It wasn’t long ago that Josh Sargent scored his first Bundesliga goal with his first touch of the ball against Fortuna Düsseldorf. Scoring was a “dream come true” for the young American, and a further step towards achieving big things in the future.
It wasn’t long ago that Josh Sargent scored his first Bundesliga goal with his first touch of the ball against Fortuna Düsseldorf. Scoring was a “dream come true” for the young American, and a further step towards achieving big things in the future.
It was a big decision for Sargent to leave the US at just 17 years of age, and to come to Germany with the hope of becoming a Bundesliga player. One thing in particular helped him when he first took to the training pitch: “Being given advice by people like Claudio Pizarro and Max Kruse. The gameplay in Germany is a lot quicker than back home, so it’s good when you can get help.”
The first months at Werder were characterised by hard work, some necessary patience and gaining match experience playing in the fourth division. Sargent, however, felt that “Florian Kohfeldt had a clear plan for me” from the very first minute. That was crucial, as well as getting into a rhythm of playing games.
Despite Kohfeldt’s plan, it was still relatively surprising when Sargent was selected in the squad to play Fortuna Düsseldorf in Matchday 14. “He totally deserved it with his performances in training,” said the Werder coach at the time of Sargent’s call-up. The 18-year-old showed that this was the right decision in the 78th minute, scoring his first Bundesliga goal to give Werder a 3-1 lead. In the final game of the year against Leipzig, the young American again found himself on the scoresheet, shortly after being substituted on.
I’m only just starting my career and there’s still a lot more to comeJoshua Sargent
Sargent has made it his target in 2019 to be an option for the squad every game. “I’ve got to try to give my best and fight hard for a spot in the team,” explains the striker. The young US international is confident for the future: “I’m only just starting my career, and there’s still a lot more to come.” In his first year at Werder, Josh Sargent has definitely shown the willingness and requirements it takes to become a top player.
