Americans Abroad: Josh Sargent outshines a squirrel, Daryl Dike returns, Tyler Adams delivers, injury misfortune for James Sands

The clip went viral immediately, and it wasn't because of Josh Sargent's goal. No, it was because of the squirrel running across the field in the seconds prior to it. You don't see that every day.

Sargent scoring, though? It seems like we are seeing that every weekend, and that's because we are.

With his goal on in Saturday's 1-1 draw with Hull City, Sargent now has five in his last five games. He failed to score midweek in a loss to Preston North End, but that was only a temporary speed bump. Sargent was right back at it this weekend, showing why he could be the striker to lead the line for the USMNT in March's CONCACAF Nations League games.

Obviously, there's a USMNT element to this, but Sargent is also proving himself in Europe. This was his 38th goal for Norwich. Since debuting in the Championship in 2022, no player has scored more for one club. That's because players who score at that level usually get either promoted or snapped up by a bigger club. Could that day be coming soon for Sargent?

First, he has to stay healthy. Then he needs to score more goals. At this rate, it seems like that's inevitable, with or without squirrel interference.

Don't overlook this. An American star is captaining Juventus, and he was wearing the armband for the biggest win of their Serie A season so far.

McKennie was handed the armband again on Sunday, and he was fantastic as an attacking playmaker in a 1-0 win over Inter. He didn't get an assist, but he got close several times. In many ways, McKennie led Juve's fightback from the front and, after a rough first half, the Old Lady needed to show that fight in order to win the game.

He wasn't alone. Tim Weah was in the XI too, and he put in a strong shift at right-back. There were never any doubts on his side of the field as Inter routinely targeted Juve's left. Both Americans played their parts in the win, one that will prove a massive lift to Juventus' top-four hopes while also denting Inter's own hopes at a Scudetto.

Juventus belong in the top four and, given what we've seen from him all season long, McKennie belongs at Juventus. His Champions League goal against PSV provided more evidence. Given the chance, he's worn that armband well and, on Sunday, he wore it for another huge moment in his club's Serie A campaign.

West Brom's visit to Millwall finished 1-1. It was a draw, in the end. For Daryl Dike, though, Saturday will feel like the biggest of wins. This moment had been a long time coming.

For the first time in over a year, Dike was back on the field for West Brom, ending his latest run through injury woes. Since moving to the Championship, it's been one tough blow after another for the USMNT striker. Maybe, though, Saturday can be the start of a new chapter.

Ultimately, Dike's appearance lasted 13 minutes. He got just seven touches of the ball and did more defending than attacking. That's evidenced by the fact that he earned a yellow card just five minutes into his return for a bad tackle on Millwall's Joe Bryan. Let that yellow serve as further proof that Dike still has plenty of fight left in him. Now, it's his body's turn to hold up for that effort.

West Brom will certainly ease him back into action. It'll be a while before we see the version of Dike that looked like a future USMNT star just a few years ago. But, given what he's been through, just making it back onto the field will feel like a huge, huge victory. Hopefully, this time, it's the first of many.

So often, America's eyes on the Eredivisie are centered on PSV's quartet of American stars. But, with three of those four out due to injury, one on the other side stepped up with a goal to show why he, too, should be in the USMNT mix going forward.

Paxten Aaronson has been taking leaps forward for Utrecht all season long and that continued on Saturday against PSV. Aaronson's finish was a headed one and it was the result of American-on-American crime. He leaped right over Richy Ledezma for the finish, running to the camera saying "Air Jordan" in celebration. It would have been a game-winner, too, if not for a 92nd-minute PSV equalizer that saw the two sides split points.

For PSV, it's another blow to their title hopes. For FC Aaronson, it was a sixth goal of the season, following up on four last season for a doomed Vitesse team.

Regardless of how Utrecht fare, there is a real chance this is Aaronson's last in the Eredivisie. He was loaned to the Netherlands by Eintracht Frankfurt to continue his development and it's certainly working. Aaronson is emerging as a hell of a young player, one that could be ready for a step up the ladder.

That applies to both club and country. Aaronson earned his first USMNT cap in 2023 and was a part of the Olympic squad last summer. A USMNT breakthrough is getting closer and, with less than a year and a half until the World Cup, Aaronson will have a chance to play his way into the picture. Goals such as Saturday's will help as he continues to take strides forward this season.

Tyler Adams turned 26 on Friday. It's the age at which many players begin to enter their prime. For defensive midfielders, that prime may be pushed back a year or two to account for all of the experience and know-how required to play that position.

It's scary to think, then, that this isn't the best version of Adams. He's still finding his feet and confidence after spending so long injured and he's still learning how to play this position at the Premier League level. He's already one of the best in the league, though. There's no doubting that anymore.

The stats speak for themselves. With Saturday's 3-1 win over Southampton, Bournemouth are up to fifth in the Premier League, and their rise coincides with Adams' return to form. The Cherries have been one of the league's best over the last few months, which is, coincidentally, the period when Adams has finally gotten back to his best.

On Saturday, he was a menace as always. He completed 49 of his 54 passes, won three tackles and won eight duels. He won a foul and committed two of his own. Bournemouth's ability to go toe-to-toe with any midfield has been a huge reason behind their success. In that regard, Adams is vital.

Every week, he shows what he can do at the Premier League level. Now, as his long-awaited to the USMNT return looms about a month for now, coach Mauricio Pochettino will be thrilled to add a monster like him to his ever-evolving midfield.

James Sands was once again in the heart of St. Pauli's midfield, and he was arguably his side's best outfield player in a 1-0 loss to Freiburg. He won eight duels, made three interceptions, provided four clearances and won two tackles in the defeat. That performance came just days after he opened up to American media about his big move to Germany and what it meant to his career.

Then, on Sunday, the bad news emerged. Sands had suffered an injury in the final moments of Saturday's match. NYCFC confirmed that Sands had undergone surgery to repair an injury that includes a fractured fibula and a torn MCL. The club says he'll be out indefinitely. He made just seven appearances for St. Pauli.

It's horrible luck for a player that looked like he was taking a big leap forward. Sands was thriving at the Bundesliga level, showing that he can compete in one of the best leagues in the world. The 24-year-old was really making his mark.

We'll have to see how long Sands is out for and what comes next for him. Everything is suddenly up in the air in terms of his future. Now, it's all about recovery, which is so unfortunate given how close he was to making something special happen during his stay in Germany.

+ Christian Pulisic wasn't in Milan's starting XI, but Yunus Musah was in a 1-0 win over Hellas Verona. With the Champions League in mind, Pulisic only came on as a late sub, with Milan winning due to a late Santi Gimenez goal.

+ Borussia Dortmund were down 2-0 to Bochum after 35 minutes, but it still took until the 80th minute for Gio Reyna to make an appearance. He completed eight of his nine passes, including one into the final third. Cole Campbell didn't dress for Dortmund.

+ Antonee Robinson has one of his quieter games, but that didn't prevent Fulham from taking down Nottingham Forest, 2-1. The win keeps Fulham's hopes of pushing for a European place alive as they took down another contender in Forest.

+ A tough loss for Chris Richards and Crystal Palace, who fell 2-1 to a suddenly surging Everton. Richards' most memorable sequence was a winding dribble through the Everton defense that nearly resulted in a goal in the first half.

+ Aidan Morris put in a strong shift in the Middlesbrough midfield, leading the way in the game with six tackles. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough as a 40th-minute goal from Moussa Sissoko led Watford to the away win.

+ After two early goals, Joe Scally and Borussia Monchengladbach were able to hold on to a 2-1 win over Union Berlin, with Scally doing his usual role of holding down that right-hand side.

+ Mark McKenzie and Toulouse came oh so close to a big result as they fell 1-0 to PSG on a second-half Fabian Ruiz goal. McKenzie came on as a 70th-minute substitute.

+ Tanner Tessmann was rock solid in the Lyon midfield in a 4-1 win over Montpellier. Starting next to veteran Nemanja Matic, Tessmann completed 94 percent of his passes in the lopsided win.

+ Auston Trusty wasn't expecting an assist when he played a standard pass out wide to Jota, but he'll take it. The Portuguese winger cut in and found the back of the net, giving the American his first Celtic assist in a 3-0 win over Dundee United that saw him start alongside Cameron Carter-Vickers in defense.

+ Taylor Booth also provided an assist, teeing up a Sam Steijn goal just five minutes after coming in as a substitute in Twente's 2-0 win over RKS Waalwijk.

+ Lennard Malone made a late substitute appearance against his old club, Heidenheim, as his new one, Mainz, earned a 2-0 win.

+ Johnny Cardoso bossed the midfield as Real Betis took down nine-man Real Sociedad, 3-0.