While you might ultimately be right, I would argue that the EPL is a much tougher league than the Bundesliga these days, and to say that Sunderland/Hull were poor fits for getting the most out of Jozy's skill set would be a massive understatement. Jozy has done a lot of impressive things in his club career and for the national team. I will be happy if Sargent can do that well, though I think he has the upside to be better.
I think the culprit was an old one: When the opposition has a 2-0 goal advantage and they let you have the ball, you get really comfortable with it and stop playing defense in your own end. They stopped playing (defense) and stood stock still while Leipzig played around them and thru them.
They brought him along perfectly. Still are. Bremen have a very good reputation for that as I understand it from others.
Let's see how he does when they start paying attention to him. But Bremen has a great front three scheme that should give him opportunities. I'm hoping they continue using him as a sub for the rest of the year.
Believe me, I'm in the "coach knows what he is doing" camp. But, I had to double check your stats (thought they were exaggerated) but holy crap, Bremen's offense sucks. When the goal leaders (M. Eggestein, Kruse) have only 4 goals a piece half way through the season, that sucks for you as a coach and team. Third is Osako with 3. Josh is the 4th most profilic goal scorer after 50 minutes. Let that sink in. After 17 games, Josh has played 50 minutes and is the 4th most prolific goalscorer. Now, as that sinks in, I could feel the pull of the "coach has had his head in the sand" camp. But, Kohfeldt has spoken highly of Josh all along, I think coach knows what's up and understands Josh's potential. So, these good results for Josh are likely a result of the patience and maturing in becoming a pro over the summer and fall. i.e., good talent combined with good coaching. Man, I can't wait for die Rückrunde. IMHO, this is a golden generation of U23s (heck, U20s). I've never seen anything like this, nothing close to this. Even if some fade with time, this is a really solid group. They can't all fade away.
And....Josh is the only goalscorer at Werder without a Kicker rating. In other words, he hasn't played enough to get rated in a game. The kid has been extremely effective. Yes, the sample size is super small (50 minutes, 3 games). But, I'd much rather see 2 goals vs. no production. Exciting. And yes, his soccer IQ seems to be very good off the ball.
Sargent off the ball movement is something you don't see often in a Yank. Always looking for the hole. I wouldn't give up on Haji yet, either. Those two may become this cycle's strike force.
All Josh has done is taken every single opportunity provided to him and capitalized on them. Dominate the U17 CONCACAF and World Cups, no problem. U20 World Cup at age 17? Silver boot. US senior debut? Goal. Bremen U23s, first pro minutes at age 18...7 goals in 12 appearances. Bundesliga debut? Goal on his first damn touch. And now he continues to reward Bremen's patience and confidence in him with another goal and some really excellent hold up play. This kid is special, and I have no issue at all with how Werder have brought him along. Four months ago he had never kicked a ball in a pro environment, and now he's clearly a 1st team Bundesliga player and has the entire winter break to get more settled with the bunch. He could realistically be an every week starter by March the way this is going, but even a few hundred minutes off the bench would be an excellent start to his career there.
I did not see the game but saw the German highlight show. They mentioned that he has two shots and two goals in his BL career. Nice.
Glückwunsch, @joshsargent! Nach seinem zweiten Bundesliga-Treffer konnte sich der der US-Stürmer auch das erste Mal die "Man of the Match"-Krone unserer Community sichern. #Werder https://t.co/WMVsGNL8kZ— WK Werder (@wk_werder) December 23, 2018 Congratulations, @joshsargent! After his second Bundesliga hit, the US striker was also able to secure our community's Man of the Match crown for the first time. #Werder FIXED.
Kohfeldt on Sargent, Google translated:"Josh did a good job today, much better than Dusseldorf... but he has also occupied spaces that he should not occupy...Despite all the euphoria, he has to get to know a lot more tactical processes in order to be able to play permanently. pic.twitter.com/U28CcxUkkl— USMNT Only (@usmntonly) December 23, 2018
Didnt Jozy also nick his 1st goal for Villarreal at age 18? Hopefully, Josh can add to this. If he were to finish the season with 5 league goals; it would say a lot for him going into the off-season. From what I have seen online; the fans are really digging him.
I'm generally fine with the way Josh is being brought along. That said, his coach sounds less like someone who is trying to keep Josh hungry and grounded and more like a guy who doesn't want to be second-guessed by the fans for Josh's past/future lack of playing time. The professional way to handle this sort of thing is to be supportive of the young player in your praise publicly and share your areas for improvement with player privately.
What a luxury to have a striker who can hold up the ball and finish in the Bundesliga at 18, needing now to focus on tactical improvement.