Romain Gall went to Scandinavia two and a half years ago in search of a fresh start to his career, even if it meant going to the Swedish third division to do it. He has made the most of that career reboot, making the climb to Swedish champions Malmo.
Gall is off to a strong start with his new club, and on Sunday he opened his scoring account with Malmo to headline the weekend's top performances by Americans Abroad.
Two former U.S. World Cup standouts saw their Bundesliga campaigns get off to promising starters after enduring injury-hit campaigns last season. Both Fabian Johnson and John Brooks began their new seasons by scoring goals in victories.
Much like Brooks, who both scored and had a hand in surrendering a goal, DeAndre Yedlin endured a roller-coaster day in Newcastle's 2-1 loss to Chelsea, having a hand in ttwo goals, only the second one cost his team a late defeat.
Matt Miazga made his second straight start for Ligue 1 side Nantes, and played well in a 1-1 draw with Caen. Miazga has settled in quickly with the French club after ending his two-year loan stint with Dutch side Vitesse.
In Germany, Josh Sargent hasn't broken through with the first team yet, but he is certainly doing his best to impress Bremen's coaches. He scored another goal for Werder Bremen II, helping the German fourth division side to another victory.
Here is a look at the top performances by Americans Abroad this past week:
Romain Gall
Malmo IF
Having shown a penchant for scoring goals in pairs during his time with Sundsvall, Gall opened his scoring account at Malmo with a two-goal performance in a 5-0 drubbing of Swedish side Sirius. The brace was Gall's third in 15 league matches.
Gall has found regular playing time since making his July move to Malmo, though consistent starts have been tougher to come by. His latest performance should boost his chances of staying in the lineup for a Malmo side currently sitting in fourth place in the Allsvenskan standings.
He scored nine goals in seven matches for Sundsvall before switching to Malmo, and now with his latest standout performance, the former U.S. Under-20 national team standout could start drawing some interest from the senior side.
Fabian Johnson
The 2017/2018 season was a nightmare for Johnson, but he has started the new campaign in encouraging fashion, starting and scoring a goal in Borussia Monchengladbach's 2-0 win against Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday.
Johnson made his first Bundesliga start since November a memorable one, delivering a 58th-minute insurance goal to get Monchengladbach off to a winning start at home.
The 30-year-old hasn't formally announced his retirement from the USMNT, but he had alluded to that possibility a year ago. Given the current youth movement in the U.S. program, Johnson has likely played his final match for the United States, but he appears ready to get his Bundesliga career back on track.
John Brooks
Selim Sudheimer
Much like Johnson, Brooks endured an injury-plagued 2017/2018 season, but he too has enjoyed a good start to the new term. Brooks headed home a goal in his 100th Bundesliga appearance, helping Wolfsburg beat Schalke, 2-0, on Sunday.
Brooks' special day was nearly ruined when he was whistled for an 85th-minute penalty, which Nabil Bentaleb converted for Schalke, but teammate Daniel Ginczek spared Brooks by scoring the winner for Wolfsburg deep in second-half stoppage time.
U.S. national team fans will recall Brooks' last appearance for the United States came in last November's friendly against Portugal, a match that saw him wear the captain's armband. Now that he is back healthy, Brooks should return to the nationalt eam fold for the September friendlies against Brazil and Mexico.
Christian Pulisic
Martin Rose
it was an active and encouraging opening day for Pulisic and Borussia Dortmund, who ran over RB Leipzig on the way to a 4-1 win in their Bundesliga opener. Pulisic had a hand in two of the Dortmund goals, drawing the free kick that eventually produced Dortmund's opening goal, then delivering the corner kick that led to a 43rd minute finish from Axel Witsel to make the score 3-1.
it was the kind of performance that should give new Dortmund boss Lucien Favre confidence in the American winger, who played 77 minutes before being replaced by Jadon Sancho.
Pulisic should be back with the national team for the September friendlies, which will mark the first major national team matches for Pulisic since last October.
DeAndre Yedlin
Yedlin endured the full gamut of emotions in a short period of time during Newcastle's 2-1 loss to Chelsea on Sunday. He went from being the hero after helping set up an 83rd-minute equalizer, to being the villain after inadvertantly turning a Chelsea shot into his own net in the 87th minute.
As bittersweet as the day was for Yedlin, his late own goal shouldn't take away from the fact he was able to return from what had originally been believed to be a serious knee injury. He injured his right leg in Newcastle's season-opening loss to Totteham, reportedly leaving the stadium on crutches.
He avoided any serious injury, and was able to return to the starting lineup on Sunday, showing off his trademark speed in a battle with Eden Hazard.
Now back healthy, Yedlin should be one of the veteran options called in to help lead the USMNT in the September friendlies.
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