Americans Abroad: Unusual suspect Johnny Cardoso immense in Real Betis take down of Real Madrid, Christian Pulisic and Milan in full-on freefall, Reyna fails to capitalize

Every USMNT fan watching Cardoso's performance against Real Madrid will have thought the same thing: how can the USMNT get this type of performance out of him?

Immense. There was no other way to describe his play. Facing down arguably the world's best team, Cardoso ran the show. He scored, of course, joining Christian Pulisic as the only Americans ever to score against Los Blancos. That is a massive highlight, but it wasn't just the goal - it was the complete performance.

There was a sequence where he flicked the ball right up and over the legendary Luka Modric, among other moments in which he sliced up Real Madrid's superstar midfield. On both sides of the ball, Cardoso was spectacular, proving just how well he can play at the elitest of elite levels.

The question remains, though - why have we never seen this version of Cardoso in a USMNT shirt? He's notoriously struggled when given big chances at the international level. It's partly because he's often been played out of position as a lone six, but it's also partly because he's never turned in a career-defining shift.

That'll have to happen at some point - and this weekend just proved that Cardoso is more than capable. If he can run the show against Real Madrid's midfield, he can do so against any in the world. Will he now get his chance for the USMNT during this month's CONCACAF Nations League?

From the outside, it's been easy to criticize Gio Reyna's lack of opportunities at Borussia Dortmund. It's now getting a little bit harder for Borussia Dortmund to justify giving him those opportunities.

Reyna was handed his third start of the season, and second in a week, in Dortmund's 2-0 win over St. Pauli on Saturday. He wasn't bad, but he wasn't particularly good, either. Reyna completed 20 of his 26 passes, failed to create a chance and had just two touches in the opposition box. There are reasons for that, and many of them depend on his teammates, to be fair.

In general, though he wasn't really active or involved enough.

The probably for Reyna is that, right now, he's held to a different standard, one at which he can't afford to be quiet. When you're a player fighting for a spot, you have to go beyond, and Reyna just hasn't been able to do that this season. In previous years, Reyna always seemed to make an impact off the bench, making his exclusions somewhat puzzling.

Right now, it's fairly easy to see why Dortmund don't fully trust him: because he hasn't really done much lately to earn that trust. He's scored two goals this season, and those boost his case, but it was always going to come down to how he performed when given a chance to start.

He'll hope there are a few more chances and, to be fair, just the fact that he's getting these opportunities is a major step forward. If he can take one or two of them before arriving for this month's Nations League, that would be a major step for both Reyna and the USMNT.

Chris Richards has been enjoying his best run as a top-flight professional, and it got even better this weekend.

Richards put in a Man of the Match-level performance in Saturday's 3-1 FA Cup win over Millwall, leading the way on both sides of the field. Defensively, he was incredible, winning 16 duels, the most in the match, while also making a whopping 11 headed clearances. On the attacking end, he provided an assist, too, showcasing once again how much of a weapon he can be inside the opposition's box.

All of that is to say that he made Matt Turner's life much easier. The USMNT goalkeeper was in net for Palace as he remains the club's cup goalkeeper. He had to make just one save on the day, facing just two shots on goal throughout the 90 minutes.

Palace were favorites and they certainly played like it, keeping a vast majority of the possession, but whenever Milwall did get forward, Richards and the rest of the backline swatted them away.

Richards, in particular, is growing into a damn reliable defender, and he'd experiencing that growth at a good time as the World Cup inches closer.

In the end, Antonee Robinson kept his calm, as he so often does. Of all the penalties taken, his was certainly one of the best. The American picked his spot and found it. So, too, did his Fulham teammates.

Manchester United didn't and, because of that, they're out of the FA Cup. Robinson and Fulham outlasted them, with the American playing his part as always before the shootout even began.

This wasn't the best game we've seen from Robinson. There were no fantastic assists or, really, pinpoint crosses. He defended relatively well and helped keep Fulham in it, leading the way through 120 grueling minutes. Once those are over, it's all about keeping your cool and Fulham were cooler than Man Utd.

Now, that statement doesn't carry as much weight as it once did. Manchester United are in a tailspin. This is still big for Fulham, who can carry this momentum both through the FA Cup and into the Premier League.

When it rains it pours, and there's no sign of it letting up for AC Milan.

Another weekend without a win - instead, a 2-1 loss to Lazio at home. Milan have now won just one of their last six games in all competitions, ending their Champions League run this season while essentially ending their hopes of returning to that competition next season. They're mired in ninth, and it seems things are getting worse by the week.

It started early with a Mattia Zaccagni goal in the 26th minute, but that was just a start. Moments later, U.S.. international Yunus Musah was hooked by manager Sergio Conceicao. It didn't seem to be due to injury and, if it wasn't, it'll feel like a real slap in the face to Musah - hehadn't been great but certainly wasn't the only lackluster player on the field at the time of his 37th-minute exit.

USWNT star Christian Pulisic was, well, just OK - likely the best player in Milan's attack, but that isn't saying much considering how poor everyone else was. He created a few chances and had some decent moments in the final third, but it was nowhere near enough.

Stahinja Pavolovic was sent off early in the second half and Pulisic was taken out of the game moments later. They got their equalizer on a goal from substitute Samuel Chukwueze, but a late penalty from Pedro doomed Milan to not just a defeat, but a heartbreaking one.

Milan are in a bad way right now, and Conceicao can't find the solution. Because of that, this summer might just end up being a total reset and, if so, who knows where the Americans will end up?

+ Tyler Adams was Bournemouth's marathon man as he played all 120 minutes in the Cherries' penalty shootout win over Wolves in the FA Cup.

+ Ethan Horvath did his best, making seven saves, but it wasn't enough to save Cardiff City in an FA Cup defeat against Aston Villa. Despite Horvath's heroics, Cardiff couldn't find the goals needed to pull off the FA Cup upset as they fell 2-0.

+ There will be no Nations League return to the USMNT for Haji Wright after he was left off of the preliminary roster, but the Coventry City forward made his long-awaited return from injury with a late cameo off the bench in a 3-2 win over Oxford United.

+ Joe Scally and Borussia Monchengladbach made easy work of relegation-bound FC Heidenheim, winning 3-0 away from home.

+ Lennard Maloney came on late to help Mainz see off a 2-1 win over RB Leipzig, with the American midfielder receiving a yellow card just five minutes after coming on in the 83rd minute.

+ Gianluca Busio started and went 60 minutes as Venezia earned what will feel like a very good point in a scoreless draw at Atalanta.

+ It was an atypical game for Sargent, who didn't score this week. The match certainly wasn't boring, though, as Norwich scored in the 90th before Blackburn fired back in the 96th to earn a stunning draw.

+ Daryl Dike's comeback continued as he played the final seven minutes of West Brom's 1-1 draw with Leeds. Brenden Aaronson started and played 70 minutes on the opposing side.

+Aidan Morris helped Middlesbrough win the midfield battle and, ultimately, the game as Boro earned a 1-0 victory over Derby County.

+ Richy Ledezma had a rough day as PSV lost again, dropping more points in a 3-2 defeat to Go Ahead Eagles.

+ Paxten Aaronson was quiet, but FC Utrecht was just fine as they topped NAC Breda, 1-0, in the Eredivisie.

+ Tanner Tessmann started, played 72 minutes and earned a yellow card as Lyon won an intense battle with Brest on Sunday.

+ Taylor Booth played the first 61 minutes of FC Twente's come-from-behind draw with FC Groningen.

+ Damion Downs was kept quiet, as was Koln in their 1-0 loss to Karlsruher SC in the 2. Bundesliga.

+ Auston Trusty was forced out of Celtic's 5-2 win over St. Mirren with a head injury that required stitches. The defender, who started alongside Cameron Carter-Vickers, is expected to make a quick recovery according to Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers.

+ Mark McKenzie and Toulouse cruised to a clean sheet and a blowout win as they took down Angers, 4-0.

+ Both Griffin Yow and Bryan Reynolds started as Westerlo earned a road point at OH Leuven in the Belgian league.