Josh Sargent: The prolific USA striker keen to make his mark at Werder Bremen
Having taken a few months to get used to his new surroundings in Germany, Josh Sargent will be eligible to play for Werder Bremen in the upcoming Bundesliga season. The USA international has been living the dream so far early in his career, and the next step will be to show Green-Whites supporters that he can live up to the hype.
Josh Sargent
Age: 18
Club: Werder Bremen
Position: Striker
Country: USA (Three caps, one goal)
Key stats
Still filling out at 6’0”, Sargent has been prolific at every level he has played at so far. He scored 19 times for US youth teams in 2017, finding the net four times at the under-20 World Cup and playing a captain’s starring role with three goals in the under-17 version.
The Missouri native agreed a deal with Bremen last September, and the U.S. Soccer Young Male Player of the Year for 2017 put pen to paper on his first professional contract with the club when he turned 18 in February. In May, Sargent made his senior debut at international level in a 3-0 win over Bolivia, and he marked the occasion by becoming the fifth-youngest player in U.S. history to get on the scoresheet.
Bremen’s new number 19 scored his first goal for the senior team in July, and soon afterwards he hit the target again against Czech opposition in another pre-season friendly. All of that combined suggests that it won’t be long before the talented teen starts rattling the net in the German top flight.
Plays a bit like: Robert Lewandowski
Sargent has a similar frame to one of the top 10 goalscorers in Bundesliga history – Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski. He’s the same height as the Polish international, and like the man who has finished top of the scoring charts in Germany on three occasions, he’s a slender, mobile frontman who can finish well with both feet. The youngster from O’Fallon is only starting out at the top level, but he would do well to the exploits of the lethal Lewandowski.
Did you know?
Along with Paris Saint-Germain's Tim Weah, Sargent was the first player born this millennium to start a game for the USA's senior team.
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What they’re saying
"The first thing I recognised was not something like skills or technical things - it was his mentality on the pitch. How he’s talking to his teammates, how he was running for every ball… he was a team player." - Werder Bremen scouting director Tim Steidten
"Scoring goals made me happy so I just wanted to keep doing it. It came naturally to me. I just love the feeling so it’s what I love to do still to this day." - Sargent
"Josh plays in a position where we don't have such a big selection to choose from. Now the question is whether he can cope with the step up in terms of pace and physicality at this level. I've got a good feeling with him at Bremen. It's a family club and it's a good environment for him." - USA interim manager Dave Sarachan