For the longest time, the narrative about the U.S. men’s national team striker pool has been about the dearth of options for the World Cup and that it’s an area of weakness. But an early-season charge for a pair of players abroad, coupled with the continued good form of some MLS-based counterparts, might render that obsolete.
Josh Sargent’s double for Norwich City on Friday, on the heels of his first goal of the season three days prior, has put the 22-year-old back in frame, while Jordan Pefok’s goal for Union Berlin vs. RB Leipzig on Saturday continued his strong start at his new Bundesliga club. Later Saturday, Haji Wright netted a double in Turkey for Antalyaspor, with a first-half penalty and deflected chip in second-half stoppage time adding to an unusually prolific weekend.
Now, a few solid performances do not suddenly result in a ticket to the World Cup, and U.S. manager Gregg Berhalter has plenty more data points to pull from when making his decisions. But given the discussion—and frustration—centered around the position, it certainly helps to have some more reliable options.
