USA Forward Patrick Agyemang Will Miss 2026 World Cup With Achilles Injury

United States men’s national team forward Patrick Agyemang will miss his home World Cup after suffering a serious Achilles tendon injury. Agyemang plays internationally for Derby, and injured his Achilles in their match on Monday. Agyemang was visibly emotional when he was stretchered off, with his right leg strapped, after landing awkwardly in Derby’s 2-0 victory over Stoke in the second-tier English Championship on Monday. Derby confirmed on Tuesday that the striker would miss soccer’s biggest tournament, which is being held in the United States, Canada and Mexico in June and July. “As a result of this injury, Patrick will unfortunately miss this summer’s FIFA World Cup,” Derby said in a statement. “At this stage it would be wrong to put a timeline on his recovery.” [World Cup Title Favorites, Sleepers, Debut Teams? All 48 Teams By Tiers] The club added that Agyemang would undergo more tests later on Tuesday and “further updates will be communicated in due course,” once the extent of the injury and a potential recovery timeline are known. Agyemang has helped Derby into contention for promotion to the Premier League thanks to a team-leading 10 goals since arriving last summer from Charlotte in Major League Soccer. During the recent international break, he came off the bench for the United States and scored in a loss against Belgium and also got some minutes against Portugal. The Associated Press contributed to this report.