Ricardo Pepi had a chance at one of European soccer's top five leagues early in his career. However, for FC Augsburg, the striker failed to score in 15 Bundesliga games. The USMNT player has rebuilt his reputation in the Eredivisie with FC Groningen and now PSV Eindhoven.
This season for PSV, Pepi scored 11 goals, with two assists in eight Eredivisie games. However, his campaign was cut short by a knee injury. Pepi's form has seen him linked with Liverpool and West Ham United, but now another team from the Premier League has noticed the forward.
Mike McGrath of The Daily Telegraph posted on X: "Fulham have concrete interest in USMNT striker Ricardo Pepi. The 22yo out since January with knee injury but expected to return nxt season. Primary target but will be a competitive market for the PSV striker, who is an ambitious player."
Pepi has proved himself in the Eredivisie, but it could now be time for him to test himself at the highest level in Europe once again. However, there will be concerns as to how much game time Pepi will get at Fulham, especially as he is expected to succeed Luuk de Jong as PSV's first-choice striker.
At Fulham, Pepi would be competing with Raúl Jiménez and Rodrigo Muniz for a starting role. With the World Cup next year, Pepi may feel it would be better to stay in the Netherlands rather than move to England to ensure he plays regularly.
Johnny Cardoso looks set for Atlético rather than Spurs
Tottenham Hotspur have the option to buy Johnny Cardoso from Real Betis this summer. However, the USMNT midfielder could end up transferring to another La Liga club instead of moving to the Premier League.
The Diario AS journalist Eduardo Burgos has revealed (translated from Spanish), "Atlético de Madrid is very close to reaching an agreement for Johnny Cardoso. Good business for Betis. A transfer close to 30M € . It's a matter of time. In principle, he won't make it to the Club World Cup. Tottenham will take a share of the transfer fee."
A transfer to Atlético could be better for Johnny as they earned their place in the Champions League on merit this season by finishing third in La Liga. Spurs finished as low as 17th in the Premier League but qualified for European soccer's top competition by winning the Europa League.
There are also concerns as to how long Ange Postecoglou will remain as the Tottenham manager. Whilst Diego Simeone has been in charge at Atlético since 2011. It is a shame that we will not see Johnny at the Club World Cup in the United States this summer. However, the midfielder will need time to get used to playing in Simeone's system.
Paxten Aaronson will get a chance at Eintracht Frankfurt
Paxten Aaronson impressed on loan at FC Utrecht from Eintracht Frankfurt this season, scoring eight goals, with four assists in 33 Eredivisie matches. This was the midfielder's second spell in Dutch soccer after also spending time on loan at Vitesse Arnhem.
Aaronson has only played 22 times for Frankfurt, but he is set to get an opportunity for them in the Bundesliga next season. According to Christopher Michel of Absolut Fussball (translated from German). "Aaronson will also be back at SGE after his successful loan spell and will be given a fair chance. He has significantly increased his market value, has been involved in 12 league goals, and has improved enormously in his defensive work."
Aaronson has just one cap for the USMNT, which came in a 0-0 draw with Colombia back in 2023. If the player can impress in the Bundesliga, then it will force Mauricio Pochettino to recall him for the Stars and Stripes.