Americans Abroad: Haji Wright and Coventry City earn Premier League promotion while Folarin Balogun is on the verge of Ligue 1 history

Haji Wright hasn't been excellent all season. This has not been a dominant campaign, where the American takes over every game, dribbling at defenders and being a constant menace. Instead, Wright has become something more deadly. His role has evolved into that of a poacher. He rarely strays outside of the 18-yard box and is at his most effective when ghosting into space. Coventry boss Frank Lampard has turned him into a far more refined No. 9, with every one of his 16 goals coming from inside the box.

And that's where his value really lies. Wright has been a tweener between forward and winger throughout his career. Most managers haven't really tried to get the best out of him, but Lampard realized he had a talent on his hands here. And he has enough creative players floating about to channel the best out of the U.S. international. The result? Wright is playing a key role in Coventry's best season in recent memory. They achieved promotion Friday night with a gutsy 1-1 draw against Blackburn. Wright didn't start. But it didn't matter. Coventry will be playing Premier League football next year, and an American has been absolutely vital in their efforts.

Numbers don't lie, and Folarin Balogun's are telling a pretty clear story right now. There is no striker in Europe in better form than the USMNT forward, and this weekend provided more evidence of that fact.

With his goal this weekend against Auxerre, Balogun continued a run that has now reached eight straight Ligue 1 matches with a goal. He has 10 in his last 10 games in all competitions. For the last few months, he's essentially been unstoppable, even if this weekend's was the least impressive of the bunch, considering that it came from the penalty spot.

It helped Monaco earn a big point, too. They were down 2-0 to Auxerre, but Balogun's goal, along with an Ansu Fati finish three minutes earlier, earned Monaco a come-from-behind point.

They will have wanted more considering how tight Ligue 1's race for European spots has gotten, but they'll surely take it considering where they were through the first half of Sunday's match. If Balogun keeps scoring, Monaco have a chance, and more importantly, he could make history. If he scores in one more match, he will tie the Ligue 1 record set by Vahid Halilhodzic (1984-85) and Zlatan Ibrahimovic (2015-16). If these last few weeks are anything to go by, Balogun will likely continue

Balogun wasn't the only American getting his name on the scoresheet this weekend. Several of his teammates scored or set up goals, too.

On Saturday, Aaronson and Leeds inched closer to solidifying Premier League safety this weekend, and the American played his part in this latest push: a 3-0 win over Wolves. It was the Aaronson's cross to Noah Okafor that really opened the game up, and Leeds never looked back, adding a stoppage-time penalty from Dominic Calvert-Lewin to bury the soon-to-be-relegated Wolves.

McKennie was a provider this weekend, too, setting up Juventus' second goal in a win over Bologna. The assist was his sixth in Serie A this season. It also marks his second consecutive game with a goal contribution after scoring against Genoa last time out.

And, finally, a player that doesn't normally pop up on the scoresheet, but has also had his fair share of attacking moments this season: Scally. The Borussia Monchengladbach defender scored in his side's 1-1 draw with Mainz and now quietly has five goal contributions this season as he continues his World Cup push.

There was history made this weekend, as Pellegrino Matarazzo became the first American coach to win a trophy in a top five league.

The New Jersey-born coach led Real Sociedad to victory in the Copa del Rey final as they took down another American, Johnny Cardoso, and Atletico Madrid. After scoring just 14 seconds in, setting a tournament record, Real Sociedad saw their mettle tested before winning the trophy in a penalty shootout.

It's another major accomplishment for Matarazzo, who has already made an incredible impact in Spain. He took charge of the club in December, which was 16th at the time, and now has the team in seventh place with a major trophy in hand.

In the end, Milan got the result that allowed them to exhale a bit. After losing two of their prior three games, they surely needed it. A 1-0 win over Hellas Verona was exactly what the doctor ordered at this point in the season.

Christian Pulisic played a small part in it. He wasn't involved in the goal, but he was somewhat involved. There were plenty of touches but no real moments of danger. Fortunately for Milan, they only needed one of those, and Adrien Rabiot buried it just a few minutes before halftime.

With this result, Milan are in second, level with third-place Napoli. More crucially, they're eight points ahead of fifth-place Como, who are sitting just outside of those four Champions League spots with five games left in the season. Earning a spot in Europe's top competition is Milan's big aim this season, and they took a step closer with a big win this weekend.

+ It was hardly a thriller between Brentford and Fulham, but Antonee Robinson turned in a solid 25 minutes in a 0-0 draw.

+ Tyler Adams' midfield contributions were vital as Bournemouth picked up a big three points with a 2-1 win over Newcastle.

+ Tanner Tessamnn came off the bench to help Lyon seal a win over Ligue 1 leaders PSG.

+ Daryl Dike scored a feel-good goal as he scored his first goal of the season against Preston North End. It was his first since May 2025.

+ Malik Tillman played 10 minutes in Bayer Leverkusen's 2-1 loss to Augsburg.

+ Tim Weah was a half-time sub but made little impact in Marseille's 2-0 loss to Lorient.

+ Yunus Musah did not appear in Atalanta's 1-1 draw with Roma.

+ Rokas Pukstas played 83 minutes as Hajduk Split managed a 2-2 tie against Slaven.

+ Aidan Morris had a strong game in midfield, but Middlesbrough gave away a late penalty to draw, 2-2, with Ipswich Town.

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