USMNT
2025 Summer Transfer Window Review
Last year, I wrote a stock-up/stock-down article covering ten Americans who either made a move to Europe or to the U.S. We are closing in on New Year’s and about 6 months until the World Cup (June 11th, 2026), giving us enough data to know if these transfers have been beneficial not just for the players’ club careers, but to make it onto the USMNT for the World Cup. As American soccer players, this season is the most important season of their international career. The players are making one last argument for them to be at a USMNT camp and be part of the team when the United States of America co-hosts the FIFA World Cup. So far, a lot of the European transfers have not gone so well, compared to the domestic transfers.
*All information is up to date as of December 1st, 2025.
Yunus Musah to Atalanta (loan)- Stocks Down
When Massimiliano Allegri took over AC Milan, he cleaned house. Twenty-four players were permanently transferred out of the club or sent on loan (some for positive reasons and others, not so much). Yunus Musah happened to be one of those 24 players. AC Milan sent Musah on loan to fellow Serie A club, Atalanta, with an option to buy that is worth $28 million. As things stand, it does not look like Atalanta will trigger their buy option at the end of the season. Musah has only one start and has appeared in 9 matches (a total of 203 minutes) while being available for a total of 16 matches since joining the Nerazzurri. When it comes to goal contributions, Musah has only one assist coming from the Champions League match against Club Brugge. When it comes to passing, Musah’s accuracy has not been bad (83.5%), but he is lacking in chances created with only 3.
He has never been known for scoring goals, but his total shots this half of the season are as low as 0.6. As for his defensive work, it has been average. He has only 2 interceptions, has lacked successful tackles (25% success rate at 1/4), and he has committed a penalty. The only positive is his ball recovery rate, which is at 16. Statistically, the only areas where he sees positive results have been in his dribbling (60% completion) and duels won (59.5%). From Atalanta’s standpoint, if he is offering little in the final third and in your defensive half, then what is the purpose of starting him? As for the USMNT, his poor form at his club has not gone unnoticed by Mauricio Pochettino. The last time Musah received a call-up to the USMNT was for the Gold Cup, which he turned down and that could be a contributing factor to why he has not been called up since. Others in the midfield, and at right wing, have been able to stake their claim onto the team. At this point, we will not be seeing Yunus Musah make it onto the 26-man team this coming summer.
Johnny Cardoso to Atlético Madrid- Stock Down
One of the biggest transfers this past window for an American, and one of the closest followed transfers in Spain, was Johnny Cardoso’s $35 million (according to Goal) move to Atlético Madrid on a 5-year deal. Johnny was coming off a solid season with Real Betis that showed a promising career in Europe. He collected 4 goals and one assist as a defensive midfielder. In just two months of being at Real Betis, Johnny won the LaLiga U23 Player of the Month for February 2024. Fast forward to today, due to his lack of opportunities with Atleti and his USMNT form, his hopes of being at the World Cup are fading.
During pre-season, he made his way onto the starting XI for Atleti starting in the first three matches of the season. Sadly, he picked up an ankle injury that led him to miss 9 matches. Since returning on September 13th, 2025, Johnny went 5 matches without receiving a single minute. Diego Simeone has opted to go with veteran player, Koke, to start alongside Pablo Barrios and Conor Gallagher as the substitution. He finally got his chance when Simeone named him on the Starting XI in their UCL match against Inter Milan on November 26th, 2025. For someone who had not played a single minute since August, Johnny had a good game in the 59 minutes he received. When we look at the stats from those four matches, there were positives. His pass accuracy sits at 77% with 62% total duels won. Johnny also completed 67% of his dribbles, had 4 interceptions, 2.65 tackles per game, 9 clearances, and 9 balls recovered. Obviously, stats alone will not keep you on the pitch and the performances of the other midfielders as of late have made it difficult for Johnny.
Atleti fans on social media are happy with his performances, believe he should be a starter, and believe he is an important player to the team. Time is running out for him at the international level though with the final USMNT friendly camp coming up in March. He must make an argument for himself to get into that camp to get one last shot at the World Cup. If Johnny builds on his performance from the Inter Milan match, he could see himself in that final camp.
Paxten Aaronson to Colorado Rapids- Club: Stock Down
This will be seen as controversial by many MLS fans, but Paxten receives a stock down mostly because the move has not improved his chances of making it onto the USMNT and the impression that his career has regressed. Eintracht Frankfurt’s sporting director, Timmo Hardung, said, “With a view to the 2026 World Cup, which is taking place in his home country, among others, he made the request to take his next step at the Colorado Rapids.” During the Gold Cup, we saw 16 MLS players take part in the campaign. Paxten only received 58 minutes in total, when you include the friendly against Switzerland. It was the only camp he was called up to in 2025. We saw the likes of Diego Luna, Brian Gutierrez, Jack McGlynn, Luca de la Torre, and Sebastian Berhalter were either getting called up ahead of him and/or receiving more minutes than he was at the Gold Cup.
It set a precedent that no matter how well you perform in a top seven league, like the Eredivisie, the performance of those in the MLS will outweigh yours. In Paxten’s case, he had 8 goals and 4 assists in 30 starts for Utrecht, helping them finish 5th in the top Dutch league. His performance at Utrecht was enough for him to be part of Eintracht Frankfurt’s 2025/2026 campaign, who is competing in the UCL, part as stated by Hardung, Paxten submitted a transfer request to join Colorado Rapids. Yes, Paxten is getting regular minutes at Colorado instead of being a bench player, but he is coming back to MLS after just 2 ½ years in Europe. Despite receiving 571 minutes, Paxten only scored one goal and got 0 assists. It was not enough for Poch to give Paxten another chance with the USMNT, and the transfer had been all for nothing.
Malik Tillman to Bayer Leverkusen- Stock Up
Three seasons ago (the 2022/2023 season), Malik Tillman left the Bundesliga after agreeing to a loan deal to Rangers F.C. from Bayern München. For the following season, Tillman went on loan to PSV Eindhoven, which became a permanent deal. This season, he is back in the Bundesliga, but this time with Bayer Leverkusen. In his debut match for Die Werkself, he scored a goal at the 35-minute mark. It has been a slow start for Tillman in the G/A department with only 3 goals in 12 matches, but there are still many positives to this move that show he can make it in the Bundesliga. When available, Tillman started in 10 matches, 3 of which have been UCL matches, and a total of 815 minutes played. Right now, Tillman has 1.50 xG in the Bundesliga with 187 goals per minute.
He also has a goal conversion of 25% to add on top of that. Outside of scoring, his pass accuracy is at 85%, but he has 0 assists and only 6 chances created. Defensively, Tillman has intercepted the ball 8 times, recovered it 33 times, 3 blocked shots, and has a success rate of 79.9% (18/24) tackles. Additionally, he has won 50% of his duels. A major reason why Tillman gets a stock up is because of one reason, he is playing consistently at a high level. Diego Luna is in the MLS and towards the end struggled with his production (it also did not help when Tillman looked like the better 10 in the Gold Cup).
Paxten would not be a starter for Eintracht Frankfurt if he had stayed and he took a step backwards. Gio Reyna is in the Bundesliga as well and is one of our most talented players, but he only has 189 minutes for Mönchengladbach. Despite Tillman’s continued issue of performing consistently, the fact he is getting regular minutes at a top five league club and finally performing for the USMNT, has locked him in as the #1 CAM for the U.S. at the World Cup.
Damion Downs to Southampton- Stock Down
Damion Downs scored 2 goals in 179 minutes just shy of turning 20 years old. He followed this up with 10 goals and 3 assists in his first full season in a professional league when FC Köln was relegated to the 2. Bundesliga. FC Köln won the league and with-it promotion back into the Bundesliga. Downs contribution to the campaign got him a move to English Championship club, Southampton. Anyone who understands English football and Southampton’s striker depth knew this was a risky move. Prior to Downs joining, the club had Cameron Archer, Adam Armstrong, and Ross Stewart. So far, the transfer is going poorly and that is disappointing for a promising player. In 395 minutes, Downs has only one assist and gone 2 matches as an unused substitute. To make matters worse, he has only been on the matchday team sheet 16 times out of the possible 21 matches (Downs missed one match due to illness).
This move was not only important for Downs’ domestic career, but also his international career. During the 2024 Paris Olympics, Downs tried out for the U.S. Olympic team, but Marko Mitrović cut Downs from the team just before the Games. This led him to join Germany’s U20 to take part in their U20 Elite League campaign. It took Pochettino to give him an opportunity at the 2025 Gold Cup for Downs to rejoin the U.S. The goal for Downs would be to take that third striker spot with the USMNT this coming World Cup. Looking at his club form, that will not happen.
If you are looking for any positives, there are two. One, Downs is only 21 years old, so there is still plenty of time to recover his domestic career. Second, Downs is not the only striker at Southampton that has been struggling. Ross Stewart and Cameron Archer only have 2 goals, and one assist each this season. There is still the second half of the season to recover to possibly slide into the 2026 World Cup roster. If not, there is still the 2030 World Cup, which he will be 26 years old.
Patrick Agyemang to Derby County- Stock Down
When the Gold Cup campaign began, Patrick Agyemang started all but one match, when you included the two friendly matches. Prior to the Gold Cup, Agyemang was part of ‘Camp Cupcake’ and the Nations League finals in March. In the three camps, he scored five goals. Many fans and pundits were calling him to be a lock for the USMNT and that appeared to be certain after the Gold Cup, but that is where it ended for him. For the September camp, Folarin Balogun, Josh Sargent, and Damion Downs were selected over Agyemang. Hope returned when he was called in for the October camp, but he did not receive a single minute in the two matches.
Then came the November camp where he did not get the call from Pochettino. What could have happened that led him to fall out of favor with Pochettino? There are two reasons: Balogun and Pepi have returned from injury, and Agyemang has been in poor form at Derby County. In 11 starts and 953 minutes played, Agyemang has only 3 goals and 3 assists. In comparison, fellow American and Championship player, Haji Wright has 9 goals and 2 assists in 14 starts. To make matters worse, Agyemang has 318 goals per minute, and his goal conversion is a meager 11%. His passing has not been the greatest sitting at 69% accuracy, but Agyemang is just short of creating a chance per game at 0.9 (13 chances created). Besides having a poor goal conversion rate, his ball retention is also poor. Agyemang has lost 66% of his duels and losses possession 11.2 per game.
Before his move to Derby County, Agyemang scored 8 goals in the current MLS season and finished last season with 10 goals. The move has not only been a stock down for him domestically, but also internationally. Agyemang needs to find his form quickly or he will not be part of the USMNT again this World Cup cycle.
Benjamin Cremaschi to Parma (loan)- Stock Down
Benjamin Cremaschi was someone whose chances of making it to the World Cup were slim, but he took part in ‘Camp Cupcake’ and performed well in the U20 World Cup. Prior to the U20 World Cup, Cremaschi had yet to make his debut since joining Parma on loan at the end of the summer transfer window. After winning the golden boot at the U20 World Cup, Cremaschi got his debut, but he has only clocked in 14 minutes in 2 matches. On seven different occasions, Cremaschi has been an unused substitution by Carlos Cuesta. The loan deal includes a buy-option and so far, it does not look like Parma will exercise that option. Cremaschi needs to find his way on to the pitch to convince Parma to make the move permanent.
The move at first gave some hope that he could get back into the USMNT picture and his showing at the U20 World Cup reinforced that. Since he has not even reached 25 minutes in Serie A with barely any data and footage to go on, his chances at the World Cup are even less now. Cremaschi would have to try again during the 2030 World Cup cycle.
Timothy Weah to Marseille (loan)- Stock Up
Even though Tim Weah set a personal record for goal contribution with 10 goals and assists, he only started in 24 matches. Now, he is on loan where his dad spent a spell at Marseille. The loan has worked out for Weah so far, starting in 12 of the 15 matches he has appeared in. Currently, Weah has 2 goals and 2 assists with a goal conversion of 23%. His passing accuracy is at 87% with 15 chances created. Weah’s defense has been decent with 59.1% tackles completed, 35 recoveries, and 15 clearances. The one stat that has been negative for him is his duels at 50%, which is not too bad. The move back to Ligue 1 has been beneficial to not just his playing time, but more fitting to his playing style.
Weah is still in the USMNT picture and there should be no doubt that he will be at the World Cup. The question is, at what position? Weah has been playing all along the right side for Marseille, mostly at RB. Now that the USMNT is using a 3-4-2-1, Weah is fighting with Sergiño Dest for that starting RWB spot. If Pochettino does not plan to have Weah at RWB, does he move to CAM, where the depth is deep, or to striker? It is likely that Weah would be placed at RWB, but I do not think it is a matter of being #1 or #2. Depending on who our opponent in the World Cup is would decide if Poch starts Weah or Dest.
Kristoffer Lund to 1. FC Köln (loan)- Stock Up
A surprise transfer over the summer came from Kris Lund when he joined FC Köln in the Bundesliga on loan. Lund started off strong when he joined Palermo in Serie B back in 2023/2024, but last season he struggled with his form and getting starts (he only started 24 of the 35 matches he appeared in). That is why when the report broke out that newly promoted Bundesliga club, FC Köln, signed him on loan with a buy-option, it took U.S. fans by surprise. It has been up and down for Lund since joining Köln, but the club is midtable and will likely avoid relegation. Lund has also been starting consistently for Die Geißböcke with 10 starts out of 14 matches. Due to him getting consistent starts for a midtable Bundesliga club, many USMNT fans have suggested that Pochettino should give Lund another chance.
That has not happened, either because there is something about his club performance that has not impressed Poch to call him up over John Tolkin and Max Arfsten, or Lund’s performance back in the October 2024 camp that left a bad impression. Looking at his stats, Lund has not really done anything offensively and that could be a reason why he has not gotten another look by Poch. His xG is at a low of .20 while his xA sits at .41. Lund did get his first Bundesliga assist recently in Köln’s match against Werder Bremen. Lund’s passing has not been too bad with an accuracy of 72.5%, but his chances created are only at 6. Defensively, he is doing better where he has 10 interceptions, 95.8% (9/12) completed tackles, 31 recoveries, and 36 clearances. A major negative in his records is that he has committed two penalties.
The loan has been good for his domestic career and caught the attention of USMNT fans again. If we are giving a midtable 2. Bundesliga player call-ups, then a midtable Bundesliga player should get another opportunity. It is doubtful that Lund will be at the March camp and at the World Cup. The LWB position will likely be covered by Antonee Robinson and Arfsten, one who has been reliable for us since the 2022 cycle and the other who has a 6 G/A this year. He is 23 years old, so there is always the 2030 World Cup. Lund simply needs to end the season on a positive note, make his move to Köln permanent, and then perform consistently throughout the next cycle.
Honorable Mention
George Campbell to West Brom Albion- Stock Up
Another surprise transfer was when George Campbell left Montréal for English Championship side, West Brom. So far, it has not gone too badly for him. While healthy, he has started in 13 matches with a total of 1,259 minutes. Campbell has collected 2 clean sheets with 9 interceptions, 81.94% (21/30) successful tackles, 47 recoveries, 73 clearances, and 8 blocked shots. The only major negative defensive stat Campbell has is committing one error that led to a shot. He has been successful with his passes by completing 89% of them, but Campbell’s duels have been average, winning 50% of all duels.
Like Lund, Campbell recently got his first English Championship assist in West Brom’s clash against Swansea off the bench. Due to the USMNT’s current lack of quality CBs, there were fans suggesting that Pochettino call up Campbell to give him a shot. The thing is though, Campbell has mostly played at RB, a position that is covered by Sergiño Dest, Alex Freeman, and Joe Scally. On the upside, Poch has moved to a back 3, which could give Campbell access to the USMNT. It is doubtful that he will get a chance at the March camp, but he is only 24 years old, and he is now in Europe where he can continue to develop. The 2030 World Cup is still a reality and that is why he gets a stock up.