Tag: Tim Weah

Late Weah assist sends Juventus to Coppa Italia final at Lazio’s expense

Weah’s 2023-24 hasn’t been ideal, but the USMNT winger helped Juventus advance to a cup final

Juventus is going through to the Coppa Italia final, and they have Tim Weah to thank for the opportunity.

The U.S. men’s national team winger came off the bench to produce a late assist on Arkadiusz Milik’s 83rd minute goal, which was just enough to get Juve past Lazio 3-2 on aggregate.

A 2-0 first-leg win earlier this month had set Juve up well, but Valentín Castellanos’ brace on Tuesday had levelled the tie at the Stadio Olimpico.

However, Massimiliano Allegri’s substitutions proved critical. Weah’s entry in the 70th minute was key, with the USMNT man fizzing a low cross in for Milik, who finished off a tap-in with what was his first touch.

Lazio would push for a late equalizer, but Juve held strong, clinching a place in May 15’s one-off final. That match will be held at the Stadio Olimpico, with either Fiorentina or Atalanta as Juventus’ opponent. I Viola holds a 1-0 edge after the first leg, with the second leg taking place on Wednesday at the Gewiss Stadium.

The assist may be Weah’s biggest moment of what has been a difficult season with Juventus. After toggling between Weah and Andrea Cambiaso for the starting job at right wingback, Allegri has generally preferred to start the Italian in recent months. Despite appearing in 29 of Juve’s 36 matches this season, Weah has just one goal and two assists.

Watch Weah help Juve to the Coppa Italia final

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Juve boss Allegri: McKennie knock not a concern, Weah ‘settling in well’

Allegri says McKennie has a knock…but is fine?

Bad news: Weston McKennie picked up a knock in a recent Juventus training session.

Good news: It’s not actually going to keep him from playing.

Juve manager Massimiliano Allegri gave U.S. men’s national team fans a scare on Friday, telling reporters that the U.S. midfielder has a new, unspecified injury, but also that it is not actually a concern.

“McKennie is fine,” said Allegri, speaking ahead of the Bianconeri’s Serie A match at Sassuolo, when asked about the Texan’s status. “I’ll take a look at him today.”

Given McKennie’s injury history and his promising play since returning to Juventus, any reports of an issue — particularly an update as vague as this one — will be a worry for the USMNT until we see the 25-year-old playing without issues.

Allegri: Weah ‘settling in well’

That said, it’s theoretically possible that the issue could keep McKennie on the sideline for a week or so, just for cautionary measures. Who would likely step in? Another USMNT star, as Tim Weah has been splitting time with McKennie as the right wingback in Allegri’s 3-5-2 system.

In the same press conference, Allegri discussed Weah’s start to life in Turin following an €11 million summer move from Lille.

“Weah is a good option,” said Allegri. “He’s settling in well after just a few months in Italy but I’m happy with the way he’s integrating.”

McKennie and Weah have both appeared in each of Juve’s four Serie A matches this season, truly working as a platoon covering the club’s need at right wingback. Weah started the Bianconeri’s first two matches of the season, with McKennie replacing him late in each. In the more recent pair of games, that dynamic was flipped, with Weah coming in off the bench for McKennie in both.

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USMNT transfer rater: Grading every player’s move this summer

It’s a big summer for the USMNT, with a majority of its key players looking for new clubs

It’s a big summer for the U.S. men’s national team.

We aren’t talking about the Nations League or the Gold Cup here, though those are clearly significant in their own right. Instead, we’re talking about the summer transfer window, which promises to be one of the more active ones in recent memory for the USMNT.

Nearly all of the team’s top players have the potential to change clubs in the summer of 2023. With three years to go until a World Cup on home soil, the decisions USMNT players make this summer could determine their trajectory ahead of 2026.

With that in mind, we are tracking and rating all of the most significant completed moves for USMNT players this summer.

The Americans Abroad Five: Pulisic takes Serie A by storm

It’s early, but €20 million is looking like a real bargain for the USMNT star

It’s extremely early, but some Chelsea fans are already starting to have some regrets over letting Christian Pulisic go.

You can’t totally blame them. Though it is, once again, very early, you can’t really do better than Pulisic’s start at AC Milan: two games, two star performances, two goals and two wins.

At €20 million, Pulisic is certainly looking like a true bargain in a market where, to pick one completely random example, a club in west London paid €100 million for an unproven winger from the Ukrainian league.

As Milan captain Davide Calabria put it: “This is the best environment for him — the squad, the fans and this stadium — in order to to steal the limelight again.”

So far, it’s hard to argue with Calabria. Let’s get to the Five.

The Americans Abroad Five: A fresh start for Brenden Aaronson

There are some early signs of positivity in Aaronson’s loan at Union Berlin

Last season was rough on Brenden Aaronson.

After a promising start with Leeds, the U.S. national team attacker faded badly down the stretch en route to an ugly outcome for both player and team.

For Aaronson? Just one goal and three assists in more than 2,300 league minutes. For Leeds? Relegation.

Though a season in the Championship could have had its benefits for the 22-year-old, the chance to join a Bundesliga side in the Champions League was clearly too good to pass up.

It’s obviously way too soon to judge Aaronson’s loan with Union Berlin, but there are at least some early signs of positivity. Let’s look at Aaronson’s Bundesliga debut to kick off the Five this week.

Weah’s first Juventus goal assisted by suddenly rejuvenated McKennie

Juventus may feature two USMNT players this season after all

Timothy Weah is off the mark for Juventus, and his first goal for the club was assisted by a familiar figure.

Weah and his U.S. national team compatriot Weston McKennie teamed up for Juve’s second goal in a 3-1 preseason win over Real Madrid on Wednesday.

The two players combined in the 20th minute at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, with McKennie taking a pass from Federico Chiesa into the box before cutting the ball across for Weah, who was left with a simple finish in front of goal.

It was Weah’s first goal for Juventus, which he joined this summer from Lille in a move that could be worth upwards of €13 million.

McKennie’s involvement in the goal was notable not just for the connection with his USMNT teammate, but also because the Texan appears to be back in the mix for Juventus after he was reportedly frozen out just last month.

Multiple reports in July stated that the 24-year-old — who spent the second half of last season on loan at Leeds — was set to be excluded from the club’s U.S. preseason tour as Juventus looked to sell him as quickly as possible.

McKennie was, of course, very much not excluded from the club’s preseason tour of the U.S., as he started two of the three games. Juventus has now reportedly had a change of heart on the midfielder, with the club open to him staying.

After McKennie was named man of the match against Real Madrid, Juventus head coach Massimiliano Allegri had praise for both of his American players.

“McKennie had a good game today and I’m very happy,” the coach said. “Weah was a bit more tired, but he is a guy who has good qualities and will be very useful for the team.”

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USMNT winger Tim Weah joins Juventus from Lille

The 23-year-old is making the move to Serie A, where his father starred for AC Milan

U.S. national team star Tim Weah has completed a move to Juventus.

Weah joins Juve after spending four seasons with Lille, where he won the Ligue 1 title in the 2020-21 season.

In a press release, Juventus said it would pay the French side a €10.3 million fee over two years for Weah, plus a maximum of €2.1m in add-ons and a €1m commission.

Weah has signed a contract through 2028 with Juventus, where he will link up with USMNT teammate Weston McKennie — at least for now. After spending the back half of last season on loan at Leeds, McKennie has been tipped to potentially leave Juventus permanently this summer.

During his time with Lille, Weah became a valuable contributor due to his versatility. Weah played several attacking roles for the French outfit, but this past season saw him converted into a fullback capable of playing on either side.

At Juventus, he is expected to continue as a wingback in Max Allegri’s 3-5-2 formation.

Weah’s move to Italy also sees him join the league where his father George Weah became a global superstar in the 1990s.

The elder Weah — who now happens to be the president of Liberia —  won the Ballon d’Or in 1995 while playing for AC Milan. To this date, he is still the only African player to win the award.

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USMNT’s Weah reportedly on the brink of Juventus transfer

It’s apparently down to the final details over Weah’s move to Turin

The promise of a busy summer transfer window for much of the U.S. men’s national team is becoming a reality.

Tim Weah is reportedly on his way to Juventus, with Gianluca Di Marzio and The Athletic reporting that the USMNT forward has agreed to a five-year contract. The Serie A giants and Weah’s current club Lille are said to have reached a verbal agreement over a €12 million transfer fee.

Per the report, the final steps in the process may boil down to whether that €12 million is paid in one lump sum, or if it’s split between a €10 million fee up front followed by €2 million arriving as a bonus of some sort down the road.

Weah’s move to Italy might spark a bit of nostalgia in the country, as his father George (before he became literally the president of Liberia) won the 1995 Ballon d’Or and two Serie A championships playing for AC Milan. Back in March, Weah expressed an openness to follow in his father’s footsteps there, but it appears he’s going to end up at one of their most formidable rivals instead.

New club, new role?

Reports of Weah’s move to Turin have been buzzing in the days following the USMNT’s CONCACAF Nations League triumph. That said, the first-choice U.S. right winger figures to be signing on for a different role with Juventus.

Manager Max Allegri prizes fluidity in his team, but the base of his tactical approach has largely been a 3-5-2 formation. Juventus has interest in wingbacks who can function as wingers, and Weah — who finished the USMNT’s 2-0 Nations League final win over Canada as a wingback in a 5-4-1 — is high on their list for precisely this reason.

That adjustment doesn’t figure to impact his USMNT role under returning coach Gregg Berhalter, but it may see Weah rotated more regularly than he was at Lille. Between Allegri’s system requiring a prodigious amount of running from wingbacks and Juve being linked with Leicester City fullback Timothy Castagne, Weah likely won’t be playing 35-plus league matches a season with the Bianconeri.

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Weah says he hopes Berhalter returns as USMNT coach

Another key USMNT player backs Berhalter

The U.S. men’s national team is still without a permanent coach, but forward Tim Weah knows who he’d like to see get the full-time job.

Speaking with TUDN during the USMNT’s camp for their upcoming CONCACAF Nations League knockout matches, Weah voiced his support for former head coach Gregg Berhalter.

Asked about the development of a stronger mentality in high-pressure games against Mexico — like the Nations League semifinal coming up on June 15 in Las Vegas — Weah gave the credit to his old coach.

“I think this question takes me back to Gregg. These past few games [against Mexico], Gregg has really kept us together,” said Weah. “Gregg, B.J., the whole staff, has really kept us as a unit. I think that’s what is our main focal point, it’s that we’re definitely a family. And no one can take that away.

“Gregg really helped us form this type of relationship with each other. So, he was a huge, huge, important part of this team. So hopefully, hopefully he comes back.”

In CONCACAF’s most ferocious rivalry, the USMNT — currently under the stewardship of interim coach B.J. Callaghan — has claimed an edge, going unbeaten over nearly four calendar years. In particular, the USMNT won three huge matches between the sides in 2021: the Nations League final, the Gold Cup final, and a World Cup qualifier in November of that year.

If Mexico doesn’t beat the USMNT next week, it will mark six straight matches in the rivalry without an El Tri win, tying the longest such run in the rivalry’s history (a six-game spell from August 2011 to April 2015).

Berhalter’s situation with the USMNT is an unprecedented one, with the coach meeting pre-tournament expectations at the 2022 World Cup before seeing his contract end while U.S. Soccer was in the midst of a review process of the entire qualifying cycle.

Before the federation could finish that process, a scandal involving Gio Reyna’s playing time, his very angry parents, and a long-buried instance of domestic violence broke into full public view, leaving Berhalter’s position very much in question.

Compounding the situation, U.S. Soccer’s leadership has seen significant change. In January, sporting director Earnie Stewart left the federation for a prominent role at PSV, while Brian McBride’s time as USMNT general manager also came to an end. U.S. Soccer announced in April that they had hired Matt Crocker away from Southampton to take over the sporting director job, but the native of Wales doesn’t start in his position on a full-time basis until August.

Callaghan isn’t even the federation’s first interim coach amid all of this change. Anthony Hudson held the job for a few months before being announced as the new head coach at Qatari club Al Markhiya on Tuesday.

In backing Berhalter — who has never ruled a return out — Weah joins a growing list of USMNT players who have voiced their support. Christian Pulisic has stumped for Berhalter on multiple occasions, while Matt Turner and Antonee Robinson have also characterized their experiences under Berhalter as positive.

On the other hand, Joe Scally and Matt Miazga have offered hints that they’d prefer someone else be in charge. Thierry Henry and Pellegrino Matarazzo are among the big names to acknowledge some level of interest in becoming Berhalter’s full-time successor.

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The Americans Abroad Five: The low point for Christian Pulisic

It’s gone from bad to worse for the USMNT star

Christian Pulisic has hit the nadir of his club career.

Injuries have impacted the U.S. national team star far too often in recent seasons but when healthy, he’s pretty much always played.

Not anymore.

The culprit has ironically been Frank Lampard, the manager under whom Pulisic has had he most success during his time at Chelsea. This time around as caretaker manager, Lampard has played Pulisic in just two of his seven games in charge.

Pulisic was shut out again in both of Chelsea’s matches this past week, including a game in which he was a healthy scratch for a Premier League matchday squad for the first time this season.

How have things got this bad? Does the winger deserve to be benched so often? Let’s take a look to lead off this week’s Five.