Patrick Agyemang will reportedly be the next American talent to make his move abroad.
EFL Championship side Derby County is nearing a deal to acquire Agyemang from Charlotte FC, multiple reports stated Friday. The deal is not done yet, but Derby is set to pay roughly $7 million to the MLS club for the striker’s services.
The 24-year-old forward has previously been on the radar of several English second-division clubs over the past year. He’s been one of Charlotte FC’s best attacking threats over his three MLS seasons, totaling 17 goals and four assists in 59 league appearances.
Agyemang is currently with the U.S. men’s national team at the CONCACAF Gold Cup, where he’s scored twice in Mauricio Pochettino’s squad. The Connecticut native has helped the Americans reach the quarterfinal round, where they will face Costa Rica on Sunday night.
Agyemang’s arrival in the English second-tier would make him the sixth American player there for the upcoming campaign. Josh Sargent, Daryl Dike, Aidan Morris, and Haji Wright are among the USMNT contingent currently in that division.
Derby County avoided relegation back to EFL League One last season, finishing outside of the relegation zone by one point. John Eustace’s Rams will open the 2025-26 Championship season at Stoke City on August 9.
It appears Charlotte FC’s hands are tied here. The people representing Agyemang previously had declined offers for contract extensions, thus leaving the door open for a move. So far, the EFL Championship has been a good launching pad for US players, and Agyemang will fill a critical void in Derby County’s lineup. This move, if it does happen, should serve to boost Agyemang’s stock.
I also think Ageymang has a lot more upside than people realize. People look at his age and go: “he’s 24, he’s about as good as he’s going to get”…actually, no. Your first touch is pretty much locked in by 18 or certainly by 20 and that is unlikely to improve. But your soccer IQ, your skill level, your situational awareness, your professionalism…all that is subject to improvement and in Agyemang’s case he’s got massive upside in those areas because he spent so long in college soccer – 5 years! – including two in D3.
Players do improve in college soccer, but maybe at about a third the rate of a player in a professional environment. Their competition level is significantly lower, their practice time significantly less, their focus strongly divided. Which means in soccer years Agyemang’s really maybe 20 in terms of his development. He’s got a lot of upside he hasn’t tapped yet.
He’s obviously still incredibly raw, but the fact that he’s already effective despite that tells you what his ceiling might be, and it’s fairly high, though I do think his below-average first touch will probably be his big limiter. He’s also nowhere near the finisher that, say, Haji Wright is, and while he can definitely improve there some of that’s innate, too. Haji’s got that finishing knack and is certainly one of the best natural finishers in our pool, the jury’s still out on Agyemang.
Who’s the sixth American in the Championship? Charlie Kelman?
Or it was forgotten that Horvath got relegated.