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Reports: Juventus monitoring USMNT striker Josh Sargent

Josh Sargent may only be in his second season with Bundesliga side Werder Bremen, but it hasn’t stopped a European giant from monitoring him for a possible transfer.

Italian champion Juventus is reportedly keeping tabs on Sargent ahead of the summer transfer window, according to multiple outlets.

Sargent has made 18 appearances in the Bundesliga this season, scoring three goals and registering two assists. Just last year, the U.S. Men’s National Team striker signed a new deal keeping him at Werder Bremen until 2022.

Werder Bremen is currently languishing in the relegation zone, as the lowest-scoring side in the league. Florian Kohfeldt’s men currently hold a game in hand on Fortuna Dusseldorf and Mainz, and will look to propel themselves to safety when play resumes.

Earlier on Wednesday, German officials gave the Bundesliga the green light to complete the season and play is expected to resume in two weeks time. The league is currently deciding between May 15 and May 22 as the official start date.

Sargent has struggled to make a major impact this season, but has an impressive track record with the USMNT, netting five goals in 12 appearances. This season, the 20-year-old has largely rotated with Milot Rashica and Yuya Osako.

Recent reports have suggested that Juventus is in the market for a new striker as uncertainty surrounds Gonzalo Higuain’s future. In addition, current PSG forward Mauro Icardi is also linked to Juventus.

There are currently no American players playing in Serie A, with Michael Bradley’s stint at AS Roma from 2012 to 2014 marked the last time a UMSNT player has featured in Serie A, a league that also featured Alexi Lalas in the ’90s.

Sargent isn’t the first American to be linked to a top Italian club in recent months. Antonee Robinson came close to a winter transfer to AC Milan before the deal fell through following the discovery that Robinson had a heart defect that halted the looming transfer.

Comments

  1. Eh, He is 20. So far he has not shown Christiano-Renaldo-like talent. He may improve and become a world-class star, or he may not. The future is just too hard to predict, but we can dream.

    If Juve is watching, they likely feel the same way and are very unlikely to spend lots of cash on him right now. Maybe if he becomes cheap due to Weder Bremen getting relegated, then Juve might go for it.

    From Sargent’s point of view, he should try to play for the best team that will give him a realistic shot at significant playing time (and a good salary). That can be a tricky decision as it also involves foretelling the future and the options are not totally under his control.

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  2. Off topic: Did anyone else see Concacaf President said yesterday that Qualifying will not be in the Hex format?

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      • Just spitballing if they want to keep the invite everyone idea. Who knows how many window dates will be available but I feel we’ll end up with 4 groups of 4, with winners qualifying. Whether that will be home and Away’s or just one offs like the GC at one site. I could see the next GC being used as qualifying. There will be fewer matches but those matches will be more important with less room for error.

    • Sort of … they will start with a hex involving the top 6 ranked teams from the 6/2020 rankings. Top 3 go the WC. Bottom 2 are out. #4 goes into a playoff. The other 29 teams get broken up into 8 groups. They must win their group to move on. Obviously, 8 teams do so and they play single elimination knockouts until only 1 is left. That team plays #4 from the hex. The winner of that goes into a knock-out playoff against a team from Oceania, Conmebol, or Asia.

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      • Replied to this earlier but it’s not showing up. Please read my initial comment Concacaf President said hex format not feasible because of lost international window dates.

  3. I would tell him to forget it. He’s not ready and they will never play im in Italy. Succeed where you are first, then you can write your own ticket

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  4. I love it!!!! Wow….I don’t know whether it’s true or not but if Juve are interested in Sargent, with all the academies available in Europe, then that in itself is impressive

    Keep doing what you’re doing kid!!!!

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      • Hahahah, He has’t done anything….so I guess Juve is just “monitoring everyone” huh? haha, let me know when there is a post about you and me being monitored (since “people who do nothing” is the qualifying criteria). And it would be a mistake? For a 20 year old player to challenge himself and his abilities, win or lose, in a top club in the world is a mistake? hahaha, this is exactly the problem with US Soccer and what we talk about here week after week…..people who embrace mediocrity as the norm

    • You both could be right. He has done something, he’s become a regular in a top 5 league at age 20. However, Juventus could still be a huge mistake. If he can work his way as a regular off the bench great, if he spends years on the bench like a Green or on multiple loans like Miazga or EPB probably a mistake. If he moves to Turin just to end up on loan to Sturm Graz it’s a mistake. If Bremen goes down Josh would be a good value for Juve, if they stay up the price might be too high for a 20 year old with 5 goals in 28 appearances.

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  5. I would have said there’s no way this happens but I never thought Robinson would have gone to Milan. If it did happen he’d likely get loaned out. He’d certainly look better if he had better players around him.

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  6. dumb idea. who not try starting at your small German club before heading off to the top team in Italy. this would basically ensure a Zardes starting CF this cycle.

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  7. I don’t think he’s ready to make that leap quite yet but it’s a testament to his potential that he’s being looked at by a club like Juventus.

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