Americans Abroad, New Year’s Day edition: Christian Pulisic, Antonee Robinson and Brenden Aaronson kickstart 2026 with big games

There’s a chance two of the USMNT’s most important players could go head-to-head on New Year’s Day in a match with real stakes, though that matchup is far from guaranteed.

Chris Richards remains a doubt for Crystal Palace’s meeting with Fulham after suffering a deep cut in last week’s loss to Arsenal. The defender missed Palace’s defeat to Tottenham as a result, and manager Oliver Glasner said Richards is still dealing with complications from the injury ahead of the clash with Antonee Robinson’s Fulham.

"We don’t know if he’s available for Fulham," Glasner said. "His foot got stitched, but it’s still swollen. It’s going in the right direction, but you have to wear a boot and kick a ball, and with the wound right there, it’s very, very painful. And so again, it can be that he misses Fulham, it can be that he is available."

On the other side, Robinson is certainly available, and he's thriving. Having only recently returned from injury issues of his own, the full back is already showing flashes of his old self. He seemingly hasn't missed a beat, stepping right back into the Fulham XI and providing the type of attacking danger that has been his trademark. Fulham are a much better team with Robinson in the XI, and that's easy to see considering they've won three of their last four matches with him in the XI.

With both teams sitting on 26 points and dreaming of a European push, this match feels like a pretty good test for each side. The only question is if both teams will have their key Americans to help lead the way.

Over the last few years, AC Milan have generally handled Cagliari as well as a team can. They're unbeaten in 15, having won 11 of those games. Based on that, Milan probably won't need a vintage Pulisic performance to get past Cagliari. They have been getting a lot of those lately, though.

Pulisic has been Serie A's best player this season, averaging a league goal every 74 minutes. That included one this past weekend against Hellas Verona, taking his total to eight along with two assists. He's only started seven games this season. It's an insane run of form, one that has Milan dreaming of a Scudetto or, at the very least, a return to European soccer.

It helps, then, that they're facing Serie A's 14th-placed team. Rivals Inter, currently one point ahead of Milan atop the league, are facing Bologna, meanwhile. This is a good opportunity for the red half of Milan, then, and for Pulisic to continue to run up some goal numbers.

There's no denying that Brenden Aaronson has been in fantastic form of late, but can he continue that form against the reigning Premier League champions?

Leeds are set to face Liverpool on Thursday in Aaronson's latest big test. The thing is, though, Aaronson has some prior history with this specific test. Less than a month ago, he came off the bench to provide an assist in Leeds' come-from-behind 3-3 draw with the Reds. Now, widely expected to start, can he cause more havoc for a Liverpool defense that has struggled this season?

He did that against Sunderland's defense just this past weekend. In that match, a 1-1 draw, the American had a fantastic assist for Dominic Calvert-Lewin, who, along with Aaronson, has helped fire Leeds to a five-game unbeaten run. Making it six against Liverpool will be tough, but Leeds have shown they can play with the Reds. They'll look to do it again this week at Anfield, one of the world's toughest places to play.

Speaking of players in good form, Patrick Agyemang is right up there with any in the USMNT pool. 

He scored three goals in the month of December, taking his total to six so far in the Championship this season. He was blanked in Derby's 2-1 loss against Leicester City on Monday, ending the Rams' four-game unbeaten run. There's a short turnaround, fortunately, which will allow Agyemang and Derby to get right back on track.

Up next is a clash with Middlesbrough, who sit second in the table. Boro have been without their own American, Aidan Morris, who has been dealing with a leg injury. Projections have indicated he'll return in January, although the first of the month may prove too soon.

Either way, all eyes will be on Big Pat. The striker competition remains fierce and, at the moment, Agyemang is showing he can go toe-to-toe with any of them in the pool. The key, though, is consistency as Agyemang looks to show that this isn't a hot streak, but rather a sign of things to come.