McIntyre's USMNT Stock Watch: Gyasi Zardes up, Matt Miazga down

It was a relatively quiet seven days for U.S. men’s national team players with their clubs in Europe or MLS, with the exception of one red-hot forward and a recently demoted defender.

With year-ending games against England and Italy approaching next month, here’s a look at whose USMNT stock is rising or falling this week:

Trending up

F Gyasi Zardes, Columbus Crew (MLS)

Zardes completed his career season in style on Sunday, netting a Decision Day hat trick in a 3-2 win over Minnesota United to finish with 19 goals, six more than another other American.

Takeaway: U.S. fans love to hate on Zardes but he was lights-out in his first season in Columbus, where coach Gregg Berhalter has used him exclusively as a striker. With few other options up top — Jozy Altidore is hurt yet again and Josh Sargent (more on him below) still hasn’t made his first team club debut — Zardes could be in line to start next month’s year-ending friendlies against England and Italy depending on when the Crew’s playoff run ends. And at 27, with 40 caps, Zardes is young and experienced enough to be a regular for this entire cycle, whether Berhalter ends up as USMNT coach or not.

D Antonee Robinson, Wigan (English League Championship)

After sitting out last week’s loss at Millwall upon his return from international duty, Robinson returned to Wigan’s starting lineup and went the distance in Saturday’s 4-2 loss to first place Sheffield United. Despite the scoreline, the 21-year-old wasn’t at fault on any of Sheffield’s goals.

Takeaway: Robinson continues to make progress on loan from Premier League Everton, starting 13 of Wigan’s 15 matches so far, a run of games that has helped him lock down the starting left back spot under interim U.S. coach Dave Sarachan.

D Cameron Carter-Vickers, Swansea City (English League Championship)

The 20-year-old, on loan from Tottenham Hotspur, played 90 minutes in a midweek win over Blackburn, then entered off the bench in the second half of Saturday’s 2-0 victory against Reading.

Takeaway: It’s good to see Carter-Vickers getting minutes on the back of his strong performance for the U.S. against Peru on Oct. 16; before the international break, the English-raised center back had been a unused sub for Wigan for five straight contests.

D John Brooks, Wolfsburg (German Bundesliga)

Brooks is quietly in the midst of a career season, his second in Wolfsburg. After missing most of 2017-18 through injury, the 25-year-old has played every minute across all competitions for his club during the current campaign, including Saturday’s 3-0 win over Fortuna Dusseldorf.

Takeaway: Already the top center back in the U.S. player pool, the Berlin-born Brooks can take his game to another level this season if he remains healthy. With Matt Miazga now not playing in France (more on him below, too), an in-form Brooks will be even more important to the Americans chances with the England and Italy games being played on European soil.

F Andrew Wooten, Sandhausen (German 2. Bundesliga)

The German-American has four goals in eight games (just five of them starts) this season, including three strikes in Sandhausen’s last two matches.

Takeaway: Wooten’s lone U.S. cap came over three years ago, and he’ll be 33 when the 2022 World Cup in Qatar kicks off. That probably makes a recall a long shot. That said, the Americans lack of depth at forward means you never know.

Trending down

D Matt Miazga, Nantes (French Ligue 1)

Miazga broke into Nantes first team under coach Miguel Cardoso a week after arriving on loan from Chelsea, but he has not dressed for Les Canaris since a 3-0 loss to Bordeaux on Oct. 7.

Takeaway: The Bordeaux game was also the first for the club under new manager Vahid Halilhodzic who, after demoting Miazga, has led Nantes to consecutive wins. None of this is good for the national team or the New Jersey native, who could be searching for a new employer come January if he doesn’t break back into Halilhodzic’s team.

D Shaq Moore, Reus (Spanish Segunda Division)

On loan from La Liga’s Levante, the 21-year-old left back has made just three starts for Reus this season, and he’s been left on the bench for the club’s last two games.

Takeaway: Moore wasn’t summoned by Sarachan for the October games against Peru and Colombia, and Reggie Cannon’s emergence means he might have a tough time breaking back into the U.S. squad if Cannon and FC Dallas are out of the MLS playoffs by then.

F Josh Sargent, Werder Bremen (German Bundesliga)

More than a week after Bremen boss Florian Kohfeldt said that Sargent would be promoted from the club’s under-23 side, it still hasn’t happened: the 18 year-old striker was not in Kohfeldt’s squad for Saturday’s 6-2 spanking by Bayer Leverkusen.

Takeaway: The lopsided loss can’t hurt Sargent’s chances of getting his opportunity soon. It could happen as early as Wednesday, when Werder travels to fourth-tier Weiche Flensburg for a German Cup tilt.

Doug McIntyre covers soccer for Yahoo Sports. Follow him on Twitter @ByDougMcIntyre.

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