Tag: James Sands

USMNT’s Sands says Rangers spell didn’t offer tests like battling MLS stars

It doesn’t sound like Sands felt challenged at Rangers

James Sands is glad to be back with the U.S. men’s national team, and back in the parity-driven battles that make up an MLS schedule.

Sands is on the USMNT roster for Wednesday’s Continental Clásico, giving him a chance to break a bit of a strange gap in his national team resume. The 22-year-old was in uniform in half of the team’s World Cup qualifiers, but has been stuck on seven caps since starting in a September 2021 qualifier against Honduras.

Since then, Sands has won an MLS Cup with NYCFC, and spent 14 months playing for Rangers on loan in Scotland. He certainly saw plenty of time playing for one of the Scottish Premiership’s big clubs, appearing 41 times, but his loan was terminated early so he could return to MLS and sign a new contract with NYCFC.

For Sands, the reason for that move might be simple: being truly tested in every single game.

Speaking to NYCFC’s team site, Sands said that facing off with Atlanta United star Thiago Almada is an example of an advantage MLS has over the Scottish top flight, where the concentration of elite players is virtually entirely held by Rangers and their Old Firm rival Celtic.

“I really look forward to those sorts of challenges,” said Sands. “That’s something that I get here in MLS that I didn’t get at all really in Scotland in the league there, so it’s a nice change. Those guys will get the better of me sometimes, but it’s all about learning. I’m still a young player, and I’m trying to improve.”

Tough assignments key for Sands

While playing for Rangers came with Europa League and Champions League clashes and the pressure that comes in a country where soccer is king, the everyday of the Scottish Premiership meant regularly facing teams who were just looking to hang on for dear life rather than pose any new difficulties for Sands.

Since opting to return to MLS, Sands has started in all seven of NYCFC’s matches, and that has helped get him back in the frame for the USMNT. In that time, he’s faced players like Almada, Nashville SC’s Hany Mukhtar, Xherdan Shaqiri with the Chicago Fire, and Carles Gil of the New England Revolution.

“I’ve been out of the national team for a little bit now, so it’s nice to have another opportunity,” explained Sands. “It’s just a couple days I’m there, so I just have to give it everything. I think I’ve worked really hard over the last couple months, so I’m very excited.”

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James Sands returns to NYCFC after cutting Rangers loan short

The 22-year-old heads back to his parent club four months before his loan was set to end

James Sands has returned to New York City FC, cutting his loan at Rangers short and signing a new contract through 2027 with the MLS club.

Sands joined Rangers in January 2022 on an 18-month loan but after the 22-year-old fell out of favor in Scotland, he’s returned to his parent club four months early.

“The opportunity to return to NYCFC for the start of the MLS season, where he will be a key player in their squad, was something that we felt was correct for all parties,” Rangers manager Michael Beale said in a club release.

The Daily Record reported that Rangers opted against paying a £4 million fee to sign Sands at the end of the current season.

Sands made 41 appearances for Rangers during his time with the club, rotating in and out of the starting lineup and playing both center back and defensive midfield.

The 22-year-old was NYCFC’s first-ever Homegrown signing in 2017, and went on to make 76 appearances for the club before his move to Scotland. Sands has also been capped seven times by the U.S. national team, all of which came in 2021.

In a club release, NYCFC sporting director David Lee said that Sands still harbors ambitions to return to Europe.

“It was a priority for us to try and ensure James returned to New York this season,” Lee said. “Despite opportunities to continue his career in Europe, we are pleased that we’ve been able to reach an agreement on a new contract and convince James that this is the right place for his continued career progression. We know James’ ambition remains to play at the highest levels in Europe and we will continue to support him with his career aspirations.”

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It’s official: Rangers had the worst Champions League group stage ever

Six games, two goals scored, 22 conceded, and one big yikes

Rangers returned to the Champions League group stage this year for the first time since the 2010-11 season. It was a huge accomplishment for the Scottish giants, and a boost for USMNT duo Malik Tillman and James Sands.

The club surely knew the group stage would be a major step up from the qualifying rounds, but they could’ve never anticipated the pure carnage that would await them upon reaching the club game’s highest heights.

After losing 3-1 to Ajax on Tuesday, Rangers secured a piece of unwanted history. With six defeats in six games, two goals scored and 22 conceded, Rangers have officially had the worst group stage campaign in Champions League history.

Being drawn against red-hot Napoli and less-hot-but-still-Liverpool Liverpool was always going to be a big ask for Rangers, who lost those four games by a combined score of 15-1.

More curious was the team’s two defeats to Ajax by a combined score of 7-1. Ajax is in first place in the Eredivisie, leading PSV by just one point. To reach the group stage, Rangers defeated PSV 3-2 over two legs in the final qualifying round. Clearly, the transitive property didn’t quite bear out here.

Tillman and Sands each started four of Rangers’ six games and neither had any particularly shining moments. Sands was sent off against Napoli in Rangers’ second match, picking up a second yellow card early in the second half of a 3-0 defeat.

Speaking after Tuesday’s loss to Ajax, Rangers coach Giovanni van Bronckhorst sounded like the leader of a team who went into games knowing they were likely to lose.

“I won the competition (as a player with Barcelona) so I know the other side when you’re the team who comes on the pitch and already knows you’re going to win because of the difference,” he said.

It’s hard to escape the feeling that in hindsight, Van Bronckhorst and his players may well wish they’d lost to PSV and parachuted safely into the Europa League, a competition where they’d be unlikely to make the kind of unwanted history they must now carry with them.

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The Americans Abroad Five: Oh boy, here come the injuries

Some key USMNT players are fighting to get fit with three weeks until the World Cup. Nobody panic!

Three weeks ago, this very column celebrated the triumphant return to health of many key U.S. national team players who had been battling injuries.

We are very, very sorry.

It’s not time to panic yet because the injuries are all minor-ish, but some important USMNT players have gone down over the past week. The World Cup kicks off in three weeks, so even a minor problem right now could have an impact in Qatar.

Tick tock. Tick tock. Let’s get to the Five

Rangers’ USMNT pair gets good view as Mo Salah scores record-breaking Champions League hat trick

It’s probably for the best that Sands and Tillman didn’t play in this one

Maybe Rangers should have put James Sands and Malik Tillman in?

Liverpool had a very rare sort of comeback win in the Champions League Wednesday, turning a 1-0 deficit into a 7-1 victory thanks in no small part to Mohamed Salah scoring a hat trick in all of six minutes and 12 seconds.

Rangers scored their first group stage goal in the 17th minute to take the lead at Ibrox, and though Roberto Firmino replied seven minutes later, the Scottish club — with both Sands and Tillman on the bench — got into halftime with the scores level.

Unfortunately for Rangers, the referees and Liverpool decided to play the second half rather than simply letting everyone go home early. Firmino struck again in the 55th minute, followed by a goal from Darwin Núñez, as Liverpool looked to be cruising to a win.

However, things were about to get worse for Rangers. Salah hadn’t even entered the game at that point, only entering the fray to replace Núñez after the Uruguayan had finished celebrating his goal.

With the clock reading 74:43, Salah took his first step towards a new Champions League record, stabbing a left-footed shot past Allan McGregor from an acute angle to make it 4-1.

The Egyptian star then added Liverpool’s fifth in the 80th minute, with a sneaky shot that used the scrambling Rangers defense as a screen. 96 seconds later, he had his hat trick, characteristically curling home from the right side of the box as the clock ticked over to 80:55.

Salah broke Bafétimbi Gomis’ 11-year-old record, as the French striker had scored an eight-minute hat trick for Lyon against Dinamo Zagreb back in 2011.

For Rangers, who ended up not putting Sands or Tillman into the match at all, it’s been a rough return to the Champions League. They are one of two teams to have lost all four of their matches, and Viktoria Plzen’s -13 goal difference in Group C is slightly better than the -15 mark Rangers has in Group A.

Watch Salah make Champions League history

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The Americans Abroad Five: Getting healthy at the right time

Knock on wood but … the USMNT’s injury situation is looking quite rosy a month before Qatar

If there’s one thing the September window showed, it’s that the U.S. men’s national team desperately needs a select few players to be healthy.

Shorn of the injured Yunus Musah, Antonee Robinson and Tim Weah, the USMNT struggled badly in its two friendlies. Clearly the team’s issues went deeper than that trio’s absence, but the Americans’ awful displays would’ve at least been lifted with their presence.

This weekend saw a number of Americans abroad find the net, but no development was more important than the return to the pitch of Musah, Robinson and Weah.

The USMNT seems to be getting healthy at the right time. Knock on wood.

Let’s get to the Five.

Pefok, Ream and Vazquez headline the biggest USMNT roster snubs

Barring injuries or a real turn of form at club level, these guys are likely to be watching the World Cup on TV

There will always be a few snubs from any U.S. men’s national team roster, but rarely are they as meaningful as these ones.

Head coach Gregg Berhalter has insisted that the non-injured players who didn’t make his 26-man roster for September’s friendlies still have a shot to make the World Cup squad.

But it will be tough.

This is the last chance to impress Berhalter before the World Cup, so barring injuries or a real turn of form at club level, the following players are likely to be watching the USMNT on TV in Qatar.

Let’s get to the biggest omissions from the USMNT September roster.

USMNT duo Malik Tillman, James Sands help Rangers qualify for Champions League

The U.S. contingent in the Champions League keeps growing

Add James Sands and Malik Tillman to the list of U.S. men’s national team players in this year’s Champions League group stage.

The USMNT duo both played a major role as Rangers defeated PSV 1-0 on Wednesday night, giving them a 3-2 aggregate victory that sends the Scottish side into Thursday’s draw. Manager Giovanni van Bronckhorst started Tillman as his No. 10 in a 4-2-3-1 formation, while Sands took up his usual spot at center back as both USMNT players went the full 90 minutes.

Rangers started well, with Tillman creating their best early look only for Tom Lawrence to blaze it wide in the 25th minute. Tillman and Sands were among the best players on the field for either team, with Rangers’ attacks nearly always involving the former Bayern Munich academy product. At the other end, Sands and the Glaswegian club’s defense gave up little, frustrating the crowd in Eindhoven and keeping the game manageable for Rangers.

Tillman also ended up with the assist on the goal that took them through, pouncing on a massive mistake on the hour mark as Rangers scored the game’s only goal. PSV goalkeeper Walter Benítez passed to André Ramalho, who Tillman pressured immediately. Tillman won the ball cleanly, drew Benítez, and squared for Antonio Colak to tap into an empty net.

It was the second decisive moment for Tillman in this Champions League qualifying campaign. His first goal at the club completed a remarkable comeback in the previous round, as they overturned a two-goal deficit to advance past Union Saint-Gilloise. That moment was instantly lionized on the blue side of Glasgow, with fans doing a “Tillman Header Challenge” outside of Ibrox.

From there, though, the game came down to Rangers doing wonderful work in killing the game off effectively, with PSV never having much of a look of note. Sands played a prominent role at center back, coming through numerous aeriel duels as PSV grew more desperate.

The win sees Rangers back into the group stage for the first time since the 2010-11 edition. Tillman and Sands will join a large group of USMNT-eligible players in the group stage, with Christian Pulisic (Chelsea), Gio Reyna (Dortmund), Sergiño Dest (Barcelona, at least for the time being),  Cameron Carter-Vickers (Celtic), Owen Otasowie (Club Brugge), Timothy Chandler (Eintract Frankfurt), and Josh Cohen (Maccabi Haifa).

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Malik Tillman sends Rangers through to final round of Champions League qualifying

Tillman’s first Rangers goal was huge

Malik Tillman’s first Rangers goal ended up being a big one, as the U.S. men’s national team prospect sent his new club through to the final round of Champions League qualifying.

Tillman and Rangers—who started two USMNT players, with Tillman joined by James Sands—had a mountain to climb after losing their first leg at Belgium’s Union-Saint Gilloise 2-0.

However, back at Ibrox Stadium, they mounted a stunning comeback. James Tavernier converted a penalty just before halftime to give them hope, and Antonio Čolak’s 58th minute goal levelled the scores.

That set the stage for Tillman. Rangers recycled a set piece before Borna Barišić crossed in a prayer high to the back post. Tillman managed to leap higher than Union SG goalkeeper Anthony Moris to nod the ball into an empty net, setting off wild celebrations in the stands as Rangers took a 3-0 lead on the night, and a 3-2 edge on aggregate.

Rangers held on from there to pull off the unlikely victory. Tillman played the full 90 minutes for Rangers, while Sands played 79 at center back.

The Glaswegian giants face one more round to get into the group stage, and it’s going to be tough. They’ll either play PSV or Monaco, who were in extra time as Rangers celebrated their win. The first leg will be August 16 or 17, with the second leg a week later.

If Rangers qualify, it will be their first trip to the Champions League proper since 2010-11.

Watch Tillman send Rangers through

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James Sands becomes third USMNT player to feature in major European final

The 21-year-old joined a select club that also includes Clint Dempsey and Christian Pulisic

James Sands joined a select group of American players on Wednesday as he entered the field for Rangers against Eintracht Frankfurt in the Europa League final.

Sands came into the game in the 101st minute, with the match all square at 1-1 in extra time. The 21-year-old had one long ball that nearly led to a goal for Rangers, but later could only watch as his side fell 5-4 in a penalty shootout.

But Sands still made some history by entering the pitch, becoming just the third American to play in a major European men’s final.

Clint Dempsey became the first when he played in Fulham’s 2010 Europa League final loss to Atlético Madrid, then Christian Pulisic played for Chelsea in last season’s Champions League final win over Manchester City.

Sands fights for minutes with Rangers

Sands joined Rangers in January on a loan through June 2023 with a purchase option.

The versatile defender/midfielder has had to fight for playing time, making 14 appearances in all competitions with seven starts.

Sands is in a battle for a USMNT roster spot at the World Cup and for now looks to be on the outside looking in. He earned all seven of his caps in 2021, but has not featured for the national team since September.

Though Rangers finished as runners-up in the Europa League and the league behind Celtic, they will still have a shot for a trophy this season when they take on Hearts in the Scottish Cup final on Saturday.

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