United States international Josh Sargent will be in Werder Bremen’s squad for the first time this season on Friday, ahead of a possible Bundesliga debut against Fortuna Dusseldorf.
The teenager joined the Bundesliga club last February after turning 18 but was unable to be registered for the remainder of the season since the winter window had closed.
This year, Sargent has spent the entirety of the campaign with Werder Bremen II in the German fourth division, scoring seven goals in 12 appearances, all starts, for the team.
In October, Werder head coach Kohfeldt had hinted that Sargent would see time with the first-team squad soon, saying: “This period in which [Sargent] plays exclusively in the U23s is over."
Despite that declaration, USMNT fans hoping to see the teen get his first-team chance have been left wanting, as Sargent had yet to make a squad through November.
However, that is now set to change as Kohfeldt confirmed Sargent will make his first Bundesliga matchday squad for Friday’s visit to bottom of the table Dusseldorf.
“He’ll definitely be in the squad. He’s earned it with his performances in training in recent weeks,” Kohfeldt said.
If Sargent plays Friday, it will be his first-team debut for the club in any competition.
It will also be Sargent’s first professional minutes, as he only played at an amateur level in the United States before departing for Germany in February.
Having no professional minutes under his belt has not stopped Sargent from making an impact on the senior national team for the United States.
Sargent made his USMNT debut in May of this year, scoring a goal in a 3-0 win against Bolivia. He has featured in a total of six games thus far for the USMNT, all in friendlies, scoring twice.
Prior to his senior team debut, Sargent starred for the U.S. at the under-17 and under-20 levels.
He scored four goals in five games at the 2017 under-20 World Cup in South Korea in June 2017, followed by three goals in five games at the under-17 World Cup in India in October 2017.
