USMNT roundup: How are key American players faring abroad?

Pulisic is one of several American soccer players in Europe looking to change the stigma his predecessors faced. He's done more work than most on that front; in his current season with AC Milan, Pulisic is on track to deliver his best-ever goalscoring season.

But in last weekend's Serie A matchup against league leaders Atalanta, Pulisic limped off the field with a calf muscle tear. His injury will keep him from playing until mid-January — and that means other American athletes will have to step up in his place.

Here are the USMNT players making the biggest strides in Europe this winter:

Weston McKennie and Tim Weah, Juventus (ITA)

It took a while for McKennie to settle in Italy — he famously offended the nation by putting ranch on pizza and tomatoes on pesto pasta — but he's flying now in his third season in Turin. McKennie scored a decisive goal in the Champions League this week to cap off Juventus' brilliant 2-0 victory over Manchester City. 

Better yet, McKennie's goal was an all-American affair: his countryman Tim Weah provided the assist.

McKennie and Weah are building a healthy partnership together in Italy and their link-up play could be something of a secret weapon for the USMNT in the future. Mauricio Pochettino would do well to watch how Juventus coach Thiago Motta is leveraging them.

Ricardo Pepi, PSV

Poor Pepi doesn't get the respect he deserves from the USMNT fandom. The man scored two decisive goals for the USMNT against Jamaica in his last international appearances and still faced pushback from fans who weren't convinced by his work rate.

If you still have questions about Pepi, let his club stats with PSV Eindhoven be your answers. He's scored 10 goals for the Dutch club this season, more than anyone else in the lineup ... and he's done it with an expected goals tally of just 5.3. 

Talk about a nose for goal: Pepi has found the back of the net 89% more often than his build-up play suggests he should've. For comparison, Arsenal striker Kai Havertz — one of Pepi's closest peers in terms of style, size and competitiveness — has scored 14% fewer times than his expected goals suggest. Pepi is on a roll.

To make his stats even more impressive, Pepi isn't generally played as a starter: coach Peter Bosz likes to use him as an impact substitute deep in the second half. That means that lots of Pepi's goals are last-minute, game-deciding affairs ... including this recent stunner against Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League that won PSV the game in the 95th minute.