US national team striker Patrick Agyemang will miss this summer’s World Cup after suffering a “serious” achilles tendon injury during Derby County’s 2-0 win over Stoke City on Monday, the club said.
The 25-year-old, who is in his first season at Derby, rose to settle a ball in the 37th minute and landed awkwardly. Play stopped for five minutes before he was stretchered off by medical staff.
Derby confirmed Tuesday that Agyemang would miss the tournament and said he will continue to undergo more tests.
“As a result of this injury, Patrick will unfortunately miss this summer’s Fifa World Cup,” the club said in a statement. “At this stage it would be wrong to put a timeline on his recovery.”
Agyemang debuted for the United States in one of Mauricio Pochettino’s first windows as manager. The striker had fared well in his first Championship season after leaving Charlotte FC in July, bagging 10 goals and adding three assists in 36 league appearances.
He’d also maintained regular status on Pochettino’s squads. While striker is among the deepest areas of the US men’s player pool, Agyemang joined Folarin Balogun and Ricardo Pepi on the roster for the recently concluded March window. He was the only striker of the trio to score, finishing the scoring in the US’s 5-2 rout against Belgium after a Pepi interception.
