Nine members of the U.S. Men's National Team wrote their names on the scoresheet in quality and quantity last week.
They combined for an impressive 13 goals on either side of the Atlantic in one of the most productive weeks in recent memory for the USMNT pool.
Jordan Pefok led the way with three tallies in two matches. Haji Wright bagged a brace and Jordan Morris hit the back of the net in consecutive playoff matches. Gianluca Busio, Jesús Ferreira, Ricardo Pepi, Kevin Paredes, Malik Tillman, and Alejandro Zendejas also contributed one goal apiece.
Jordan Pefok enjoyed a memorable week for Borussia Mönchengladbach, scoring three goals. He started off with a brace in a 3-1 home victory over Heidenheim in the DFB Pokal on Tuesday, Oct. 31. He struck quickly, boosting the hosts into a two-goal advantage with goals in the third and ninth minutes.
USMNT's Jordan Pefok with a first-half brace for Borussia Monchengladbach in the DFB-Pokal. 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/tuxkWuO7Qs
— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) October 31, 2023
On Saturday, Nov. 4, he again struck for Borussia's first goal, tying the match at 1-1 off Lucas Holer's header pass at Freiburg in the 25th minute. He then won a penalty kick by being fouled in the box as Julian Weigl converted the spot kick in the 39th minute. However, the 27-year-old forward was forced from the game four minutes later with an adductor injury. Pefok has four goals and two assists in 11 matches across all competitions this season.
Gianluca Busio's second goal of the season was enough for Venezia in its 1-0 victory at Ternana on Saturday, Nov. 4. On a counterattack in the 74th minute, Busio buried Dennis Johnsen's pass into the bottom right corner for the only score of the match. Venezia, which has won four of its last five matches, is in second place in Italy's Serie B.
Malik Tillman and Ricardo Pepi entered the match inl the second half and made an impact in PSV's 6-0 road triumph at 10-man Heracles on Saturday, Nov. 4. Only 10 minutes after coming on, Tillman scored after taking a pass from Joey Veerman for his fourth of the Dutch Eredivisie season for a 3-0 margin.
Our 🇺🇸 goalscorers 😍 pic.twitter.com/E4CBqaskRt
— PSV (@PSV) November 4, 2023
Pepi entered the match on the hour before he assisted on Andre Silva’s tally nine minutes later for a 4-0 advantage. The former FC Dallas standout continued his production as a high-scoring super sub by finding the net for the final goal in the 90th minute. Pepi has three goals in 130 minutes in league play for first-place PSV.
Haji Wright had the first and last words for Coventry City, but it wasn't enough in a 3-2 defeat at Preston North End in English Premier League action on Saturday, Nov. 4. He gave City a 1-0 lead, scoring from close range in the 34th minute before the hosts stormed back with three consecutive goals. Wright connected for his fourth tally of the campaign to pull City within one in the 83rd minute.
HAJI WRIGHT SCORESSSSSS! 💥 pic.twitter.com/FItyOcdShM
— Coventry City (@Coventry_City) November 4, 2023
Kevin Paredes could not have picked a better time to score his first goal of the Bundesliga season in Wolfsburg's 2-2 home draw with Werder Bremen on Sunday, Nov. 5. Paredes gave Wolfsburg a 2-1 edge in the 59th minute off a Lovro Majer assist.
59' Nach einer Hereingabe von Maehle, leitet Majer per Hacke weiter, Paredes vollendet! 🔥 Super, Jungs! 🔥#WOBSVW 2:1 https://t.co/MNccXabJu1 pic.twitter.com/uYTfWWWIuX
— VfL Wolfsburg (@VfL_Wolfsburg) November 5, 2023
Alejandro Zendejas sparked Club America to a 3-0 win over Tijuana as he scored the first goal in the 73rd minute in the Liga MX encounter on Saturday, Nov. 4. Zendejas put in Henry Martin's feed for his fifth goal of the season for first-place America.
ALEX ZENDEJAS scored again for Club America Saturday, via a lovely assist. Now 3 goals in 4 games for Zendejas. 🔥🇺🇸pic.twitter.com/IX2voIWWED
— Men in Blazers (@MenInBlazers) November 5, 2023
Jesús Ferreira and Jordan Morris are doing their best to ensure their respective teams will reach the MLS Eastern Conference semifinals. Morris scored in both games of the Seattle Sounders' first-round series with FC Dallas. He helped Seattle to a 2-0 home victory by collecting the insurance goal off an assist by Nouhou Tolo in Game One in the 74th minute on Monday, Oct. 30.
Flex on 'em JMo. 💪
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) November 5, 2023
Jordan Morris cuts the deficit in half early.#Sounders // Audi #MLSCupPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/Y0cwxpndbW
In Game Two on Saturday, Nov. 4, FC Dallas knotted the series at 1-1 as Ferreira tallied his first postseason goal of his career. He converted an 18th-minute penalty kick to give the hosts a two-goal advantage en route to a 3-1 win. FC Dallas is 9-1-0 in 2023 MLS action when Ferreira scores. Morris sliced the lead in half with an unassisted goal in the 48th minute. The teams will meet in the deciding match in Seattle on Friday, Nov. 10.
Jesus Ferreira doubles the @FCDallas lead from the spot! #DTID // Audi #MLSCupPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/KRlnK9U2ia
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) November 5, 2023
Johnny Cardoso set up Internacional’s second goal of its 2-1 victory at Cruzeiro in Brazilian Serie A on Sunday, Nov. 5. He assisted Wanderson's 52nd-minute score, which gave the visitors a two-goal advantage.
📽️ O replay do golaço de Wandeco! 🤩
— Sport Club Internacional (@SCInternacional) November 5, 2023
Johnny desarmou, esperou e serviu. Wanderson engatilhou, driblou e guardou! ⚽️🇦🇹 pic.twitter.com/XXYlHd9yHB
He didn't score during regulation, but striker Brandon Vazquez converted a vital penalty kick during the shootout to boost FC Cincinnati to the Eastern Conference semifinals of the MLS Cup Playoffs on Saturday, Nov. 4.
The Supporters' Shield winners won the 10-round marathon tie-breaker, 8-7, after playing to a 1-1 draw after 90 minutes at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, N.J. Vazquez connected on FC Cincy's fourth attempt.
On the other side of the ledger, left back John Tolkin, who put away a dramatic late penalty kick to lift the Red Bulls into the postseason in a 1-0 win at Nashville SC on Oct. 21, fired his try off the post. Cincinnati will meet the winner of the Philadelphia Union-New England Revolution series.
Kellyn Acosta and Timmy Tillman will get an opportunity to compete in the Western Conference semifinals of the MLS playoffs after Los Angeles FC eliminated the Vancouver Whitecaps in two games in the best-of-three first round series.
LAFC defeated the host Whitecaps, 1-0, on Sunday, Nov. 5, after registering a 5-2 triumph in the opening match. LAFC will play the winner of the Seattle-Dallas series.
In the first meeting between the Aaronson brothers, Paxten's Eintracht Frankfurt's side registered a 3-0 win at Union Berlin on Saturday, Nov. 4. Neither player had much time to make an impact. Brenden came on as a substitute in the 83rd minute, and Paxten entered the match two minutes later.
#30 🔄 #7
— Eintracht Frankfurt (@Eintracht) November 4, 2023
First brother revival in the @Bundesliga_DE! 🤜🤛
–––––#FCUSGE 0:3 | #SGE pic.twitter.com/4F7Gky5VWB
As a substitute in the 2-0 win over Viktoria Köln in the DFB Pokal on Wednesday, Nov. 1, Paxten came in the 82nd minute and picked up an assist on Ansgar Knauff's goal eight minutes later.
