The United States men’s national team will be without talented forward Josh Sargent for the upcoming friendlies against Wales and Panama.
Sargent was set to add to his 12 appearances for the USMNT but failed to get permission from his club Werder Bremen to join the national side. According to the Bundesliga side, the decision was made due to safety and health protocols related to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
“We know that the players would like to join up with their teams, but we cannot take that risk this time, given the overall situation,” said the club’s sporting director Frank Baumann.
Sargent has been enjoying an encouraging start of the 2020/21 season with Werder, making seven appearances in all competition and scoring twice. The 20-year-old player has eight goals in total since making his pro debut in 2019.
USMNT will mostly rely on players from Europe for the upcoming friendlies due to travel restrictions between the continent and the United States. There is a chance that several players from MLS join in the roster, but in that case, they will be selected from teams that don’t participate in the playoffs.
The first friendly against Wales is set for November 12 in Swansea, while the game against Panama takes place four days later in Austria.
