American Players Abroad

BREMEN, Germany — Werder Bremen extended its 39-year stay in the Bundesliga for at least another 10 days on Saturday, when it thumped Cologne 6-1 to avoid automatic relegation, including a Josh Sargent goal to cap things off.

The four-times Bundesliga champions completed the first half of what could become a great escape as they climbed out of the drop zone and leapfrogged Fortuna Duesseldorf to finish 16th in the 18-team table.

Chelsea manager Frank Lampard praised Christian Pulisic as the American forward scored an equalizer five minutes after coming off the bench to help Chelsea earn a 2-1 comeback win at Aston Villa in the Premier League on Sunday.

Pulisic leveled on the hour after Kortney Hause had given Villa a 43rd minute lead and Frenchman Olivier Giroud netted the winner two minutes later, tightening Chelsea's grip on fourth place.

Trailing Aston Villa 1-0 with just over half an hour remaining, Chelsea manager Frank Lampard turned to Christian Pulisic off the bench and the American responded by scoring the equalizer just five minutes later.

Although Chelsea dominated possession in the first half, it was Villa center back Kortney Hause who opened the scoring in the 43rd minute following a cross from Douglas Luiz.

Lucien Favre picked Gio Reyna for his first career Bundesliga start in a big second-vs.-third matchup against RB Leipzig on Saturday. The 17-year-old American repaid his manager’s faith, setting up the first goal as Borussia Dortmund clinched second place with a 2-0 victory at Red Bull Arena.

Longtime U.S. men's national team member Fabian Johnson is seeking a move to MLS, according to a report.

Kristian Dyer of Sports Illustrated tweeted that Johnson, who plays for Borussia Monchengladbach of the Bundesliga, has been in contact with "multiple" MLS teams through his agent.

Weston McKennie is not shying away from the spotlight, not backing down from what he believes and not afraid to speak out against the most powerful man in the world.

The USMNT and Schalke midfielder said U.S. President Donald Trump is racist in an interview published in the German magazine Sport Bild this week, adding that he doesn’t feel Trump is fit to be president.

VfL Wolfsburg striker Wout Weghorst scored with only eight minutes remaining to hand the visiting team a 1-0 win at Werder Bremen on Sunday and push their hosts closer towards relegation from the Bundesliga.

A return to form for the Dutch international ensured Wolfsburg moved up to sixth place, jumping above Hoffenheim, and putting themselves back in place to qualify for next season’s Europa League.

USMNT and Newcastle United defender DeAndre Yedlin has penned a message of solidarity with George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter movement while revealing a gut wrenching text he received from his grandfather.

The 26-year-old has been in England since January of 2015 and with Newcastle for the past four seasons, and his grandfather said he’s glad that he’s “not living in the U.S. right now because he would fear for (his) life as a young black man.”

After a scoreless first half, Borussia Dortmund shifted through the gears in the second 45 to overwhelm Paderborn 6-1 on Sunday. The match featured a couple of historic firsts for Dortmund: 20-year-old English phenom Jadon Sancho notched his first professional hat-trick, and 17-year-old American prodigy Giovanni Reyna registered his first Bundesliga assist.