Americans Abroad: Oft-criticized USMNT players Brenden Aaronson and Josh Sargent offer rousing responses, while Folarin Balogun, Malik Tillman make injury returns

The celebration told you everything you needed to know. As he sprinted towards the corner, finger to his head followed by a leaping fist pump, Aaronson said everything after his omission from the latest USMNT squad.

His exclusion was a surprise, and his initial response was a dud. In the final game before the international break, Aaronson struggled, offering little evidence that Pochettino had gotten it wrong. Ahead of Sunday's clash with Swansea, Leeds boss Daniel Farke publicly defended Aaronson, while looking at the latest USMNT squad in a "glass half full" sort of way.

“He is a player who always gives everything,” Farke said on Thursday. “It was beneficial he was left out of the U.S. squad. It was good to let him recharge for a few days because although he has so much energy, even his tank was empty.

“You could feel in the last days in training that he is recharged and looks sharper. He’s scored many goals and assisted in training a lot. He’s on the up again. We need that for the last eight games.”

It took Aaronson just over 30 seconds to prove Farke right. His usual pressing helped him get a goal, his second since the start of the new year and ninth on the season. It was the type of goal that rebuilds a player's confidence, particularly after a setback as big as the one that just hit Aaronson. Leeds went on to draw 2-2, unfortunately for them, but it'll surely be a positive to see Aaronson respond in the way that he did.

It'll be positive for Pochettino, too, who will surely be welcoming back a motivated midfielder should he choose to bring him into the squad this summer.

Unlike Aaronson, Sargent was in the latest USMNT squad, but it's safe to say the Nations League wasn't a memorable experience. He was held scoreless in the first game, continuing a drought dating back to 2019, and was then benched for the second game. This month seemed like a chance for Sargent to really push for a starting spot. Instead, it further showed how much work he has to do to catch those ahead of him.

Despite it all, Sargent has been damn near unstoppable for Norwich all season long, and that continued on Saturday with a late winner. With Norwich needing a result to keep their promotion playoff hopes alive, Sargent netted a 92nd-minute winner against West Brom, sealing a 1-0 result that will feel massive for both the player and his club.

Sargent's importance on the club level has never been questioned. With 13 goals in 25 Championship appearances, Sargent continues to tear up England's second division. He has 42 goals and counting since Norwich's relegation in 2022 and, if the club does somehow go up this season, their Premier League rise will no doubt be down to Sargent's finishing.

Somehow, he'll have to convert that to some sort of USMNT form. It hasn't happened yet and, based on what we've seen at Norwich, it surely is in his head. Sargent is a great candidate for the old "ketchup bottle" theory: once he sees one go in, they'll start flowing out.

It didn't happen in March and Sargent's status is, rightfully, being questioned. All he can do now is keep scoring for Norwich until he gets another crack with the USMNT.

Following the Nations League, the USMNT was slammed for their lack of creativity in the final third. This weekend saw the returns of two players that could have helped in Los Angeles last week but, more importantly, those two players could help down the line.

First up was Folarin Balogun, who came on for a 15-minute cameo in Monaco's 2-1 win over Nice on Saturday. He didn't do anything special, touching the ball just nine times, but the fact that he was out there for the first time since December was a huge step forward. His shoulder injury essentially ruined this 2024-25 season, and it's too late to really fix that fact, but Balogun can now get back into the swing of things over these final few months.

Malik Tillman has played for Pochettino, but he was also absent during the Nations League. He's never really dominated on the USMNT level, but his creativity at the No. 10 position surely could have been helpful, in particular, against Panama.

After a month and a half out with an ankle injury, Tillman returned for PSV well ahead of schedule with an appearance in Sunday's loss to Ajax in a match that also saw Sergino Dest and Richy Ledezma feature. He completed all 27 of his passes, four of which were into the final third, showing glimpses of what he can add to a team.

Both would have been helpful in the Nations League and both still have a ways to go to get back to their best. Ahead of a USMNT summer that suddenly feels bigger than many thought it would be, it'll be good to have them back.

Another player who was out of the USMNT squad stepped up with a big goal. Johnny Cardoso was a late exclusion for Nations League, an injury absence that forced a change in the squad. He was back in the XI for Real Betis on Sunday, scoring a rare goal to lead them to a win over Sevilla.

The goal was just his third of the season and second in La Liga. The only other one was recently against Real Madrid. When Cardoso does score, he seems to do so at the right time for Betis, who have now climbed up to sixth in La Liga. Cardoso has played a big part in that, helping hold down the midfield for a club that continues to challenge both in their domestic league and the Europa Conference League.

The jury is still out on Cardoso with the USMNT. He, like Sargent, has plenty to prove. He hasn't turned in a signature performance in a U.S. shirt and injuries have kept him from proving himself under Pochettino. With Tyler Adams now back, opportunities may be harder to come by for anyone looking to make their mark as a deeper-lying midfielder with the USMNT.

The occasional goal will help, though, and Cardoso scored an important one this weekend.

AC Milan's Champions League hopes are gone. They might have been gone a few weeks ago but they were definitively ended on Sunday. With a 2-1 loss to Napoli, Milan's tailspin continued, and it's becoming harder to see them coming back.

Christian Pulisic was in the XI, but could only watch as Milan fell to the league leaders. He could only watch as Napoli fired two goals in the first 20 minutes to effectively bury his side. He could only watch as Milan wasted chance after chance to get back into the game before scrambling one home after he'd already been taken out.

Most notably, he could only watch as Santi Gimenez fired his penalty right at Alex Meret. For so long, Pulisic had been Milan's penalty taker, but there was nothing he could do as Milan squandered a chance to get back into the game.

With the loss, Pulisic and Milan are now nine points from a Champions League spot with eight games remaining. They are five points back of even a conference league spot. It seems their Serie A season is just about done, with their only hope of salvaging much of anything coming soon via their Coppa Italia semifinal against rivals Inter. They'll no doubt be underdogs in that and rightfully so; they haven't been good enough to be considered favorites in any game for months.

After making a managerial change midway through the season, Milan haven't been able to fix all that's been wrong. They'll have to reboot this summer. What that means for Pulisic and Yunus Muah is anyone's guess but, right now, it seems as if Milan desperately need to hit the reset button.

We knew at least one defender would be heading to Wembley for the FA Cup semifinals. That defender turned out to be Chris Richards, as Crystal Palace got the better of Fulham to book their spot in the next round of England's major tournament.

Richards started and played all 90 minutes in Palace's back three, helping them to a 3-0 win over Antonee Robinson and Co. After the match, Richards replied to a meme comparing his performance to an old Wii video game due to his six headed clearances in the match.

Richards was the only USMNT star in the Crystal Palace XI, though, as Matt Turner was benched for Dean Henderson despite previously serving as Palace's cup goalkeeper.

As for Fulham, it was good to see Robinson back on the field after missing USMNT camp, but it was far from a good day for his team.

Meanwhile, Tyler Adams and Bournemouth couldn't book their place in the semis, as they gave up an early lead to fall to Manchester City, 2-1. The Cherries were always going to be underdogs, but they'll be particularly frustrated after giving up the lead, especially given the fact that Erling Haaland saw a penalty save following an early Adams foul. City's flurry came in the second half, with Haaland and Omar Marmoush both netting to lead them to Wembley.

That leaves Richards and Turner as the only Americans in the final four, where they're joined by City, Aston Villa and Nottingham Forrest. Just two games away from a major trophy, Palace's season will now largely be defined by this cup run, which could make this year one to remember at Selhurst Park.

+ Tim Weah had a late chance that was saved, but Juventus were just fine in their 1-0 win over Genoa. Weston McKennie started and played all 90 minutes for Juve.

+ Tanner Tessmann started, played 85 minutes and earned a yellow card as Lyon fell, 4-2, to Strasbourg in a match in which all six goals scored in the second half.

+ Another DNP for Gio Reyna, who was left on the bench in yet another Dortmund game. BVB went on to win 3-1, though, behind a Maximilian Beier brace.

+ Haji Wright's return from injury continued with a start on Friday, but the USMNT attacker didn't find the back of the net as Coventry City fell, 3-1, to Sheffield United.

+ Aidan Morris put in a hell of a shift in midfield to help Middlesbrough earn a win over Oxford United. He completed the most passes in the match with 87 and created the most chances in the match with five.

+ Mark McKenzie and Toulouse had a tough day at the office on Sunday. They were beaten by Brest, who ran away with a 4-2 result.

+ Joe Scally started and played 71 minutes, helping Borussia Monchengladbach seal a 1-0 win at home against RB Leipzig.

+ A small step forward in recovery for Kevin Paredes, who made Wolfsburg's bench but did not play in a 1-0 loss to Heidenheim.

+ Noahkai Banks also remained on the bench as Augsburg settled for a 1-1 draw with Hoffenheim.

+ John Tolkin was another Bundesliga American to not see the field, sitting for Holstein Kiel's 3-0 defeat to Werder Bremen.

+ Caleb Wiley put in a strong shift for loan club Watford at left-back in a scoreless draw with Plymouth Argyle.

+ Gianluca Busio was the most accurate passer on the field on Saturday, but it didn't help Venezia as they fell, 1-0, to Bologna.

+ Ethan Horvath started in goal for Cardiff in a 1-1 draw with Sheffield.