USMNT Player Tracker: Pulisic clicks, Tillman strikes, and Balogun's bragging rights

Christian Pulisic boarded the flight to Atlanta having finally rediscovered his creative spark, Malik Tillman tucked away a timely Bundesliga goal, and Folarin Balogun landed Stateside with fresh bragging rights over club-mate Tanner Tessmann after Monaco’s 2-1 win at Lyon. The weekend across Europe offered plenty for Gregg Berhalter to ponder ahead of Saturday’s friendly against Belgium at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Pulisic’s first assist of 2026 arrived in AC Milan’s 3-2 defeat of Torino, a result that keeps the Rossoneri within six points of city rivals Inter in the Serie A title race. More encouraging still, the tension that flared last weekend between the American winger and Rafael Leao appeared to have cooled. After a reported dressing-room row following the Lazio loss, Saturday’s choreographed celebration—half the squad mimicking Pulisic’s trademark arm-cross, the other half copying Leao’s pose—was a deliberate show of unity. Manager Massimiliano Allegri dismissed the earlier spat as a simple case of a missed pass, insisting Pulisic “didn’t see” Leao and that “it didn’t take much” to smooth things over. With the domestic harmony restored, Pulisic now turns his attention to sharpening his edge on international duty.

Tillman, meanwhile, ended an eight-game Bundesliga drought by slotting home in Bayer Leverkusen’s dramatic 3-3 draw at Heidenheim. The 23-year-old midfielder’s goal was scant consolation for a side that conceded twice in the final five minutes, yet it keeps alive Leverkusen’s push for a top-four finish. “We want to make it into the top four—that’s our clear goal,” Tillman said after the match, refusing to let the late collapse derail Champions League ambitions.

Balogun arrives in camp boasting the weekend’s most decisive contribution, converting a 72nd-minute penalty to complete Monaco’s comeback at Lyon. The strike was his ninth in Ligue 1 this season—he also has four assists—and stretched Monaco’s unbeaten run to seven matches, six of them victories. Tessmann, on the losing side for Lyon, will have to endure some good-natured ribbing from his U.S. colleague when the squad reconvenes.

Ricardo Pepi’s hopes of staking a claim were dented as PSV slipped to a surprise defeat against Telstar, the striker failing to score, while Tim Weah filled in at right-back for Marseille in their 2-1 loss to Lille, underlining the positional versatility Berhalter values. Weston McKennie, another multi-role option, will also be in Atlanta, giving the coach a wealth of European-based talent to assess against a talented Belgian side.