s 2-1 loss at Werder Bremen on Saturday. Downs, who was called up to the U.S. U-20 team in April, nearly equalized with a header off the post in the away defeat.

Parting Shots:

We wrap this week’s ASU with a tip of the Tyrolean to John Brooks in Germany. The 30-year-old center back from Berlin is having nothing short of a Tim Ream-esque, late-career resurgence under American manager Pellegrino Matarazzo. Brooks has started every match for Hoffenheim this season, and the 1899ers are up to sixth in the Bundesliga, having won four of their first five games. Their hot start includes Saturday’s massive 2-0 win at Champions League side Union Berlin, where the American international outperformed Italian legend Leonardo Bonucci. Brooks’ play has led many to question whether it’s time for the 2014 World Cup hero to get called up to the USMNT once more. Perhaps Gio was just the first stop on Gregg’s Mending Fences Tour.