Wednesday was unforgettable for America as Joe Biden and Kamala Harris were sworn in as the new U.S. President and Vice President. It was a hopeful day for Americans who want the divisive Trump era to be a thing of the past. It was a Hoppeful day for Americans abroad, as a 19-year-old Californian added to his impressive goal haul in 2021.
Matthew Hoppe scored his fifth goal of the year on Wednesday, albeit in Schalke’s 2-1 defeat to Cologne. Hoppe has scored more goals than anyone in Europe’s top five leagues. Only Robert Lewandowski, who converted a penalty kick on Wednesday, can equal Hoppe’s five goals.
Most goals in Europe's top five leagues in 2021:
5 Matthew Hoppe
5 Robert Lewandowski
4 Lionel Messi & 4 others— Paul Carr (@PaulCarr) January 20, 2021
Such is the depth of American footballers abroad these days that when Hoppe first burst onto the scene this year, few even knew he existed, let alone was a 19-year-old forward at one of Germany’s most storied clubs. To be fair, Hoppe had scored just one goal for Schalke’s reserve side before making himself known with a hat trick against Hoffenheim to end Schalke’s 30-match winless streak. It was the first hat trick ever scored by an American in the Bundesliga.
Hoppe was on the scoresheet again against Frankfurt on Sunday and of course he scored on Wednesday too.
Nothing new, just Matthew Hoppe scoring in the Bundesliga pic.twitter.com/HZaSIsMurE
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) January 20, 2021
Matthew Hoppe Stats
2020-21 Bundesliga: 7 Appearances, 5 Goals
With five goals in three games, Hoppe is more than halfway to the record goal haul for an American in the Bundesliga (Eric Wynalda with nine in 1992-93). Hoppe has also passed Gio Reyna as the current top-scoring American in the Bundesliga this season, as Borussia Dortmund’s 18-year-old American has scored three goals (to go with four assists). Only two other Americans have scored in three straight Bundesliga matches: Clint Mathis and Wynalda.
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Hoppe gives more hope for U.S. men’s soccer fans. Arguably the weakest position for the USMNT right now is the striker position, and Hoppe could be the answer to lead the line up front.
Of course, Wednesday will be remembered more for Biden and Harris taking control of the U.S. government. After four years of hateful, divisive rhetoric from a petty, vitriolic racist cosplaying as a president, Biden and Harris give Americans reason for hope. As someone who earned a history degree from one of the most conservative universities in the U.S., I feel qualified to say that Donald Trump will go down as America’s worst president ever.
